Ask an Expert: How to Boost Your Engagement and Build a Following on Instagram

We’ve been spending a lot of time at Create & Cultivate HQ discussing how we can best show up for and support our community during this uncertain time. Community is at our core, and connecting with others through one-of-a-kind experiences is what we love to do. While the world has changed, our mission has not. We’re committed to helping women create and cultivate the career of their dreams, which is why we’re proud to announce our new Ask an Expert series. We’re hosting discussions with experts, mentors, and influencers daily on Instagram Live to cure your craving for community and bring you the expert advice you’ve come to know and love from C&C. Follow Create & Cultivate on Instagram, check out our Ask an Expert highlight reel for the latest schedule, and hit the countdown to get a reminder so you don’t miss out!

Photo: Create & Cultivate

Have you ever found yourself on a rollercoaster of emotion when it comes to Instagram? One day you’re flying high and people are clamoring to engage with your content—and the next? You’re shouting into the void with only crickets to respond. It’s time to ditch the not-so-fun ride and cruise into sustainable growth, engagement, and community building.

In this installment of our Instagram Live series Ask an Expert, Dre Fox, the CEO and founder of TimeOfDre Media, lays out a framework to follow to boost engagement, build sustainable growth, and cultivate a community on Instagram. Scroll on for her tried and true tips and be sure to follow Create & Cultivate on Instagram to tune into our next Ask an Expert Live.

Why Does Engagement Matter?

Instagram is a fickle platform that judges success by your ability to create conversation and interest amongst your online community—a.k.a. you keep people on the platform. So IG favors those that receive high engagement as a way to incentivize that creator to keep going, but also the platform reaps the rewards of your community building.

In short, the more engagement—likes, comments, and shares—you get, the more Instagram will push you in front of new eyes.

Engagement Is Not What You Think!

Creating an online community is not a product of spending 10 hours a day on the platform dropping “cute pic” comments on everyone that you see, it’s the product of alignment.

Here is how I like to break it down:

When your message, your audience, and your content are all aligned, you can easily boost your engagement, your following, and your impact within the online space.

So, Let’s Break It Down

Find Your Niche

The specialist advantage or “your niche” is the most critical piece to nail on your Instagram page, because if your profile is hard to understand, most won’t click “follow,” which results in lower engagement.

So ask yourself, what topic or area can I provide the most insight or help to someone else in the online space? This doesn’t mean you need to be an award-winning expert or a top person in that space, but where can you draw the most insight and knowledge?

We want you to be a “go-to” or a wealth of knowledge to one group of people!

Attract People Who are Invested in You

If you truly want more engagement, you’ll want to have an audience of people that are invested in your content and inspired by your words. That can’t be created when your audience is filled with the wrong people.

So your first task is to revamp your bio to be geared towards your new topic and the people that would be interested in your niche. The goal here is that once you’ve made over your bio, you can hand your phone to a stranger and they’d be able to clearly state what you do and what you talk about!

Create Valuable Content

Think back to the best friend or mentor you ever had. They likely helped you, made you feel good about yourself, made you think deeper and pushed you to be better. This is your job on social media as well!

People are HIGHLY attracted to those that add value to their lives, for free.

So, identify the top 10 problems someone in your niche is having and break it into the following categories:

• Tips

• Example: 3 tips about (problem 1)

• Advice

• Example: Ways to avoid (problem 2)

• Resources

• Example: Struggling with (problem 3)? Here are some apps for….

Once you start creating value-driven content for your aligned audience, engagement will naturally increase without having to spend hours a day engaging.

Be a Champion of Others

Picture this, you get a nice comment, a thoughtful comment on your post from someone, you take a look at their profile and realize they’re speaking about topics you have interest in—you are clicking follow and bingeing their posts.

Conversely, you get a “cute pic” comment from an account that has nothing to do with your topic. You’re not going to follow them, right?

It’s pretty simple really, engagement is most effective when your heart is actually in the game and you’re trying to build an audience of like-minded people, not collecting likes.

Some best practices around active audience building is to comb through related hashtags and competitor accounts for people that will LOVE your content. Reach out, leave them a nice comment, engage with their stories and encourage a future relationship!

Once they are able to pop over to your page and see that you have amazing and helpful content, they’ll click that “follow” button and become a long term fan.

So What Does This All Mean?

It means that engagement is not about working more or working harder to scour the internet, it’s about being intentional and thoughtful with the relationship we are building. Having that narrow focus and an audience full of excited fans will carry your account much further than one full of thousands of dead accounts.

It’s time to niche down, create more value for others and spend your time creating relationships—the true secret to increased engagement!

“T

he more engagement—likes, comments, and shares—you get, the more Instagram will push you in front of new eyes.”

—Dre Fox, Founder and CEO, TimeOfDre Media

About the Expert: Dre Fox is the founder and CEO of TimeOfDre Media, a Forbes and Washington Post featured social media agency located in Austin, Texas. After many years of helping Fortune 500 companies improve their social experience and brand awareness online, Dre was inspired to focus on building the brands of small businesses and public figures. Her core passion is helping people just like you, realize their dreams online.

Right now, TimeOfDre is offering 30% off The Elevated Instagram, a foundational Instagram course using code: CC30 for all readers of Create and Cultivate. Please check out Dre over at Instagram for more free social media advice each day.

Psst… Want more intel on how to build a following on Instagram? Buy your ticket for C&C’s Digital Beauty Summit on Saturday, July 25th to tune into Dre Fox’s IG workshop.

MORE ON THE BLOG

How Brick-and-Mortar Businesses Can Pivot to Sell on Social Media During COVID-19

Photo: Lisa Fotios for Pexels

Just because your physical doors are closed doesn’t mean your virtual ones aren’t open.

Instead of sitting back, kicking your feet up while binge-watching Netflix, consider making some changes in your business right now. The best part? If you go online now, you’ll be ahead of the game for the future and set your business up for success as we further enter the digital world.

Ready to get online? Here are the five things every brick-and-mortar business could be doing right now—and no, you don’t need to discount every product just to make ends meet!

1. Make It Personal

First, make sure your marketing materials include creative, thoughtful, and personalized touches. Uncertain times call for personal connection, right? So be sure to include something that will stand out to your customer.

Here’s an example: My fiance and I ordered takeout from a local Greek restaurant. When they came to the car with our food, they gave us a squirt of hand sanitizer so we could eat some fries on the way home. Who doesn’t want to dig in while they’re still warm and not have to worry about getting sick?! 

2. Go Virtual

Second, the one that should be a bit more obvious, go online! Everyone’s showing up virtually, so you should be, too. This is the time to get hooked on Zoom, Instagram, and Facebook Live. If you’re offering a service, now’s the time to get creative and provide virtual support. If you’re offering a product, start showing, selling, and shipping using live video.

If your events keep getting pushed back, instead of canceling, switch them to online events. Own a clothing boutique? Perfect. Host a “live” fashion show. Or maybe you sell stationery, crafts, or flowers—why not sell your items live, but make it even more interesting with a three-day challenge where everyone crafts at home with you? Get your community involved not only to try to drive sales but also to give something back to your community! 

3. Discounts, Anyone?

Third, discounts. I know I said don’t discount every product in your inventory, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t do any discounts at all. This is a time when many people aren’t making money, so they’re typically not wanting to spend money. What better way to convince them than special (and strategic) offers?

You can do this in a way where you’re selling more but not seeing a dip in profit—meaning, don’t discount just for the sake of offering discounts. Instead, you can bundle items, make a major flash sale with “almost out-of-season” pieces, or offer to match a credit. If someone pays you $30, match them 50% of their payment in credit towards future purchases. Just don’t forget to set a maximum.

If you want to make it even more appealing, you can switch things up and offer a give-back program. Donate a portion of all proceeds, match purchase prices, or accept donations. And remember, if you’re passionate about something, the better it will do. I donated $100 from every course sale in March 2020 to a woman in need, totaling over $6,000 in donations.

4. Time to Advertise

Fourth, surprise, surprise! Many don’t know this, but online advertising costs are cut in half right now. Two words: take advantage. If you don’t have an online offer that you can get creative with right off the bat, consider just running ads for your quality content and focus on building your email list for when this is over.

5. Cut Through the Noise

Last but not least, cut through the noise. Offer an element of fun to help get people through these difficult times.

Try doing a social media scavenger hunt and ask your followers to find a post where you talked about XYZ, or encourage them to watch today’s story and answer a riddle. Facilitate a little “playtime,” your audience will appreciate it. 

The best thing you can do during this time is to be human. One thing we truly need to survive is connection, and that’s what’s missing for many right now. So get online, offer weekly video segments around trends and pop culture, make quizzes, introduce your staff in fun ways, and be a beam of positivity. Remember, there’s always an opportunity to help those in need. 

About the Author: Shannon Lutz is the owner of The Social Bungalow, and the go-to marketing strategist for female entrepreneurs devoted to making a purpose-driven impact while earning a wildest-dreams-status income. The Social Bungalow is a clever, creative, and collaborative online education space dedicated to helping women market their expertise and structure their businesses for big-picture profit. She said “peace out” to a 10-year corporate marketing career where she assisted in building multi-million-dollar businesses and marketing A-list celebrities (*cough* ARod & JLo *cough*). Now, she uses this marketing-prowess to turn solopreneurs into 6- and 7-figure CEOs.

Ask an Expert: How to Create Compelling Content and Grow Your Instagram, According to a VP Influencer Marketing

We’ve been spending a lot of time at Create & Cultivate HQ discussing how we can best show up for and support our community during this uncertain time. Community is at our core, and connecting with others through one-of-a-kind experiences is what we love to do. While the world has changed, our mission has not. We’re committed to helping women create and cultivate the career of their dreams, which is why we’re proud to announce our new Ask an Expert series. We’re hosting discussions with experts, mentors, and influencers daily at 9 am, 12 pm, and 3 pm PST on Instagram Live to cure your craving for community and bring you the expert advice you’ve come to know and love from C&C. Follow Create & Cultivate on Instagram, check out our Ask an Expert highlight reel for the latest schedule, and hit the countdown to get a reminder so you don’t miss out!

“

The longer you wait, the harder it is to grow.”

—Rachel Zeilic, VP of Influencer Marketing at WhoWhatWear

With engagement on social up 30% since social isolation started, now might just be the perfect time to be growing your Instagram or finally figuring out wtf to do with TikTok. But in the midst of a crisis, creating good (and respectful) content can feel really difficult. In comes, Rachel Zeilic, VP of Influencer Marketing at WhoWhatWear, to answer all your questions.

Wondering what to post, when to post, what to pay for, or if TikTok is the right move for your brand? Rachel drops lots of advice on our IG LIVE on how to navigate social media in the midst of COVID-19. Tune into this Ask An Expert to make sure you don’t miss a single tip. We bet you’re already scrolling through Instagram, might as well scroll with purpose and grow your brand.

We Want Your (Respectful) Content

“Don’t make any assumptions. Don’t say, Now that we’re all working from home, because that isn’t true for a lot of people.”

“There really is a space for audiences to turning to influencers for comfort for information for distraction, they have a lot of time on their hands right now and time is a precious commodity so let’s serve them.”

“Stay away from anything that is like ‘this is a must-have’ because, if it’s not groceries or masks, it isn’t a must-have.”

“Some things that are performing really well right now is comfy chic, working from home outfits, beauty routines, anything affordable, people are still interested in spring trends, and they also want some escapism.”

“Now is also a time to give things away for free. Even if you’re a brand who could be doing well giving some at-home DIY recipes, people will really appreciate that and remember that when commerce opens up again. More than ever they will remember the brands who stepped up and are giving to the community.”

“This is the first time really in a long time where influencers’ lifestyles are really close to their followers’ lifestyles. They aren’t jetting around the world or wearing designer outfits. So this is a really great time for influencers to connect with their followers in a really relatable way.”

Get On TikTok

“TikTok is not like Snapchat or other platforms where they were popular but there was never really brand integration. TikTok is really different, the way it’s built is really engineered to be successful for brand campaigns. Particularly one feature, the hashtag challenges. That is incredible for creating UGC (user-generated content). To me UGC is gold. If your customer loves you so much that they are creating content, they aren’t an influencer, they aren’t getting paid, if they love the product so much they are creating content that is gold.”

 “I think working with TikTok and ‘TikTokers’ absolutely should be part of your campaign given that the demographic aligns, it is a predominantly Gen Z audience. Also the KPIs of the campaign, you need to understand that currently TikTokers or influencers can’t link out anywhere, so if you’re expecting to see immediate sell-through from your campaign, TikTok is not the place to do it. But its great of awareness, you can reach massive audiences.”

“With regards to brands starting their own accounts on TikTok, it really depends if you can do it in a way that’s native to the platform. It’s really not going to work if you’re using the same kind of content you use on Instagram and other platforms. You should only be investing your time into growing a brand account on TikTok if you can do it in the way that is organic to TikTok.”

“The longer you wait, the harder it is to grow.”

Embrace Pay-to-Play

“Yes, it is a pay-to-play world. That being said, relationships and organic strategy are important to stretch your dollars.”

“It’s worth spending a little money on a consultant who can help you know how to spend your social budget.”

“Influencers assets on paid social perform so much better than campaign assets.” 

“A lot of influencers have dropped their pricing or are more flexible on pricing right now.”

“Paid social pricing is down right now as well. You can make your budget stretch so much further right now.”

Insta Tips & Tricks

“We’ve been saying to influencers, Instead of getting a picture and then thinking, ‘Ugh what is my caption going to be?,’ why don’t you write the caption first and tell a story and then reverse that and think of an image that can convey that story?’ I don’t think they all have to be long, and they shouldn’t be long if you don’t have something to say. But every brand has a story to tell and every influencer has a story to tell and I think that can be great. It’s like micro-blogging.”

Tools to try:

• Planoly

• Unum

• VSCO

• Tezza 

“You should post as often as you can while creating quality content and without seeing a dip in engagement rate. The more you post the more your engagement will be spread out.”

About The Expert: Rachel Zeilic is an O.G. in influencer marketing, starting way back in 2007. She is currently the VP of influencer marketing at WhoWhatWear, running influencer campaigns for everyone from Walmart to Gucci. Before that she was creative Director of Majorelle at Revolve, and before that she founded two labels, Stylestalker and The Jetset Diaries.

Tune in daily at 9 am, 12 pm, and 3 pm PST, for new installments of Ask an Expert. 

Follow Create & Cultivate on Instagram, check out our Ask an Expert highlight reel for the schedule, and hit the countdown to get a reminder so you don’t miss out. See you there!

Ask an Expert: How to Develop Your Brand Voice, Personification, and Tag Line

We’ve been spending a lot of time at Create & Cultivate HQ discussing how we can best show up for and support our community during this uncertain time. Community is at our core, and connecting with others through one-of-a-kind experiences is what we love to do. While the world has changed, our mission has not. We’re committed to helping women create and cultivate the career of their dreams, which is why we’re proud to announce our new Ask an Expert series. We’re hosting discussions with experts, mentors, and influencers daily at 9 am, 12 pm, and 3 pm PST on Instagram Live to cure your craving for community and bring you the expert advice you’ve come to know and love from C&C. Follow Create & Cultivate on Instagram, check out our Ask an Expert highlight reel for the latest schedule, and hit the countdown to get a reminder so you don’t miss out!

Photo: cottonbro for Pexels

Branding is more important now than ever before with COVID-19. While it may not be the time to be pushing sales, it’s certainly the time to put your best foot forward and showcase your brand values in order to build a community. In order to market successfully during this time, you have to be able to connect with people and their stories. After all, companies are made up of people, and stories are just narratives that are the foundation of great marketing. 

“Buyers make most of their decisions by relying on their two second first impressions based on stored memories, images and feelings.” This quote from Malcolm Gladwell’s book “Blink,” powerfully expresses how your customers think. In layman's terms, you only get one chance to make a first impression. To find out how to do it right, scroll on to learn more about branding, including developing your tag line and voice.

What Is Branding? 

To begin, it’s crucial that you understand what branding is and what it is not. Branding is not telling people who you are, it’s managing what other people say you are. What will your audience associate with your brand? It’s up to you to create this emotional connection through your branding.

Specifically, branding is the look and feel of a brand, the characteristics, values, tag lines, logos, energy, etc. Branding includes all the ways your company shows up in the world and how you hope a consumer will relate and engage with it on an emotional level.

However, before you can even begin to market your brand out into the world, you must start by building a strong foundation. Here’s how. 

How to Define Your Brand 

Branding Exercise

When establishing your personal or corporate brand, it’s critical to begin by defining what you want your brand to be. This starts with developing a name and logo that speaks to your target market and evokes a specific emotion, adjective or sensory experience. You can go about this in many ways.  When working with a new client, one of the first things we do is take them through a branding exercise that we call “word vomit” that looks a little bit like this: 

1. Write down a list of words, potential names and/or concepts that you might want to start with (this is if you don’t already have your company name).

2. Write down a list of adjectives and emotions you want your potential client to feel when they see your logo or hear your brand name.

3. Go out and find 5-10 logos you like and 5-10 logos you don’t like and describe in detail why you do or don’t like them. The creative process is so subjective, so before we start throwing ideas at the wall, it's crucial that we know what your aesthetic is. Knowing what you don’t like is as important as knowing what you do like.

4. Similarly, determine a list of colors you like and don’t like and types of designs you do and don’t like e.g. I do like minimalist fonts, but I don’t like figures in logos.

This exercise allows you to get clear on your brand values, decide which words you want associated with your brand and, almost as importantly, which words and sentiments you don’t want associated with your brand. This type of exercise can help with buy in and can also spark creativity and should be a lot of fun. 

At the end of the day you get what you pay for, so remember, this logo will live on your business cards, web site, and all marketing materials that you will create for your company, which are the first things a prospect sees, even before they get to know you. So putting your best brand effort first is key.

Brand Book

Let’s just get this out of the way—yes, you absolutely need a brand book. A brand book is a document that outlines every detail about your brand. It’s basically your brand’s DNA. At its most fundamental level, a brand book must include your mission and vision, your logo and colors, your typography, and sample imagery. The best brand book, however, has more than the basics. 

As important as it is to define your brand, it’s equally important to define what your brand is not. What words or phrases are off limits? In order to stay on brand, you must know what it means to be off brand. 

I said it once and I’ll say it again: Branding is not telling people who you are, it’s managing what other people say you are. In order to do this, you must know a little bit about your target audience. What do they like? With your target audience in mind, how can you shape your branding into something they can appreciate and recognize? 

Ultimately, your brand is the foundation for all things marketing, so it’s critical that you get it right from the start and build a lexicon around it so that as you build and scale, the original ethos of the brand remains intact. 

About the Expert: Laurel Mintz, J.D., M.B.A. is the CEO and founder of award-winning, Los Angeles-based digital marketing agency Elevate My Brand. Laurel’s gift is connecting with people and their stories. After all, companies are made up of people, and stories are just narratives that are the foundation of great marketing. Laurel’s energy has been the driving force behind the agency’s growth since it launched in 2009. Her awards include the 2017 Patrick Soon-Shiong Innovation Award, the 2016 Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses Company award, the Los Angeles Business Journal 2016 Women In Business Award, and more. Need help figuring out how to do this for your brand? I can’t wait to talk. Reach out today to get started.

Tune in daily at 9 am, 12 pm, and 3 pm PST, for new installments of Ask an Expert. 

Follow Create & Cultivate on Instagram, check out our Ask an Expert highlight reel for the schedule, and hit the countdown to get a reminder so you don’t miss out. See you there!

8 Ways to Grow Your Personal Brand, According to an Influencer With 1M Instagram Followers

Have you always wanted to know what it’s like to be an influencer and grow a business out of your influence? We know you’re all craving insight on how to grow a brand and ramp up your social media presence right now so when we came across influencer and co-founder of Summer Fridays, Marianna Hewitt dishing her career advice and social media tips on Instagram stories, we had to screenshot it all and share it with you here.

Hewitt asked her Instagram audience—she has 1 M(!!!), followers—to send in their questions on all things business, social, and #influencerlife. Whether you’re an aspiring influencer, a brand trying to grow, or need some major inspiration, Hewitt’s insight is golden. She pulls back the curtain to share all the realness.

You asked, she answered. Scroll on for major tips, then don’t forget to grab your tickets to the Money Moves Digital Summit to see Hewitt speak on all things, money, career, business, and more!

How do you come up with fresh content so that your followers don’t get bored?

I just ask! Whenever I need new ideas I ask what the followers want to see. I have a document saved with all the answers and then I note what gets the most requests and do those.

Being a beginner, how do you grab a brands’ attention?

I think picking a niche at the beginning helps soooo much. You become the go-to expert on that subject! Creating beautiful content helps to get reposted or for brands to notice you. I

f you want to work with a brand, buy their products and use them and share them organically to show the brands what kind of content you would create for them and how your audience responded to you sharing it.

Also, not every brand has a budget to work with influencers and if they do it could only be at certain times for particular campaigns or launches that they would have budgets. So keep it in mind that brands don’t just freely have money all the time. But by posting and sharing them organically, hopefully, they will help keep you top of mind when opportunities do come up.

How did you grow your following?

“I just did a podcast interview and talked about this, you can find that here.”

Do you think it’s too late to become an influencer because it’s so saturated?

“Not at all! But that’s why having a niche is important when first starting so that you can build a micro-community who comes to you as an expert on one thing. I don’t think you need to be niche forever, but when you start, I think it helps so much.”

How do you build relationships with other influencers?

“Follow them. Like and comment on their posts.”

Can you grow your Instagram without using a lot of hashtags? How did you grow yours?

“I don’t really know if hashtags are that relevant. I don’t think you need them to grow your page. I think you’re better off tagging brands and getting reshared. And following people in your niche and engaging with their content and hope they follow back and do the same.”

What are some things you wish you knew before starting your influencer journey?

“It’s a lot of work. Most of the work you do is for free and you don’t get paid. Because you’re creating organic content every single day that isn’t sponsored. Let’s say 10% of your content is sponsored. Then 90% of your work you do for free. So you have to be okay with doing a lot of work to hopefully get paid opportunities. You can also make money through affiliate links.

When you are an influencer you are:

• The model

• Photographer

• Videographer (if you do IGTV or YouTube)

• Editor (for video)

• Social media manager

• Community manager

• Writer (captions or if you have a blog)

• Stylist (if you post fashion content)

• Makeup artist (if you post makeup content)

And so many more things! Being an influencer is so many jobs rolled into one.

How do you keep your feed cohesive without a filter?

Take photos with similar colors. So you’ll notice there’s no black in my photos right now. So if I took a picture on a black wall or with a dark outfit, it wouldn’t match. So just take pics of things that go together.

Does the grid matter?

I do think your feed matters to new followers. When a new person comes to your page they see the first nine to 12 photos so it should get their attention and make them want to follow and have an idea of what kind of content they’ll be getting from you. I don’t think feed matters as much to existing followers because they likely just see the new posts but not as frequently go to your profile.

How do you find your niche?

Your niche should be your “thing” so it should be easy to narrow down based on what you are passionate about or an expert in. I like to think of content pillars and posting mostly those topics; so a few things that you like. You can post a few things and see what’s resonating most with your followers and getting the most engagement. Then post more of that.

How do you establish your first partnership if you’re just starting out and don’t have high follower numbers?

I would ask yourself:

• Why would this brand work with me?

• What am I bringing to the table?

And pitch them your strengths:

• Did you post them before and convert a lot of sales?

• Do you have data to show that?

• Do you create beautiful content, and can you work with them to create assets for their socials?

How do you decide which platform to post your content? Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, or blog?

Instagram:

• Photos

• Stories/daily posts in the moment and more quick content

 YouTube:

• Longer videos

• Content I want to live longer or videos that are searched for

Blog:

• More writing than what would fit in an IG caption

• Lots of shopping links and roundups of items

How do you keep motivated to post stories every day?

I genuinely love to create content and share. So I never feel like I “have” to do it. I *want* to do it. On the days I don’t want to, I just don’t. Like for my feed right now I don’t have a pic to post next and haven’t felt like getting ready so I just didn’t post on my feed yesterday or today.

 How long did it take for you to get a substantial follower base?

I started Instagram very early on in 2013 when it was much easier to gain followers than it is now. I gained a large audience by 2014 but then continued to grow it. I was at 500k in 2016 (it took me from 2013 to 2016) and hit 1M in 2020. So it took me four years to reach my second 500k.”

What is the biggest struggle with being an influencer?

“There is zero job security and you have no benefits. At any time (like now) brands could all cut their budget for sponsored content and what would your job be? How will you make an income? There are no sick days. There are no days off. There is no maternity leave. All the pressure is on you.

Since you are the influencer and face of the “brand” you cannot delegate things to other people. You are the one in the photos, in the stories, etc. There are a lot of benefits though and it’s an amazing opportunity to do this full time but there are so many risks so you just have to be okay with that!”

For fashion content: Do you think a blog is necessary or can someone be successful only using Instagram?

“If you want to be a blogger then yes you need to have a blog. But if you want to be a social media influencer or content creator, no you do not need a blog. Think of some of your fave influencers, they probably don’t have a site!

Do you use a professional photographer for full body shots?

No, I’ve been shooting all my content at home on my iPhone. I generally only shoot with a photographer for sponsored content because I want the highest quality photos for the brands.

How do you pay your agency for managing you? Do they take a percentage on your earnings?

Yes, they make a percentage of the deals they bring in for me. Then the percent I get for myself, I pay taxes on (because we don’t get paychecks so our taxes are taken from the money we bring in) and then pay out employees, creatives, etc.

Like what you see? Catch Marianna Hewitt at the Money Moves Summit, May 2nd, live from your couch!

The Do's and Don't's of Instagram Stories Engagement

Photo: Smith House Photography

We get it—the algorithm sucks. But that shouldn't deter you from perfecting your feed, going live, or posting to stories. As the old saying goes, if you can't beat 'em, join 'em. There are so many ways you can outsmart it or simply jump on their bandwagon and create content around trends and viral hashtags.

Ahead, we’re sharing the do’s and don’t of Instagram Stories engagement to help you create compelling content that will grow your audience and keep them there. Want more ways to outsmart the algorithm? Download our The Grow Your Instagram Bundle and discover everything you need to know to get your grid right from creating compelling captions to winning at Instagram stories.

DO have planned “features” that you roll out on a bi-weekly or weekly schedule with similar content your users can look forward to. DON'T post the same feature's constantly.

DO use thoughtfully designed templates and frames. DON'T rely solely on Instagram's formats. 

DO experiment with IGS features such as: stickers, polls, questionnaires but DON'T Rely on them to carry your strategy.

DO post stories every day or at least three times a week.

DO post around five frames each time (more frames is too much and people are not watching until the end).

DO post content your followers like or need (“how to” tips, outfit inspirations, polls about products preferences, etc.)

DO mix up your post types! Video one post, perhaps a quiz the next, and follow it with a satirical chaser.

DO save your best stories with the highest engagement in your highlights, and use a consistent look for the cover.

DO re-share content that you’ve been tagged in. User-generated content is always a good idea. It shows your community that you are trustworthy and have a product that people love. 

DO use hashtags and tag people/brands in your stories that pertain to it. Show behind-the-scenes because it usually garners a lot of attention. People want to know what it’s like at a photoshoot or at an event. 

DO have fun with it. These only last for 24 hours so you don't have to be as polished. Show behind-the-scenes content. Instagram is always introducing fun new story features (questions, polls, GIFs, etc.) so use them! Ask questions and experiment. 

DO show your brand/the team's personality and get personal. Maybe how the founder uses the brand's products or even a 'story takeover for a day by one of the team members to show what her day is like. 

DO give them a reason to want to share your stories. Post something really helpful on Saturday, that is not sales-sy, but is in the spirit of genuinely wanting to help. 

DON'T use the same template each time! Mix it up to keep it interesting. This is where you can be creative and see what works best. After all, they disappear, and you don't have to keep them in your highlights.

DON'T just use your stories for advertising. People like to be entertained by your stories, and might also mistake it for a sponsored story. 

DON’T make stories too long. Stick to around 10-12 a day. Any more than that and it’s too much content to soak in and truly appreciate.

DON’T forget your audience and who you are sharing with. You want to keep your followers (or potential followers) intrigued to watch everything you’ve shared.

DON’T not use stories. It’s an amazing way to connect with your followers and bring on new ones!

DON’T just repurpose existing content. If you're filming a video for IGTV, use the BTS content on Instagram stories. Don't worry about being too buttoned up. Have more fun with story content that won't be as permanent. Don't make it too long, sometimes fewer frames is better. 

DON’T post the same thing you post on your feed—people get bored.

Want to outsmart the algorithm?

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8 PR Pros on How to Stand Out in a Sea of COVID-19 Headlines

Photo: Ekaterina Bolovtsova for Pexels

Unprecedented. Uncertain. Extraordinary. It’s safe to say you can’t scroll through your news or social media feeds without coming across at least one of these coronavirus-related buzzwords. Of course, these terms are completely justified seeing as we’re in the midst of a global health crisis of unparalleled proportions, however, it does beg the question, how do you stand out amid the coronavirus headline saturation to get your brand’s message heard?

To gain insight into how brands can lead with humanity, stay relevant, and be of service during the COVID-19 crisis, we tapped some of the leading public relations and digital marketing pros in the industry and asked them to share their #1 tip for cutting through the noise. From setting up virtual desksides with media editors to re-engaging existing customers in new ways, keep scrolling for their innovative and mindful tips—you’re going to want to write these down.

Melissa Davis

Founder & Co-Owner, Ruby Press

Experience: 19 years

The Tip: Make it relevant and solve a problem. Many of us are working from home, many of us are concerned about finances, and we are all concerned about staying healthy. While my agency represents lifestyle brands, there are many stories we can share with the media and influencers that are very relevant to the current situation.

Why It Works: While we are all keeping up with the news about the pandemic, we need some good news too.  It's a balance. Those fun, light-hearted features are also important right now—but they need to be sensitive to the current state of the world. The best results we have seen from outreach over the best couple of weeks have been surrounding positive, problem-solving stories.

Benjamin Almeter

Founder & Managing Director, Dispatch

Experience: 7 years

The Tip: Lead with authenticity. 

 Why It Works: Speak to what's most authentic to you and your brand, that's where you'll organically resonate and find the most success in growing your community, standing out and driving conversion. Now, more than ever, we're surrounded by brands pushing product and leaning into a timely conversation where they're not always the most relevant. That's off-putting to consumers, easy to spot, and can have long term negative effects on your brand’s perception.

 The Tip: Don't undervalue your existing community. 

Why It Works: We're always focused on ways to engage and acquire new customers—now's the time look back and reengage your existing customers to do just that. Utilize your existing customers as a tool to share your brand’s story and introduce the product to their community. Consumers highly value the opinion of those within their direct communities.

Kamari Guthrie

Founder & CEO, Kamari Chelsea

Experience: 15 years

The Tip: If you're looking to make headlines right now, your brand has to tell a story about one of the following: novelty, altruism, practicality. 

Why It Works: I use the acronym "NAP" to help people remember this, but don't be fooled by the name. You'll have to put in work.  

Novelty: Is your brand saying or doing something new right now that no one has ever heard of? For example, are you offering a unique service to help women-run small businesses survive? Or, are you launching an at-home manicure kit that creates salon-perfect results right at home for half the cost? Be honest with yourself about whether your brand offers something new, unique, and essential that people need during these times. And if so, pitch it as a novel solution to the many new challenges people are having.

Altruism: Maybe you don't have something to offer that fits within your business model, but you have extra cash to donate or a robust and influential network. Mine your business for resources that you can give to those who have lost everything. For example, you can start a new campaign with your brand's influencers or extra cash to help fund and inspire those who are struggling. Then, pitch it to the media to get the word out that you're offering support. 

Practicality: If your brand has a utility or a good use that can be applied to support those impacted by COVID, double down on telling stories about that thing. For example, if you're a designer and you can design masks—talk about it! Or, if you're running an accounting business, offer to write an op-ed or pitch a podcast interview, where you will provide tangible advice to companies and employees who've lost revenue and income.

Meghan Donovan

Founder, mmd communications

Experience: 13 years

The Tip: My goal is always to be a helpful resource for editors, and now is no different. I am, however, being extra sensitive in my pitches and also more cautious in follow up. There's so much more at play in the world right now than beauty and wellness, and so I think the majority of publicists are trying to be more in-tune with the stories that make the most sense given the current climate.  

Why It Works: I got into PR because I value communication and relationships. Now, more than ever, we need to be resources for one another. I always tell the brands I represent that my style is not mass-pitching or trend pitching but rather I want to meet the editors where their needs are and try and tell the best stories.

This is more important than ever as—work aside—we're all human and we're all trying to manage both stress from working under new constraints but also managing our new normal in the world. I think we all feel stress and anxiety at how our lives are evolving and no one needs overly zealous or tone-deaf pitching in their inboxes. (I've seen a few horror stories circulating that exhibit that!)

Jaspre Guest

Founder & CEO, NOISE 784

Experience: 9 years

The Tip: At NOISE 784, we are focused on keeping positive momentum through this uncertain period. I believe you need to be open to shift strategies by changing the narrative. When everything changes the ability to pivot quickly is almost the surefire way to be still standing when the dust settles. 

Why It Works: During this unprecedented time, consumers are craving direction. We are meeting a need. One of my mantras is to find the hole and go through it. Currently, there are a ton of holes. You just have to reframe the situation. We are highlighting how our clients' expertise can provide guidance to consumers on how to thrive despite the circumstances. 

Simona Rozhko

Founder & CEO, evna media

Experience: 8 years

The Tip: My number one tip for standing out during this time involves a two-step approach. First, you have to quickly let your clients know you're aware of the climate and that things are rapidly changing (for them and for you). Setting up a dedicated call and agenda regarding the situation is crucial so that the next steps can be created to navigate together.

It's an important time to let the world know that brands are still okay, given the circumstances, and that we're in this together. There are many questions that arise week after week, so the client-publicist conversation should remain a two-way street—what changes are we experiencing in PR should the client know about? What changes is the client experiencing that PR should know about?

This leads me into the second step, which is to identify that a pivot has to be made as well as a plan to restrategize for the next TBD period of time featuring new goal-oriented programming for the client. For evna media, it was moving current and future initiatives into a digital-first protocol and making sure we could support our clients beyond PR if need be.

Some initiatives were easily applied to a digital version while others needed more definition and finesse. These initiatives included meetings, product launches, events, desksides, social media, and of course pitching-- heavily monitoring the news cycle and checking in with editors. We were able to quickly create meaningful moments with media while connecting with widespread communities and supporting our clients through this unusual adjustment. 

Why It Works: Relying on digital tools and virtual workshops has worked pretty seamlessly for us because the majority of the world is checking the news, universal updates, stats, government regulations, etc. on our smartphones already. We're creating content in real-time while everyone's user-activity is surging.

On top of that, we are working from the comfort of our own homes, which creates much less physical effort for someone to attend a virtual event or make time for a digital meeting. I think there are going to be many permanent changes post-COVID-19, not only in the PR but across all industries. Some of the tools we're using now that maybe didn't have a place before—because of the forces of innovation—will carry over when we're all back in our offices.

Megan Bell

Senior Account Executive, Sharp Think

Experience: 7 years

The Tip: Be human! It’s important that we’re compassionate and socially aware during these uncertain times. 

Why It Works: The current COVID-19 crisis has impacted all of us on both a personal and professional level, causing us to rethink how we’re communicating with our clients and the media. A sense of compassion for all and sharing relevant, impactful news are the driving forces for our current strategy. We’re checking in with our media contacts to see how they are holding up and asking how we can be most helpful with their editorial plans—after all, we’re all in this together!

This way, we can be sure that we’re sharing the most relevant, topical news to meet their needs. We’re providing solutions for their readers to help tackle everyday issues, from financial anxiety and coping with the changes to our everyday routines to providing a temporary escape through virtual experiences that readers can enjoy from their living rooms. We’ve seen great success in highlighting these much-needed topic areas and feel that our media contacts appreciate this approach. 

With the state of the media landscape changing on a daily basis, my team has made it a priority to check-in with our clients regularly. We’ve shifted our status calls to video conferences for some much-needed face time, which allows us to have a more open and organic dialogue while strategizing. We’ve been nimble and thoughtful in providing creative recommendations for clients, with a primary focus on consumer and community needs. My team is implementing virtual experiences in lieu of in-person meetings or events, and we are crafting solution-based pitches for our product-focused brands.

Now more than ever, we need to prioritize collaboration with our client partners and journalists, as we’re all working towards a collective goal! 

Beth Bassil

Co-Founder, b.good PR

Experience: 7 years

The Tip: Keeping it real. It's not about being self-serving right now and worrying if your brand is making sales or included in every single story. We are encouraging our clients to focus on rebuilding community, take this time to network and collaborate with one another.

Connecting with your network on another level. B.good PR has been hosting virtual coffee meetings where we ask for 15 minutes to meet with our media contacts to learn more about them, the work they do and to pump some fun into our days—it's not all business.

We consider our media relationships like an extended family. In exchange, we share virtual gift cards to their favorite coffee or juice shop to help support local businesses during this time. The response has been so positive—it's really nice to see we're lifting people's moods during this time.

Why It Works: Through the virtual meetings, we're able to connect on a whole other level—learning fun personal quirks about each other, too. We're able to share what our clients are doing during this time to help spread positivity and bring communities together… by keeping it real we've actually landed a lot of opportunities for clients through these meetings.

Up next: How to Adjust Your Media Strategy and Connect With Customers in a Crisis

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You Have 2.7 Seconds to Grab Someone's Attention, No Pressure

Photo: Ekaterina Bolovtsova for Pexels

Forget gone in 60 seconds, when it comes to a cold email you have a teeny tiny fraction of that time to grab someone’s attention. Think of the amount of time it took you to read the title to this article—about three to five seconds. Most likely you knew within those first precious moments whether you were going to click through, or peace (rude). 

Now imagine that you are a high-level executive who is bombarded by thousands of emails a day. The amount of time you have to read through unsolicited emails is limited. Lucky for you, according to a study conducted by Staples, high-level executives read an average of 575 words per minute (take their test here, it's fun, and let us know in the comments how you did), which means you might have a slightly longer shot at impressing them. But it's still a flash. Let's call it three seconds. 

So what do you do? Here are six steps to ensure that your recipient reads all the way to the bottom. 

1. DON'T CLICKBAIT YOUR EMAIL BUT...

The subject line is an underused resource. It should be succinct and informative. Unless you're trying to get a job at Buzzfeed, “17 Reasons I Will Make Your Company Successful,” is not the way to go. Also avoid "cute" or "quirky" or telling someone you have a quick question—no such thing. The best subject lines don't try too hard, but rather let your reader know exactly what they are opting into. Name-dropping is not horrible, but make sure you have a relationship with the person you reference. 

Every subject line should be different and tailored to whom you're addressing. There is no one-size-fits-all approach, and you don't want to have a subject line that mirrors or matches ten other emails their inbox gets that morning. If you can tailor the subject line to a project the recipient is working on, that's even better. For example, if I'm writing an editor or fellow writer I might say: Brainstorming How I Can Speed Up Your Editing Process. 

That's an email I would open. 100%. (Someone please send me that email.) 

2. DEAR SIR OR MADAM...DELETED

Same goes for To Whom It May Concern. Sorry, but if you don't have the right name, find it. The internet is a trove of info and sometimes you have to take a deep dive into its caves to get the right intel, but much like the truth, it's out there. If countless people are sending generic emails, be the one who sticks out by figuring out the right person to send it to. Everyone (seriously, everyone) appreciates being addressed by name, and this shows that you went the extra mile to figure it out. And by all means, TRIPLE CHECK that you spell the damn thing correctly. We've all made that error and it's a surefire way to get ignored.  

3. HI, MY NAME IS...DELETE!  

Skimming is a practice that we all use. What you need to use are standout words that grab the reader's attention as they are hopping quickly over what you've written. "Hi, my name is," is a waste of a second. Your name is in your signature, if they like what you have to say, they'll find it. Instead opt for action sentences, like: "In the next two sentences, I will break down how I can grow your social media presence over 6 months." 

4. GIVE CONCRETE EXAMPLES... OK, LISTENING

No matter how many times this info gets repeated, people still refuse to do it. An email that has no useful information is a waste of everyone's time, including yours. If you've managed to hook the recipient with a great subject line, calling them by name, and a first sentence that slays, follow it up with info they can take to the bank. 

5. TO ATTACH OR NOT TO ATTACH 

If you're sending an email to a potential employer, and there are no instructions as to whether they prefer resumes in the body of the email or as an attachment, do both. Some people hate opening attachments, others want the option to download and print it out. So, convert the file to a PDF (it should always be a PDF), insert it below your signature and also as an attachment. 

6. TAKE THE STEPS TO CUT OUT UNNECESSARY CORRESPONDENCE  

In a way, this might feel like putting the cart before the horse, but it's a wild rat race out there. When someone writes me an email hoping to write for me, it never ceases to impress me when they say, "I've attached a piece I believe your readers will find interesting." That cuts my time in half. I don't have to write back and say, "Can you send me samples?" Even if the piece isn't the right fit, or we've covered it already, I have the sample I need to move forward.  

You wouldn't call someone to say, "I'm calling to schedule a time to talk." You call to talk. Apply the same premise to an email. The takeaway should never be that you want to tell them what you can offer: show them. 

This story was originally published on February 16, 2016, and has since been updated.

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Ask an Expert: 3 Ways to Connect, Collaborate, and Grow Your Biz While Social Distancing

We’ve been spending a lot of time at Create & Cultivate HQ discussing how we can best show up for and support our community during this uncertain time. Community is at our core, and connecting with others through one-of-a-kind experiences is what we love to do. While the world has changed, our mission has not. We’re committed to helping women create and cultivate the career of their dreams, which is why we’re proud to announce our new Ask an Expert series. We’re hosting discussions with experts, mentors, and influencers daily at 9 am, 12 pm, and 3 pm PST on Instagram Live to cure your craving for community and bring you the expert advice you’ve come to know and love from C&C. Follow Create & Cultivate on Instagram, check out our Ask an Expert highlight reel for the latest schedule, and hit the countdown to get a reminder so you don’t miss out!

There’s no question that we’re living in uncertain, anxiety-ridden times, especially if you’re an entrepreneur whose business has come to a screeching halt since the country was told to stay home starting in mid-March. We’re being faced with unprecedented pressure to pivot, innovate, and get wildly creative to keep our businesses afloat, yet we’re housebound and unable to be out in the world doing business as usual.

So what’s an entrepreneur to do? Collaborate like your business depends on it (because it just might.) 

Collaboration has always been an incredible way to achieve your business goals, whether that includes growing your email list and social following, gaining credibility as a thought leader in your space, or collaborating with another brand on a product or service offering. It’s been entirely through collaboration and partnerships that I’ve grown my own business, and I’ve taught dozens of other entrepreneurs how to do the same. But now, more than ever, adopting a collaboration strategy is crucial to staying in front of your potential audience and continuing to bring in revenue. 

Here are three ways you can leverage collaboration to help your business survive this indefinite period of social distancing.

1. Do More With Less

Even if you haven’t seen your revenue slow or stop, there’s definitely a lingering feeling of uneasiness floating around about if and when that will happen. With a recession looming, now is the perfect time to take a “do more with less” approach to your marketing. By combining your resources, energy, and time with a like-minded individual or brand, you’ll be able to do exactly that. 

Most of the collaborations I help my clients create are barter-based, meaning no money is exchanged between partners. That’s good news for entrepreneurs who weren’t working with a lot of marketing dollars to begin with, but it’s even better news for entrepreneurs who have had to reallocate their budget to other areas of the business in the last few weeks.

When you collaborate with another individual or brand, you’re able to tap into their reach, resources, content, and community, and vice-versa. If you and your partner decide to run a co-produced webinar and promote it to each of your audiences, your combined reach becomes much greater than each of yours alone. On the flip side, when you both contribute to a collaboration, the effort required to run it is the same or less than it would be if you were to do it alone. Greater reach + less effort = collaboration at its finest.  

2. Amplify Each Other’s Voices

If I had a dollar for every free downloadable or webinar that’s been promoted to me in the last week alone, I wouldn’t be worried about a recession. Our normal platforms for promotion have gotten exhaustingly loud, which makes cutting through that noise increasingly difficult. When you collaborate, you and your partner are able to amplify one another’s voices and share the same message to multiple audiences, which is a heck of a lot more powerful than two individual voices screaming with multiple offers to the same target market.

Going back to the co-produced webinar example, when you choose to combine yours and your partner’s knowledge and expertise into one webinar as opposed to you each creating and running your own, you increase the likelihood that people will actually sign up. Instead of each of you promoting your own individual webinars, you can both promote one. One message, one call to action, one amplified voice speaking over the many other voices yelling into the feed. 

3. Innovate and Collaborate

One potential bright spot in an otherwise dark time is that by the end of this (whenever that may be) I have no doubt that some amazing new products, services, and companies will emerge. When your back is against the wall, sometimes the only escape is through innovation and some serious creative thinking. Often the best solutions to life’s challenges come from people joining forces and working together in a collaborative effort. Or, as I like to say, “My This + Your That = Our Magic.”

The best way to initiate the innovation through the collaboration process is to think about all of the people in your community who offer a product or service that’s complementary to yours and choose one or two who you’d feel comfortable brainstorming ideas with. Reach out and see if they’re open to putting your heads together to find ways to make one another’s offerings that much better. 

By bringing in a different set of eyeballs, you’re able to see your business from a fresh perspective. When you look at your business as a whole, are there areas where you feel like you might be able to expand your thinking and try a new approach? If you’ve been offering the same services for a while, perhaps now is the perfect time to shake everything out on the table and pick up only the pieces that feel relevant going forward. In addition to each of you expanding your individual businesses, you might find ways to combine your offerings together to co-create something new that will serve both of your audiences. 

Even though “social distancing” looks to be our new reality for the foreseeable future, that doesn’t mean we can’t connect and collaborate with our community. Now, more than ever, we must band together with those around us to help keep each other going. It will be through collaboration that we’re able to rise to the challenge and find new ways to do business and - hopefully - survive this tumultuous time. 

It’s together that we’ll get through this and emerge stronger and more capable than before. 

About the Expert: Baily Hancock is a collaboration consultant, speaker, and the host of the “Stop, Collaborate & Listen” Podcast who’s on a mission to save humanity with collaboration. Join the Collaboration Coalition Facebook Group to find potential partners and receive Baily’s collaboration templates, tools, and tips.

Tune in daily at 9 am, 12 pm, and 3 pm PST, for new installments of Ask an Expert. 

Follow Create & Cultivate on Instagram, check out our Ask an Expert highlight reel for the schedule, and hit the countdown to get a reminder so you don’t miss out. See you there!

How the Right Website Copy Is Like Having a Sales Team

Photo: Vlada Karpovich for Pexels

So you've got a new business. You've developed a crazy-good "why hasn't anyone invented this yet" product. Or maybe you're delivering an "oh-my-goodness-what-did-I-do-without-you" service for clients. Either way, you're clear on what you're selling, you're clear on who needs your business, and you're clear on how you want to come across to your customers.

Now comes the part where you've got to make your business profitable. So you buy your domain and set up your email accounts. You get a business bank account. But then you're faced with a series of dilemmas:

• Do you hire a graphic designer to make your site look like a million bucks?

• Do you need new brand photos every month to keep up with the changing seasons?

• Which of the software solutions your trialing deserves a subscription fee?

• What add-ons will actually help your bottom line, and which ones will just drain your profits?
  

In the rush to create a brand that looks beautiful, with just the right fonts and colors, copywriting often gets overlooked.

Once your site is ready to go live, only then are those placeholder blocks of text addressed. But here's the thing: just writing about your company isn't enough, just coming up with a cute tagline won't get you any additional customers, and just describing your products and hoping photos convert buyers... while you might get some buyers, a lot more would-be customers will leave without a compelling written message.

The superpower of copy is that it isn't just text.

In fact, it isn't even just marketing. Well-crafted copy is an online salesperson who works around the clock for you. Even better, copy can have 1:1 interactions with hundreds of prospects at once. All while you sleep. Or work on R&D. Or actually get to the gym for once this month.

It works its magic by entering the conversation already happening in the mind of your customers

What are people worried about? What's a pain your product could solve? Great copywriting goes way beyond analyzing search terms. Because behind every feature of your product or service, there's a deeper benefit: something unique about your offering that will make your customers' lives better the moment they open your box.  To find those key benefits — the things your customers are truly looking for — you've got to do some digging.

Start with customer surveys. Ask your customers why they purchased from you at this time - what they needed, and how you've solved their problems or brought more happiness into their world. Then write copy that addresses those very problems and frustrations head-on. Get specific with them. Finally: take those messages and put 'em on your site!

With copy, one round of investment means you're getting a 24/7 global salesforce

How's that for scale? Oh, and the other thing: Once you've established a strong message about outcomes and benefits that resonates with your market, you can stick with it for a long time. Meaning, you get long-lasting ROI, and that’s something any business owner can celebrate.

About the Author: Anna Bradshaw is a conversion copywriter for happy brands. She helps businesses find their core messages and writes data-backed copy that's packed with flavor. She writes from Southern California where she lives with her husband.

This story was originally published on June 1, 2019, and has since been updated

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Ask an Expert: How to Grow Your TikTok Following From 0 to 30K in 3 Days

We’ve been spending a lot of time at Create & Cultivate HQ discussing how we can best show up for and support our community during this uncertain time. Community is at our core, and connecting with others through one-of-a-kind experiences is what we love to do. While the world has changed, our mission has not. We’re committed to helping women create and cultivate the career of their dreams, which is why we’re proud to announce our new Ask an Expert series. We’re hosting discussions with experts, mentors, and influencers daily at 9 am, 12 pm, and 3 pm PST on Instagram Live to cure your craving for community and bring you the expert advice you’ve come to know and love from C&C. Follow Create & Cultivate on Instagram, check out our Ask an Expert highlight reel for the latest schedule, and hit the countdown to get a reminder so you don’t miss out!

Photo: Courtesy of Courtney Quinn

If there’s anything we’ve learned for our Ask an Expert series, it’s that now is the perfect time to learn a new skill. Given that we’re all staying home to flatten the coronavirus curve, now is the time to start that blog, launch that newsletter, record that podcast, and jump on that new social media platform everyone’s talking about.

To find out how to thrive on TikTok (aka the hottest social media platform of the moment), we tapped Courtney Quinn of Color Me Courtney for a special segment of our Ask an Expert Instagram Live series. Quinn is a veritable influencer with over 600K followers on Instagram and now 30K followers and counting on TikTok (after just 3 days!).

Read on for her top three tips for growing a following on TikTok, and be sure to tune into our next Ask an Expert conversation on Instagram Live.

1. Analyze trends.

“Look at what’s trending and create content specifically for TikTok—don’t repurpose content from Instagram, YouTube, or other platforms. You have to create unique value on each platform so that the followers who are with you on TikTok and Instagram aren’t being fed the same content on every platform.”

2. Immerse yourself in the platform. 

“I’ve reached 30K followers in three days and my goal is 50K by the end of the week. When I started, I spent about two hours a day immersing myself in the platform. I also spent about two hours a day making TikTok videos, which doesn’t take as long now since there’s a learning curve. I also spent about two hours a day engaging, commenting, liking, and following.”

3. Check out your analytics.

“Everyone has analytics in TikTok, you don’t need to have a business account or anything like that. When you’re checking your analytics, watch time is really important. When people watch videos all the way through, that’s how they go viral. So, finding a hook that gets your followers to stick around for those 15 seconds is really important because that’s going to boost your video.”

About the Expert: Courtney Quinn is the colorful lifestyle blogger behind Color Me Courtney. Color Me Courtney has amassed over 600K Instagram followers as well as a substantial following on her website, YouTube, Pinterest and more. Courtney has been featured in a variety of campaigns including a National TV commercial for Microsoft, designing the ABC Good Morning America holiday window for Instagram, a clothing line for Hudson’s Bay, as well as partnering with brands like Disney, IKEA, and HGTV to name a few. She's also frequently featured in industry-leading publications like Refinery29, Essence, Teen Vogue, Forbes and many more.

Tune in daily at 9 am, 12 pm, and 3 pm PST, for new installments of Ask an Expert. 

Follow Create & Cultivate on Instagram, check out our Ask an Expert highlight reel for the schedule, and hit the countdown to get a reminder so you don’t miss out. See you there!

Ask an Expert: How Influencers Can Keep Their Business Thriving While Social Distancing

We’ve been spending a lot of time at Create & Cultivate HQ discussing how we can best show up for and support our community during this uncertain time. Community is at our core, and connecting with others through one-of-a-kind experiences is what we love to do. While the world has changed, our mission has not. We’re committed to helping women create and cultivate the career of their dreams, which is why we’re proud to announce our new Ask an Expert series. We’re hosting discussions with experts, mentors, and influencers daily at 9 am, 12 pm, and 3 pm PST on Instagram Live to cure your craving for community and bring you the expert advice you’ve come to know and love from C&C. Follow Create & Cultivate on Instagram, check out our Ask an Expert highlight reel for the latest schedule, and hit the countdown to get a reminder so you don’t miss out!

Photo: Courtesy of Idalia Salsamendi

If the coronavirus crisis has taught us anything, it’s that no business is immune from COVID-19’s far-reaching economic impact—even one that’s predicated on social media. To find out how influencers can keep their businesses thriving while social distancing, we tapped business strategist and social media consultant Idalia Salsamendi whose client list includes Chriselle Lim, Brittany Xavier, and Jacey Duprie, to name a few.

If you joined us for her Ask an Expert Instagram Live conversation this week, you know that the influencer world is spinning with one critical question in these difficult times: What happens now? Scroll on for the business strategist and social media consultant’s top three tips for how to manage not only your career and business but also your stress, and find out how to tune into our next Ask an Expert segment on Instagram Live.

1. Time to Influence 

In today’s society, the word “influencer” is tossed around so frequently that perhaps we’ve lost focus on what the word actually entails. Our minds are instantly transported to those men and women posing in their latest outfit by a hot pink wall, and/or promoting their favorite skincare brand saying how “obsessed” they are with it. That’s all fine and dandy. I mean hello, I’m the one booking those deals. 

However, since the dawn of the arrival of social media (yup, I’ve been managing influencers, talent, and models for over a decade now), I’ve always instilled in my clients one main thing: serve a bigger purpose. Now more than ever we are truly seeing the rise of the innate meaning of “influencer.” We are seeing men and women around the world donating their resources, voice, and money to the pandemic at hand and guess what, it’s making a difference. I’m noticing a beautiful shift in the paradigm to use this “influence” to do more than to sell an object, but rather to serve a cause. Here’s a beautiful thing though, you could actually do both. Hence point #2...

2. Pitch Smart 

A common question I get asked is, “Idalia, should I even be pitching to brands right now?” My answer as of today, March 26, 2020, is: YES. Please pitch. Please support your small business (remember you are one!). Here’s the clincher though: You have to pitch smart and not be tone-deaf to the global pandemic. Like I mentioned in the first point, you have to use your influence for good, and so do brands. Now is the time to think about how you could make a difference and ask your favorite brands to join you on that journey. 

If you’re self-quarantined, think about brands that speak to that situation... is it your favorite snacks, wine, sweatshirt, book, etc.? Then reach out and tell them you’d like to unite forces and raise awareness around a charity, organization, hospital, etc. Donate a part of your rate to a charity. You can even ask them to chip in, too! You both could raise funds to support your local food drive or raise awareness to a cause... possibilities are also endless here. Encourage the brand, and show them your passion and education about the subject. 

One extremely crucial point to take into consideration when doing this: it has to be genuine. Please do not link yourself to a brand or charitable cause if you feel nothing for it and are doing it to look good. It will bleed into your work, and people can sniff a fraud from a mile away. So really sit yourself down and consider what you care about.

Pssst... If you need a helpful nudge, here are a couple which I’m personally donating and raising awareness for:

• World Health Organization Coronavirus Response Fund

• No Kid Hungry

And if you’re scratching your head wondering how you can properly even pitch, definitely check out the Powerful Pitch Kit for Influencers, and enjoy 50% off with promo code: CULTIVATELOVE.

3. Say Buh-Bye to Your Comfort Zone 

The chances of you reading this while self-isolating are pretty high, so I’m going to be your cheerleader right now and encourage you to step out of your comfort zone. I get it, we are all locked up and it’s human that at moments we feel disillusioned, hopeless, stuck, confused, angry, sad... the list really could go on and on. Here’s the thing though, you have to push through. Keywords: HAVE TO.

Influencers that have been able to take the quarantine and show different sides of themselves are the ones that are not only the happiest (mental health check) but are also the ones that are getting reached out to by brands (pay-check). Simply taking a pretty photo is no longer the status quo, but rather something that may turn off your followers if you do it too frequently. So I’ll ask you what I ask everyone I work with: what sets you apart as a human being (forget business)? Do you play the piano? Do you paint? Do you do funny impersonations? Do you dance? Do you love to work out? The answers are endless, and what’s imperative to understand here is that there is no right or wrong answer. The end-game is the same: show it to your followers. 

Since the rise of TikTok, I’ve seen influencers that are much more polished and serious on Instagram, let loose and have some fun on the ‘Tok. I’ve seen them without makeup in their sweatpants trying to a crazy dance move. And people are going nuts over it, even when syndicated on Instagram! Moral of the story: people want to see all your wonderful, quirky, funny, inspiring dimensions and now is the time to show them.

I genuinely hope these three tips inspired and empowered you in one way, shape, and form. From the bottom of my heart, thank you for stopping by and reading this. If you’re curious about more of what I’m up to, feel free to check out my website and my podcast.

About the Expert: Idalia Salsamendi is an industry-leading business strategist and social media consultant. With over 16 years of experience in PR and top-tier talent management, Idalia opened her company in 2016 with strategy for both brands and influencers at its core. Known for being selective towards the types of projects and clients she engages, the mantra for her company is to inspire, inform, and empower. Her roster includes Chriselle Lim, Brittany Xavier, and Jacey Duprie, to name a few.

Tune in daily at 9 am, 12 pm, and 3 pm PST, for new installments of Ask an Expert. 

Follow Create & Cultivate on Instagram, check out our Ask an Expert highlight reel for the schedule, and hit the countdown to get a reminder so you don’t miss out. See you there!

Ask an Expert: How to Jump on Digital Even If Your Business Isn't Online

We’ve been spending a lot of time at Create & Cultivate HQ discussing how we can best show up for and support our community during this uncertain time. Community is at our core, and connecting with others through one-of-a-kind experiences is what we love to do. While the world has changed, our mission has not. We’re committed to helping women create and cultivate the career of their dreams, which is why we’re proud to announce our new Ask an Expert series. We’re hosting discussions with experts, mentors, and influencers daily at 9 am, 12 pm, and 3 pm PST on Instagram Live to cure your craving for community and bring you the expert advice you’ve come to know and love from C&C. Follow Create & Cultivate on Instagram, check out our Ask an Expert highlight reel for the latest schedule, and hit the countdown to get a reminder so you don’t miss out!

Photo: Courtesy of Vanessa Lee

Needless to say, the COVID-19 crisis is having a major impact on brick-and-mortar businesses. With everyone responsibly staying home and practicing social distancing in order to do their part and help flatten the coronavirus curve, businesses that typically rely on in-person sales (think: fitness studios, salons, restaurants, etc.) are needing to pivot in order to stay profitable during these uncertain times.

If there’s one thing we’ve learned from our Ask an Expert series, it’s that jumping on digital is essential for brick-and-mortar businesses to come out of the coronavirus pandemic stronger than ever. Which is why we tapped Vanessa Lee, the owner of the beauty concept bar, The Things We Do, for the latest installment of the series. (Spoiler alert: Lee’s creative use of social media to grow her business in these unpredictable times is a masterclass on how to successfully pivot to digital.)

Read on for her top three tips for pivoting to digital even if you’re business isn’t online. If you missed the conversation, you can watch it in full here, and be sure to tune into our next Ask an Expert conversation on Instagram Live.

Tip #1: Ask your customers what they what.

“Make sure you’re giving your audience and customers only what they want. Reach out to your followers on social media and ask them what they need from you. They will tell you what they'll appreciate and what they need from you as a company. We’re living in a special time where we have social media and have the ability to have that dialogue.”

Tip #2: Focus on educational content.

“People are on social media more than ever. Right now, what people are sharing is a lot of educational videos. They’re so powerful because not only are you informing your audience about what you do but there’s an attachment to an experience afterward.“

Tip #3: Think beyond social media.

“It’s important to capture email lists through social media. Making your own email list is super important because right now we’re seeing that so much can change so quickly—you need something solid outside the social media realm.”

About the Expert: Vanessa Lee is a world-renowned medical aesthetic provider sought after for her dedication to the look of natural beauty and known for her contribution to training and educating in the cosmetic/medical field. She is a best-kept celebrity secret, skincare expert, and the owner of a beauty concept bar, The Things We Do.

Tune in daily at 9 am, 12 pm, and 3 pm PST, for new installments of Ask an Expert. 

Follow Create & Cultivate on Instagram, check out our Ask an Expert highlight reel for the schedule, and hit the countdown to get a reminder so you don’t miss out. See you there!

Ask an Expert: 5 Tips for How to Use Social Media to Grow and Scale Your Business During COVID-19

We’ve been spending a lot of time at Create & Cultivate HQ discussing how we can best show up for and support our community during this uncertain time. Community is at our core, and connecting with others through one-of-a-kind experiences is what we love to do. While the world has changed, our mission has not. We’re committed to helping women create and cultivate the career of their dreams, which is why we’re proud to announce our new Ask an Expert series. We’re hosting discussions with experts, mentors, and influencers daily at 9 am, 12 pm, and 3 pm PST on Instagram Live to cure your craving for community and bring you the expert advice you’ve come to know and love from C&C. Follow Create & Cultivate on Instagram, check out our Ask an Expert highlight reel for the latest schedule, and hit the countdown to get a reminder so you don’t miss out!

Photo: Courtesy of Kayla Ybanez

Despite the high volume of people online, it can be easy to think that nobody will be interested in you or your online business, but business strategist Kayla Ybanez says that couldn't be farther from the truth. Yes, the way people are using social media right now is different, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t consuming your content at all. It just means they are consuming it differently and at different rates.

So, how can you grab their attention and continue to grow your business? To find out, we tapped Ybanez for an informative segment of our Ask an Expert Instagram Live series. Read on for five practical tips from Ybanez on how to use social media to grow and scale your business during COVID-19. If you missed the conversation, you can watch it in full here, and be sure to tune into our next Ask an Expert conversation on Instagram Live.

1. Remember, Your Current Clients Are Number One

In times of uncertainty, it can be easy to get distracted by wanting to only focus on how to generate new income streams or launches. I want to challenge you that one of the most important things with growing your online business right now is over-delivering to your current clients.

But first things first, your current clients are going to need you more than ever. Checking in with them more often will ensure client satisfaction and will continue to help them get the best results from your product or service.

The second piece is that testimonials and social proof are SO important for your online business. When you give your clients more than what they expected, they will over-deliver on their social proof for you.

How can you over-deliver?

• Offer extra calls to your clients.

• Go LIVE more often in your paid communities for face-to-camera time.

• Offer discounts on evergreen courses/programs.

• Be a listening ear when they need it.

2. Grab Your Audience’s Attention

Now more than ever, people will be consuming different types of social media as a form of distraction from what is going on in the world. Yes, it will be a lot like the early 2000s when the internet will become an escape from reality. Remember those days?

Your audience is growing sick of the news and they are ready to consume content that is going to be valuable to them. First, you need to be able to grab their attention.

Using powerful hooks on social media posts is going to be key to stopping people from scrolling past your content. What is a hook? It is the very first line of a post; the one that tells the reader exactly why they need to stop and consume the whole thing!

Hook suggestions:

• My 3 tips to do _____. (Tell them what they’re about to learn.)

• If you’re anything like me, then you know _____. (If they can relate, they’ll read on.)

• You won’t BELIEVE what just happened. (Click-bait to spark curiosity.)

If you just jump into the story without telling us why we should care and why it’s important that we know, we will keep on scrolling.

3. Stay Top-of-Mind

Even when social media tends slightly change, your audience isn’t dropping their love of scrolling Instagram and Facebook completely! I recommend staying in a CREATION mode as much as possible for a second priority behind OVERDELIVERING on serving your current clients. The more your audience notices you showing up on social media even if they aren’t consuming your content, they are more likely to think of YOU when a need for your product or service arises. The best part? Your content doesn’t (and honestly shouldn’t) have to only relate to your business.

Examples:

• Sharing a tutorial for your signature braid hairstyle.

• Your hacks for organizing your closet.

• Your secret to the perfect hard-boiled egg.

How frequently should you be showing up on social media? To some degree, you want to be showing up face to camera daily.

4. Demonstrate Your Essential Value

The next thing you want to pay attention to is making sure that you are positioning your brand and products to align with your ideal client’s perception of essential value.

At times when you worry that your audience is changing their buying behaviors, the best way to adapt to this is to show them that you are meeting their essential needs. For a lot of us, those needs include Solving known problems, community/support, providing certainty.

Whether you’ve had to think about these in your business before or not, how can you shift your content to reflect that you are making it your mission to meet these needs?

Examples:

• Tell us about your community and how it will enrich our lives.

• How are you solving problems that we have RIGHT NOW?

• How are you/your products making us feel sure of our decisions and protected?

5. Get Scrappy With Your Resources

With social media, the ability to grow your business and generate revenue are ENDLESS! I know you may have certain routines and launch plans that you’re set in, but sometimes we need to be adaptable and ready to meet people where they’re at.

Bonuses and “extra stuff” isn’t getting people to get off the fence and make buying decisions as much at this current time. What is? Discounts!

Recommendations for increasing cash flow into your business right now:

• Running a flash sale on an existing evergreen offer.

• If you provide an in-person service such as photography, offer a discount if they buy “sessions” upfront.

• Creating a low ticket baby-offer that provides INSANE value (to build your email list as well).

• Beefing up your affiliate program for offers so you can partner with loyal members of your community for a mutually-beneficial launch.

What with everything that is going on, I wanted to outline the main areas of your business you should focus on to continue to grow your impact on social media. At the end of the day, SHOWING UP is always going to be the most important thing. Leaders will rise and you’re here because you are a leader who’s making a change!

About the Expert: Kayla Ybanez is a business strategist for network marketers and online coaches and service providers who want to build a sustainable and scalable personal brand online. Ybanez built her business from her daughter's hospital room, where her daughter fought for her life, and where she and her family lived with her for 436 days straight, waiting for answers for her medical mystery diagnosis and watching her daughter undergo a bone marrow transplant in January 2019.

Tune in daily at 9 am, 12 pm, and 3 pm PST, for new installments of Ask an Expert. 

Follow Create & Cultivate on Instagram, check out our Ask an Expert highlight reel for the schedule, and hit the countdown to get a reminder so you don’t miss out. See you there!

Ask an Expert: 5 Practical Marketing Tips for Staying Profitable During the COVID-19 Pandemic

We’ve been spending a lot of time at Create & Cultivate HQ discussing how we can best show up for and support our community during this uncertain time. Community is at our core, and connecting with others through one-of-a-kind experiences is what we love to do. While the world has changed, our mission has not. We’re committed to helping women create and cultivate the career of their dreams, which is why we’re proud to announce our new Ask an Expert series. We’re hosting discussions with experts, mentors, and influencers daily at 9 am, 12 pm, and 3 pm PST on Instagram Live to cure your craving for community and bring you the expert advice you’ve come to know and love from C&C. Follow Create & Cultivate on Instagram, check out our Ask an Expert highlight reel for the latest schedule, and hit the countdown to get a reminder so you don’t miss out!

Photo: Courtesy of Laurel Mintz

It’s safe to say the COVID-19 pandemic has radically shifted how businesses both large and small need to approach their marketing strategies. With the sudden rise of the stay-at-home economy, it’s imperative that brands pivot swiftly to digital in order to stay profitable because, now more than ever, consumers are turning to social media as a source for content, comfort, and even creativity.

In fact, social media views and engagement have increased by over 30% in the last two weeks, according to Laurel Mintz, CEO and founder of the digital marketing and live events agency Elevate My Brand. We tapped the marketing pro to find out how brands can support their communities and remain profitable in these uncertain times for the latest installment of our Ask an Expert Instagram Live series.

Read on for five practical marketing tips for staying profitable and coming out of the coronavirus crisis stronger than before. If you missed the conversation, you can watch it in full here, and be sure to tune into our next Ask an Expert conversation on Instagram Live.

1. Double Down on Your Digital Spend 

“A lot of businesses are scared, and they should be. Because they’re scared, they’re questioning their marketing and advertising spend. Don’t be one of those companies.

Now is the best time EVER to double down your dollars so that you can capture more market share. It may sound a bit callous, but we saw the same thing happen in 2008/2009, and the smarter companies that survived and thrived turned a challenging time into an opportunity to grow.

It will be good for you long-term and is the right thing to do to keep the economy going.”

2. Get More Social (Online) 

“I don’t know about you, but I’ve canceled most of my social and business plans. This has left me feeling totally disconnected and frankly a bit lonely. That’s why now is a great time to start or increase your social media content. Act as if things are as normal as possible and talk to your community through your social channels.

More than just talking at them, start a dialogue and use these challenging times to truly engage your community in honest conversations about what you’re doing to support them and how you’re working towards business as usual. Make them feel the love even if it’s only online. (P.S. Social media views and engagement have increased by over 30% in the last two weeks, so give the people what they want where they want it.)”

3. Put Your People First

“I know this sounds like a no-brainer, but there are still a lot of companies out there that don’t have emergency protocol around this virus. Worse yet, there are a lot of employees who, if they don’t show up physically to work, don’t get paid. There’s no other way to say this than don’t be a d*&k!

Like us, I’m sure many of your employees have kids and, with the recent school shutdowns, are feeling the pressure more than ever before. We live in amazing times where a ton of work can be done remotely. When you treat your employees with respect and let them put their health and families first, they will be more loyal and committed to the work and will likely maintain productivity and service levels, and that’s good for business and morale alike.”

4. Convert, Don’t Cancel

“Brands that rely on fundraising efforts like non-profits are, rightfully, freaking out right now. Many events and galas have been canceled and the teams behind them don’t know how they’re going to raise the working capital they need to maintain their staff and support the work they’re doing in the community.

We have seen smart companies both in the for- and non-profit worlds quickly convert events and fundraising to digital. Whether it’s micro-donations through social media or crowdfunding platforms, there are tons of great digital tools, if done right and quickly, that can slow the decline of fundraising efforts.

There are also tools out there such as Zoom that can supplement the intimate connections between donors, keep meetings on track, and keep communities and communication flowing. So don’t cancel that meeting, just convert it to a Zoom and keep things moving forward as normally as possible.”

5. Content Is (Still) Critical

“Let’s be honest, with everything canceling and everyone wondering what to do next, most businesses have a lot of unexpected time on their hands right now. Look at it as an opportunity to develop quality content for your digital channels and to set yourself up for a successful future.

Use Google Docs to collectively ideate ad concepts. Use Zoom to interview employees for human-interest story vlogs. Use a project management platform to make a more robust marketing plan. We know how hard it can be for brands to devote time to building out their content calendar, so take this time to write blogs and prepare email campaigns and audit your content.

Because when you come out on the other side of this thing, we’ll all have to hit the ground running.”

About the Expert: Laurel Mintz, J.D., M.B.A. is the CEO and founder of award-winning, Los Angeles-based digital marketing agency Elevate My Brand. Laurel’s gift is connecting with people and their stories. After all, companies are made up of people, and stories are just narratives that are the foundation of great marketing. Laurel’s energy has been the driving force behind the agency’s growth since it launched in 2009. Her awards include the 2017 Patrick Soon-Shiong Innovation Award, the 2016 Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses Company award, the Los Angeles Business Journal 2016 Women In Business Award, and more. 

Right now, Elevate My Brand is offering complimentary strategy sessions to any brands in need. Shoot them an email at info@elevatemybrand.com or ping them on Instagram or Facebook. 

Tune in daily at 9 am, 12 pm, and 3 pm PST, for new installments of Ask an Expert. 

Follow Create & Cultivate on Instagram, check out our Ask an Expert highlight reel for the schedule, and hit the countdown to get a reminder so you don’t miss out. See you there!

Ask an Expert: How to Get Buzz-Worthy Press Right Now, According to a Publicist

We’ve been spending a lot of time at Create & Cultivate HQ discussing how we can best show up for and support our community during this uncertain time. Community is at our core, and connecting with others through one-of-a-kind experiences is what we love to do. While the world has changed, our mission has not. We’re committed to helping women create and cultivate the career of their dreams, which is why we’re proud to announce our new Ask an Expert series. We’re hosting live discussions with experts, mentors, and influencers daily at 9 am, 12 pm, and 3 pm PST on Instagram Live to cure your craving for community and bring you the expert advice you’ve come to know and love from C&C. Follow Create & Cultivate on Instagram, check out our Ask an Expert highlight reel for the latest schedule, and hit the countdown to get a reminder so you don’t miss out!

Photo: Courtesy of Heather DeSantis

There is a huge opportunity for entrepreneurs and small business owners to show up, share their message, and be a source of positivity right now. With the COVID-19 crisis impacting communities, businesses, and people across the country and the world, there’s a great need for positive news. So, how do you make your message really matter in a time that feels so dark to fill that void?

In this installment of our wildly popular Instagram Live series, Ask an Expert, we tapped Heather DeSantis, a media expert and the CEO of Publicity for Good, to answer all your burning publicity questions in the wake of the coronavirus crisis. Read on for DeSantis’ tried-and-true R.I.C.H. formula for getting buzz-worthy press and creating content that resonates right now, and be sure to tune into our next Ask an Expert conversation on Instagram Live.

R: Reflect on who you are as an entrepreneur and a person.

“Ask yourself, Who are you as an entrepreneur? What key things have you gone through to become the entrepreneur you are today? What things have you gone through that you can share? What can you teach to others? How can you be of service? Use these answers to make a list of the core topics that you want to talk about in the media.”

I: Investigate.

“Figure out how to bridge the gap between what you want to talk about and what’s going on in the world right now to make your pitch relevant to the media.

Step 1: Go to Google and type in a topic that’s relevant to your business; a topic that you’re an expert in.

Step 2: Go through the results in the “News” section. Sift through the first three pages of results for inspiration on how to pitch yourself to media outlets.

Step 3: Search for your competitors via Google to see where they’ve been featured and start reaching out to those media outlets to get featured by those publications, networks, etc.

As a business owner, it’s really important to make your message relevant to what’s going on in the world. Search what’s trending in the media so that your content solves a problem and serves what people are interested in today.”

C: Connect with the media.

“First and foremost, post on your own social media channels. Go to your Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter and create a call to action post to let people know you want to get your message out there.

Then, authentically connect with members of the media before you pitch them. Engage with their content and create relationships and friendships with them. When you do reach out to them with a pitch, be sure to follow up three days later. Ask them how you can help and always come from a place of service.

If you want to pitch local/regional press, start watching the morning news to see what the flow of the show is, and then call the morning producer. You can go to Google and type in “news tips” to search for the direct email address of the producer and reach out.”

H: Help & hunt.

“Help. It’s all about service. You’re filling the need of the media, so come from a place of service. The media needs content to inspire people to keep them motivated and learn how to adjust during these times. Ask, What are you working on and how can I help?

Hunt. Show up every day and pitch yourself to the media.”

About the Expert: Heather DeSantis is the SHE-O of Publicity For Good and a Forbes 30 Under 30 nominee. Heather is the leading female millennial publicist of her generation with a fresh take on life which translates to a disruptive approach to PR, as evident with her choosing to run her agency nomadically from an Airstream. Together with her fiancé, she goes around the U.S. spreading the word about the unique way and mechanism PFG does PR. 

Tune in daily at 9 am, 12 pm, and 3 pm PST, for new installments of Ask an Expert. 

Follow Create & Cultivate on Instagram, check out our Ask an Expert highlight reel for the schedule, and hit the countdown to get a reminder so you don’t miss out. See you there!

Slow Stories: Creating and Consuming Content During the COVID-19 Outbreak

Photo: Courtesy of Slow Stories

The spread of COVID-19 has upended the business community on a global level. However, living in an age of profound interconnectivity has brought people together in ways that we never expected—especially on social media.

Like so many others, I've tirelessly refreshed my news and social feeds and watched as they've unearthed a variety of responses to the uncertainty that we're all facing. Recently, I've also ruminated on the ways content can play a role in facilitating productivity in a time that will inevitably call for slowing down in nearly every aspect of our lives.

In one of my earlier columns, I outlined a few key pillars that our initial podcast interviewees attribute to the slow content movement. But as I look at the below touchpoints again (and in the context of present-day challenges), I find myself thinking about how we can take these one step further:

Slow content provides value and purpose.

Slow, thoughtful content has a clear intention. Whether it is to inspire or educate, creating content in this climate forces us to think about how we can provide value beyond our immediate business goals. Ask yourself: Can I provide value to my community by sharing a founder anecdote or reposting a fun image that evokes laughter? Even in a professional context, times of uncertainty offer the opportunity to create value for our customers in new (and necessary) ways.

Slow content considers data and fact-checking.

Content can be an incredible tool to drive conversations forward. Still, the spread of misinformation can also make it difficult to discern the difference between what is fabricated and what is real. During times where there is an uptick in sharing information, creators and businesses can engage with their community by using content to call attention to credible institutions and outlets. 

Slowing down our relationship to content makes us nicer, more well-rounded people.

In a rapidly-changing news cycle and digital sharing landscape, slowing down our relationship with content can create more mental runway to think about the things that add value to our lives (beyond our devices). In the case of a global pandemic, finding a balance between staying aware and engaged while establishing healthy digital consumption habits will be essential in how we relate to one another through this trying time. 

With so much hanging in the balance, our professional endeavors are certainly no exception. Many people in my own network have begun to think about how content and storytelling will play a role in their brands over the next few months. Below, I'm sharing a few things to consider as we recalibrate our routines and work through the challenges that are becoming increasingly present in our digital age.

Re-evaluate your communications strategy.

When there's an increase in online communication, content creators and business owners have the opportunity to streamline—and in some cases, reevaluate—their content, PR, and brand messaging so that the message they wish to convey is consistent across all communications channels. Use this time to think about what your brand wants to say, how you want it to come across, and how it can stay in-line with your usual voice and tone to avoid sounding inauthentic to your followers or customers.

Create content that inspires social/philanthropic participation.

We've never had more tools at our disposal to create content that inspires action.

However, it's essential to consider how to do this in a way that encourages inclusivity. From sharing charity donation stickers on Instagram Stories to creating bespoke content that ties in more personal brand narratives, creating content that can diversify how your community can get involved can elicit a powerful response. Thinking holistically about content in this way will also create more avenues for charitable goals to be reached, too.

Pause the post.

One of my interviewees said it best: "There is power in the pause." As we become more inundated with content from all directions, we have another option at our fingertips: to pause and step away. As consumers of content, we often forget to be discerning in what we choose to engage in a landscape that demands so much of our time and attention. Communicating what you want (and don't want!) from your favorite brands can be valuable feedback for business leaders to make informed decisions about their future storytelling and brand strategies. At the other end of the spectrum, if you're a content creator and unsure about how to proceed with your current storytelling efforts, use this period to take a step back and reflect. Your followers will thank you for it in the long run.

The points I've laid out in this article only scratch the surface of what we can be doing online. In any case, I hope this piece provides a jumping-off point for you to make thoughtful decisions about the kinds of stories you or your brand wants to tell in the near future. For more insights and musings on creating slow content and stories with longevity, I invite you to check out the ”Slow Stories” podcast (stay tuned for new episodes launching this spring) along with articles from my column here. And, most importantly, I wish you all health and happiness in this tumultuous time.

About the Author: Rachel Schwartzmann is the founder and CEO of The Style Line LLC. She created The Style Line in late January 2011 via Tumblr and has fostered The Style Line’s brand in its growth since then. Rachel has been featured in esteemed sources including Forbes, Refinery29, and MyDomaine and has also spoken at Create & Cultivate and Columbia University on establishing a unique brand point of view and entrepreneurship. On October 1, 2015, Rachel took The Style Line in a new direction as a boutique content company with the introduction of its slow content agency CONNECT(ED)ITORIAL.

You can follow Rachel at:

The Style Line: @thestyleline (Instagram, Facebook, Twitter)
CONNECT(ED)ITORIAL: @connecteditorial (Instagram)
Rachel Schwartzmann: @rachelschwartzmann (Instagram) @RMSchwartzmann (Twitter)

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I Beat the Algorithm With This Video App and Gained 680K Followers—Here's How You Can Too

This post is in paid partnership with Adobe.

Photo: Amber Torrealba

The word algorithm can send shivers down the spines of even the most successful brands, but as the classic phrase goes, if you can’t beat em’ join ‘em. And by that we mean, beat the algorithm code by creating the content it’s looking for. Sounds easier said than done but one person who has done that is pro skimboarder Amber Torrealba. The California native started out in basketball (she played for seven years) before realizing her passion for skimboarding, and eventually taking it pro. 

But while she truly has carved out a successful career in the skimboarding world, Torrealba has also made a splash as a videographer. She creates and edits her own videos for Instagram, garnering 120,000 followers and 440,000 on TikTok, too. Her passion is clear. You can tell she loves what she does and it gives a visual window into her world. It’s why Adobe asked her to be an ambassador for the brand. As an Adobe Premiere Rush Ambassador, Amber was involved in the early stages of Premiere Rush, beta testing the app and providing feedback on features and the direction of the product.

Now, she travels to conferences like Create & Cultivate (where she hosted an exclusive workshop) to share her knowledge on building a brand, growing a following, and social media content creation. Amber also hosts workshops and training on how to use Premiere Rush and is a member of the Rush Insiders. And while Instagram hasn’t officially said that video is prioritized over photos, since it auto-plays in your followers’ feeds, it definitely grabs their attention over a static image while they’re aimlessly scrolling. In short, videos compel people to stop and look.

Ahead, Torrealba talks us through her career trajectory, how she built a personal brand on Instagram using video, her partnership with Adobe, and her tips for creating compelling videos for social media.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Amber Torrealba (@ambertorrealba) on Feb 16, 2020 at 10:52am PST

On turning her passion into a profession…

I realized my passion for skimboarding after changing paths from skateboarding and basketball where I grew up in Florida. After practicing every opportunity I could in college and after work, I eventually turned pro. I didn’t know at the time how I was going to make a living off of it, but I knew I wasn't going to give up. Just as much as I would train, I was building my brand through photo and video edits using programs such as Premiere Rush for social media. I gave up everything I had to drive to California and pursue this career, and my life changed from there. 

On the key to her success…

It’s always been about how much work I put in, and how patient I am through the process. Everything has taken persistence and time to develop, and I just had to stay strong through the ups and downs, believing in who I am and what I love. My key to success was that money was never a driver for me, I just want to do what makes me happy every day.

On turning a personal brand into a business…

During and after college at UCF, I was working on a lot of digital design, ads, and really loved photography. But after making my first edit on Instagram, I was hooked on how many different aspects of creativity went into making a video—it was like surgery on the timeline. I taught myself everything based on what made me stoked and the type of vibe I wanted others to get from my videos.

I didn’t see many girls making videos of action sports, and I was always the only girl at the skatepark or skim spot, so I wanted to throw some media out there. I would film everything and travel solo to different parts of the world for sponsors, which helped me learn how to develop my flow with editing. I then realized how impactful video could be, not only for my brand but for others as well.

On creating content that stands out online…

The best tip I can give is to find your own style and continue to grow with it. What’s helped me stand out is the type of editing, transitions and feel my videos give. This I could only learn through years of practicing and learning from my own work. I always value feedback from many different perspectives to help me continue to see how the market is changing as well. 

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A post shared by Amber Torrealba (@ambertorrealba) on Jun 11, 2019 at 11:02am PDT

On making mistakes…

Some of the biggest mistakes I’ve made are where to invest time. Time is one of the only things we can’t get back, so where and what brands you spend it with has been vital for my career. There have been times where I didn't invest enough time in a brand or relationship when I should have. But it’s also taught me to never give up and there’s always another opportunity around the corner if you create it.

On being an Adobe Ambassador…

I’ve been creating videos on-the-go with Adobe now for two years, and Premiere Rush has been a huge addition to my workflow. I was involved in the early stages of Rush while filming the video release, providing feedback for the features, and now hosting workshop presentations and working with the Rush insiders group. It’s been awesome to partner on videos that fit with both of our brands and inspire more people to get into video editing through workshops and passion projects.

On using Adobe Premiere Rush for editing videos on-the-go…

Using Premiere Rush is by far the most fluent and efficient way to create video on-the-go for me. I’ve been able to turn around projects for my clients and events within hours because I have everything I need to edit a quick project in Rush. Having multiple tracks, aspect ratio, titles, speed control and other features I’d usually need my computer to do, helps me get things done right on the spot. This has allowed me to have more time to do what I need on my trips and to get started on a project that I could finish later in Premiere Pro. The fact that I can work on the same project on my phone and then finish it on another device, is extremely helpful. I also love using it for vlogs, creative vertical videos, stories, and sharing directly to apps like TikTok and Instagram.

On growing a social following of 680K…

It really comes down to branding and valuing the community. Using Rush I’ve been able to keep my branding consistent across social media platforms such as using its titles and transform features. There has to be a reason for people to spend their time watching your work, and I try to make sure I think about that when creating videos to keep people engaged. I love giving others a perspective that they might have not seen or thought about when it comes to video or a vibe, such as using audio, voiceover, and color grading features in Rush. If you find your own style and be consistent, it can start to resonate with your audience. 

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Amber Torrealba (@ambertorrealba) on Mar 24, 2019 at 8:55am PDT

On the secret to making a viral video…

I think a post on any platform is more transparent than some realize. Social media has been around for a while so everything is saturated. What attributes to the success of the post is more of a well-rounded concept. Is it so relatable, or so far unrelatable that it draws attention? The keyword is attention. If you can unlock the secret to gain someone’s attention through the proper presentation, going viral is more in the picture.

On her top five tips for creating viral videos…

Uniqueness, creativity, vibe, story, and authenticity. There are so many different ways to edit your timeline of a video, but it comes down to the final export, and how you would feel if you were someone else that just scrolled to your video, given there are a million other ways to spend their time instead. What makes them want to watch yours?

The best way to get started in video editing is to just start, and learn through your work. Rush has been the easiest way for me to grab and go, import to a timeline and quickly get started. 

To learn more about Adobe Premiere Rush, visit adobe.com. For more information on Torrealba, visit:

YouTube Highlights

Amber x Babin Interview for Adobe

Amber’s Story

Amber’s Instagram

Slow Stories: How to Set Content Resolutions for the New Year

Photo: Courtesy of Slow Stories

As we ease back into our daily workflow and embrace the opportunities that come with a new (albeit uncertain) year, the resolve to create content will be rooted in something much more profound than virality and beauty. Now more than ever before, content creators must consider the current cultural landscape to ignite dialogues that not only further their business goals but inspire widespread change, too. 


That's not to say that these efforts haven't culminated in action already. When I look back on 2019 from a business perspective, there was certainly no shortage of inspiring and impactful brand storytelling. Many of the founders and professionals I interviewed in our most recent season of Slow Stories have already doubled down on their efforts to slow down and spearhead thoughtful online narratives.

As a refresher, here are a few key takeaways from our most recent episodes:


Lead with vulnerability.

Vulnerability has become one of those words that can take on multiple meanings. While some may choose to be more forthcoming or vocal about certain experiences than others, our podcast guests argued that taking a more unfiltered or candid approach to storytelling will resonate with modern consumers. How far you want to go is up to you.

Time is money—but it's also much more than that.

Our relationship with time was another recurring theme that arose during these discussions. Our interviewees made the case that slowing down both our content creation and consumption habits creates headspace to be thoughtful about how we spend our time personally and professionally. Adopting this approach also creates a more sustainable cadence in how we engage with our customer communities online.

With interconnectivity comes great responsibility.

Lastly, our interviewees acknowledged that we have a responsibility not only to our customers but to one another as industry professionals. Stewarding responsible discussions within key leadership circles will become even more critical to enact actual systemic change—especially in our current business culture, which has become dependent upon "always-on" communication.


When the podcast season ended in December, these ideas naturally inspired me to think about how to goal-set and create resolutions through a digital/content lens. In many ways, maintaining resolutions of any kind is an ongoing process. So if you're unsure of where to start when it comes to identifying your "content" resolutions, I'm sharing a few pillars to help jumpstart your planning for the year ahead.


“Connect with others beyond the four corners of a screen... strengthening real-life connections can often lead to valuable feedback and new ways of thinking about your online storytelling efforts. ”

Organization: Don't underestimate the power of preparation.

Digital housekeeping is no exception to this. Several tools can help you stay on track with your goals so that you're maximizing your time on checking the boxes of your big- picture content goals and action items. Scheduling and planning apps like PLANOLY (revisit my interview with their founder here) can help with baseline organizational tactics like setting up weekly or monthly content calendars. There are also analog options like Create & Cultivate's career-focused collection of agenda books and calendars, which can help organize your big-picture business goals. Whatever your style may be, getting organized is the best way to free your mind up so that you can create intentional and purposeful content.


Exploration: Explore what motivates you and the stories you want to tell.

Many new businesses often go through exploratory phases to discover key elements about what will make their brand stand out and appeal to their target audience. While this approach can often be time-consuming (and eye-opening), it's a resolution worth pursuing in that it will allow you to think critically about what stories you want to contribute to an already highly-saturated content landscape. To start, try having an exploratory workshop with your team every quarter—if anything, it is an act in remembering to think (and dream) big.

Connection: Get "social" outside of social media.

One of my last recommended resolutions is to connect with others beyond the four corners of a screen. Even if you're an introvert like me, there is immense value in attending events and getting together with peers. You can be discerning about the gatherings or events you attend (remember to honor your time), but strengthening real-life connections can often lead to valuable feedback and new ways of thinking about your online storytelling efforts. Investing in professional relationships can also translate into fruitful professional collaborations, in turn, creating opportunities to make your content that much more dynamic.

While it's difficult to predict future industry trends and the inevitable ebbs and flows of business, I hope this article provides a framework to start thinking about the ways you can implement thoughtful storytelling in your own brand or content for 2020 — and beyond. I'll be touching more on these themes in the coming months, but in the meantime, if you're interested in learning more about how brand builders are approaching slow content in their businesses, check out the Slow Stories podcast along with past articles from my column here.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Rachel Schwartzmann is the Founder and CEO of The Style Line LLC. She created The Style Line in late January 2011 via Tumblr and has fostered The Style Line’s brand in its growth since then. Rachel has been featured in esteemed sources including Forbes, Refinery29, and MyDomaine and has also spoken at Create & Cultivate and Columbia University on establishing a unique brand point of view and entrepreneurship. On October 1, 2015, Rachel took The Style Line in a new direction as a boutique content company with the introduction of its slow content agency CONNECT(ED)ITORIAL.

You can follow Rachel at:

The Style Line: @thestyleline (Instagram, Facebook, Twitter)
CONNECT(ED)ITORIAL: @connecteditorial (Instagram)
Rachel Schwartzmann: @rachelschwartzmann (Instagram) @RMSchwartzmann (Twitter)

How to Be a Shameless Self-Promoter (Without Inducing Eye Rolls)

Photo: Courtesy of Create & Cultivate

In an era of Kardashians and Kanyes, selfies and borderline obnoxious status updates, it seems like humility is a lost virtue. (RIP, modesty: it’s been real.)

Makes sense, right? Well, kinda. In these Tinder slash, Twitter slash, Instagram times, it’s all about showcasing the best of you with the best visual and in as few characters as possible. It’s also easier to have a certain arrogance when posting on social media because you literally have no filter (not to worry, by “no filter” I mean no reservations).

And even if it means shouting your accomplishments from the rooftops (or in Yeezy’s case, with consecutive ALL CAPS TWEETS), promoting yourself is necessary because if you’re not going to do it, no one else will do it for you.  The trouble is, being boastful and plugging yourself constantly on social media and in-person can get annoying AF to your audience—but being humble might cause you to miss out on opportunities. And that’s no fun.

It’s a case of “don’t hate the playa, hate the game.”  And it is, indeed, a game. So play by the rules, promote yourself with poise and come out a winner with these five tips:

SHOW, DON'T TELL

Whether you’re selling merchandise or your personal brand, hard facts speak volumes. So instead of posting that “You’re the best PR person in the city” on Facebook, opt for sharing photos of recent sold-out events you’ve organized. LinkedIn is the ideal platform for sharing news coverage about you, awards you might have received or listing recent achievements. Save Twitter as a playground for “quick hits,” such as any media coverage about you, recent articles you’ve written, or upcoming conferences you are speaking at, for example.

“Hard facts speak volumes when you’re your own PR hype.””

You can also leverage platforms like Levo to showcase your experience and your portfolio. Levo is an awesome website for creating personal profiles, where you can “tell your story” by adding all the cool projects you’ve worked on and connecting with your network.  

Tip: Focus on the “why?.” So when listing your accomplishments, always demonstrate the value added to your potential clients and why you stand out from the competition. For example, if you’re a publicist, post your client’s media coverage and showcase the buzz your client’s product is receiving. 

GIVE PROPS

Shouting out to people on your team, and anyone who helped you “make it happen,” is critical. For starters, the ability to give credit is a huge step toward being a successful manager, leader, or entrepreneur.

The magic of paying it forward on social media is also a key component to earning social capital. So if someone in your network tweets about an accomplishment, “heart” it and comment with a “Slay, girl. Slay!” (Feel free to insert relevant emojis.)

Go a step further and tweet about a female entrepreneur you know who’s killing it in her field, just to spread some love.

Giving credit to others on social media can even work with strangers, not only personal connections. They will appreciate the kindness, and many people might even return the favor. It’s all about social media karma!

BE A CONNECTOR

Knowing how to connect people to business opportunities or jobs is an amazing skill: it proves that you’re resourceful and have a vast network. If you’re the person in your squad who has this skill, use it! Your reputation as a master connector of people and ideas will spread — and it’s not something you need to shout from the rooftops either. Your clout will be clear.

AVOID CORPORATE JARGON

One of my personal pet peeves is when people spew corporate buzzwords in presentations and on their resumes, thinking it makes them sound credible. It goes something like this: “I suggest we deep dive into some blue-sky thinking that's high level so we can take a holistic approach.” It makes you sound like a robot, and more importantly, it takes away all authenticity. (More on this in a minute.)

While it’s key to sound savvy and relevant in your posts and social media presence, it’s also important to sound genuine. And yes, you might think you sound really smart with your corporate buzzwords, but they induce all kinds of eye rolls in my books.

BE AUTHENTIC

Authenticity is the most important part of knowing how to promote yourself with class. Not to get all Dr. Seuss on you guys, but no matter how you’re hustling, there’s a key mantra to keep in mind: no one else is YOUer than YOU. Others might have your skills and your experience, but no one else has your brand DNA: you know, all the things that make you, well, you.

Leandra Medine a.k.a. the Man Repeller is a great example of someone who has stayed true to herself. Her best-selling book Seeking Love. Finding Overalls and Man Repeller blog and brand are direct reflections of her personality, so when she promotes herself, she still seems real and slightly self-deprecating. This is part of her shtick and what has helped her gain celeb status.

So when speaking about yourself and promoting your recent wins, always make sure to stay true to your brand and personality. Authenticity is super valued in this era, so use it to your advantage. 

THE RECAP

The truth is, you need to be boastful, confident and plug yourself constantly. Because if you don’t tell your story, someone else will. And in a sea of other bloggers/freelancers /creatives/career women/entrepreneurs, etc., standing out is critical to your success.

Now go forth and self-promote!

About the Author:

Karin Eldor is a coffee-addicted copywriter, with a long-time love for all things pop culture, fashion and tech. Ever since she got her first issues of YM (remember that one?) and Seventeen in the mail, she was hooked on the world of editorial content. After earning her Communications degree, she spent 6 years honing her craft as a Senior Editor for AskMen.com. More recently, Karin enjoyed gramming and strategizing as social media Manager at ALDO. Today, she is Chief Content Writer at 818 Agency and a social media consultant.

This post was originally published on April 28, 2019, and has since been updated.

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