Here I am, being silly, and making my sister take a million photos of me just to find one suitable for Instagram. Everyone does this on Instagram- takes staged photos just to see how many likes they get and to grow their account. Except for me. I don’t do that, and it actually felt/feels really awkward to. Let me explain.
I’ve never really got into the social media “thing”. Even when I was in high school, and MySpace was all the rage, I always felt uncomfortable sharing what felt like “too much” about my life, and “too much” was practically everything. The truth is, I am a ridiculously private person, and doing anything on social media for “likes” or attention, felt fake. I never really stopped looking at social media through the eyes of the 15-year-old “realer than thou, not gonna do this fake S***” lens. I know, it sounds like I’m trying to roast literally everyone else in the world, but bear with me because I’m about to admit how wrong I was.
I was really freaking wrong. I mean, it would be okay to be of that mindset if I wasn’t trying to create a business and build an audience, but since I’ve known what I wanted to do for awhile, it was about time that I finally get on the Social Media bandwagon. I had to realize the fact that no business in this day and age can succeed without being active on social media. Think about it: what if I advertised my business the old fashioned way- put up fliers, maybe even created a website and spammed a bunch of random people, but I lacked relevant social media presence on websites that my potential clients were already using and engaged with. That would immediately damage any and all credibility that I have, especially in a visual business like design and decor. I had to have a couple of friends convince me to finally make an Instagram account, which is so relevant for anyone into design or any type of visual-based work. The truth is that social media was holding me back for way too long. What seems so easy to almost everyone was not easy for me.
Luckily, one of my good friends makes it look effortless and she does it in a genuine and authentic way that has really appealed to me. I met Sammy Davis of http://sammydvintage.com when we both lived in the same building in Harlem, and have always been inspired by how she chases her dreams and her business goals, which are quite similar to mine, except that she does vintage fashion and I like interior design (fashion for you vs fashion for your space- the difference is subtle 😉 ). Her advice for using social media for your brand and building a business is on point.
And you know what? It’s not all about self promotion. I have been using my Instagram to promote others that I like, including businesses. Dunkin Donuts, which doesn’t need me obviously, but I go there all the time and think their iced teas are photogenic (so kill me), is a regular feature. So is Zenni Optical, my favorite website for buying inexpensive glasses (cuz fashion). And my all-time favorite way to promote is what I just did above in this post: support the business and media presence of someone I know and love in real life. Social media can be totally fake, but it can also be a way to exercise your sphere of influence in a way that works for you and those you care about.
I’m convinced. I got serious about Instagram and my goal has been to work on my iPhone photography skills and create an aesthetically pleasing page when you scroll through. I set a goal to post at least once per day, twice if I’m in the mood. I like to play around with color, and right now, everything is pink (not even my favorite color!). Even after I change back to blue (or anything else), you can scroll through my feed and see the spots where it all goes together. So… check it out, and if you like it, follow me @kelleeanna. 🙂
kelleedesigns 