A passionate Accredited public relations and certified marketing professional, April M. Phillips seeks to leverage 20 year’s experience and prove success in developing and executing large-scale national integrated marketing campaigns, corporate partnerships and other initiatives to achieve an organization’s desire business outcomes.
April is the national marketing and communications planning director for the American Red Cross Biomedical Services, where she leads national donor marketing and public relations campaign strategy, planning and development aimed at generating blood donation appointments, driving blood product collections and raising awareness of the ongoing need for blood products across the country.
In recent years, she has also deployed to support public affairs in the aftermath of several natural disasters across the Southeast and has served as a national spokesperson on multiple occasions. She joined the Red Cross Biomedical Services in 2007 as a communications associate in Atlanta. Little did she know that what she thought would be a 2-year gig would turn into a 15-year mission-driven career.
In April 2019, April was named one of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) Georgia chapter’s inaugural Forty Under 40 winners, honoring the state’s best and brightest young communications professionals. In 2012, she was named one of Douglas County, Georgia’s, Top 10 Young Professionals by the Douglas County Chamber of Commerce.
She is a member of the Association of National Advertisers, American Marketing Association – Atlanta Chapter and Public Relations Society of American – Georgia Chapter, where she serves as the Accreditation committee co-chair for the nation’s second largest PRSA chapter.
Prior to relocating to the Atlanta area, April worked in marketing and communications for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Northwest Florida and the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (SETAC), in Pensacola, Florida. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in communication arts with an emphasis in public relations from the University of West Florida. (Go Argos!)
PERSONALLY SPEAKING
April resides in the metro-Atlanta area with her partner of 16 years and their two rescue dogs – an opinionated and moody Border collie and the sweetest Australian shepherd you’ll ever meet. When she has time, she enjoys overlanding in their “adventure vehicle,” camping and paddle sports. She is teaching herself to sew and “build stuff” (some may call it woodworking … she’ll get there one day). She’s obsessed with Halloween, but will dress up in costume for any occasion. She is on the board of the Journal of Emerging Investigators, an online peer-reviewed journal that gives middle school and high school students the experience of publishing their original scientific research at no cost to them, and is active in the Junior League of Cobb-Marietta.
April M. Phillips, APR 