5 Questions — April Ward, Creative Content on Demand
Photo courtesy of Creative Content OnDemand.
By Clyde Hughes | AC JosepH Media
CLAYTON — April Ward is the co-owner and co-founder of Creative Content OnDemand and Fruition Life Media, along with being a first-generation Filipino-American.
Ward has enjoyed celebrating her Filipino heritage with the local community while building a successful media business with her husband, James Ward and serving the community as an elected member at Clayton Public School Board of Education.
She worked in the broadcast television industry as a television talk show public affairs senior producer and has a bachelor’s degree in communication studies where she graduated from Widener University in Chester, Pa.
Ward later worked in the public broadcast television industry as a senior producer of television talk shows and public affairs and pledge drive producer. She earned multiple awards for her work on the following talk shows: a Bronze Telly Award for Public Voices and two Awards of Excellence in Broadcasting from the Pennsylvania Association of Broadcasters for Asian Outlook and Philly Live.
She previously worked as the Communications Manager for a non-denominational church in Sewell, New Jersey. She is currently a board member of the Clayton Public School District’s Board of Education.
In June 2022, she will celebrate 17 years of marriage with James. She loves family time with James and her children, Ashley and Nolan, and their family dog, Spirit.
Here are our 5 Questions for April Ward:
The April Ward Profile
Name of Business: Creative Content OnDemand and Fruition Life Media
Address: Clayton
Years in Business: 2008
Specialize In: Video, Photography, Social Media Management and Public Relations
Contact:
Creative Content OnDemand
info@weareccod.com | (856) 889-6451
Creative Content OnDemand is a full-service multimedia marketing in-house company offering video production, digital photography, social media management, and public relations services. These services are provided to their clients either on a monthly subscription or one-off.
Fruition Life Media
info@fruitionlifemedia.com | (856) 818-3818
Fruition Life Media is a creative service company that helps preserve family memories by producing Life Legacy Tribute Videos, Birthday Tributes Videos, Honorarium Videos, and Homegoing Remembrance Videos, which all tell the life stories of their loved ones.
1. FRNJ: What led you to start your business?
April Ward: I was led to start my business with my husband, James, because we wanted to build a legacy for our family and work in an area where we could be creative and help others grow their businesses/organizations.
James and I met while working at a television news station located in Philadelphia, PA (a top-four TV market). In 2008, we launched Fruition Life Media LLC, which was primarily about video and photography and was our “side job.” We began thinking about full-time entrepreneurship and established Creative Content OnDemand, a DBA of Fruition Life Media LLC.
Fruition Life Media LLC focuses primarily on creating video Life Legacy Tribute Videos, Honorariums, and Event Photography.
Creative Content OnDemand combines our expertise in journalism and television commercials, allowing us to align with the client’s visions and amplify their stories to reach their demographic audience. In addition, creating a monthly subscription for our services allowed our clients to compete with larger businesses by having us as their marketing team.
2. FRNJ: What is it like to be a female and minority business owner?
April Ward: I am a Filipina American woman who is proud to be an entrepreneur.
I’ve always dreamed of owning my own business, and I’m so happy to have found the courage to do it — full-time!
It’s an honor to be a woman who owns a minority business because it’s something I’ve always thought of — and it’s not as common in my local Filipino-American community. Most of my family members are nurses and engineers. Becoming a full-time entrepreneur is an accomplishment on its own.
3. FRNJ: What opportunities do you get to celebrate your heritage and share it with others?
April Ward: We’re passionate about sharing the stories of our community.
As a teenager, I was a member of the Mutya Philippine Dance Company in Philadelphia, and it played an essential role in my connection to my Filipino Heritage. In 2015, Fruition Life Media was hired to capture their 25th Anniversary gala performance and creates a mini-documentary. It was an honor to capture and share the story that brought so many people together — not just performers, but their families and friends who came out in droves to support them. Watch here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kSMIsg2vdis
Most recently, Creative Content OnDemand produced a documentary for Helping Hands Fire Company’s 100th Anniversary, an all-Black volunteer fire company in Deptford, NJ.
4. FRNJ: How much does your family play in your business?
We are a family business and proud to have our children as part of our business.
April Ward: Our children occasionally help us with video production and photo shoots, and they share some feedback during our post-production video editing sessions. They also give us plenty of love, encouragement, and support when needed.
As for my parents, they live near us, and it is a blessing because when we are on long shoots, they help us with childcare. Also, I know they are proud of our family business because my Dad will always call me when they see one of my clients featured on the local news.
5. FRNJ: What do you hope others learn from your business, being a woman in the field, and your heritage?
April Ward: I am proud to be a Filipino American business owner with my African American husband of 16 years. I hope others can learn Creative Content OnDemand and Fruition Life Media loves to produce quality work for their clients and that by working with us, they can feel the love and compassion in our efforts. We look forward to more opportunities to bring additional value to an organization that wants to utilize our services to elevate its media presence.
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