Why Engagement Pods and Follow Loops Are Hurting Your Social Media Strategy

Lately, on social media, no matter the platform, I keep seeing these posts to join in the engagement pods and follow loops. Instagram and LinkedIn, specifically, are where I've seen them come back into action the most. The first time I saw them, I wondered If I had traveled back to the glory days of the Instagram engagement pods of 2016. But then I had a professional in one of my networking groups talking about how they had just paid to join a follow and engagement pod on LinkedIn- paid!

So, let's discuss this 2017 concept that I thought was dead but has since risen from the ashes to come back and haunt us all again.

At the beginning of these loops, pods, whatever you want to call them, it was helpful because the algorithm didn't really pick up on and notice them too much. But here we are a bunch of years later; the algorithm has figured out they exist and squashes your organic reach without you really knowing about it. 

Honestly, professionally and personally, I don't like any variation of this trend on every platform that it's being offered on because it's not effective. It's not doing what you want it to do, which I am assuming here is to get you more leads and book you more business. 

When you participate in these pods, you will gain followers and engagement from the people who have joined the pod. But are the people in the pod your target client, or are they just more people who are desperate for engagement on their posts? 

Because eventually, and proven, they will unfollow or, at some point, they will not interact.

Friends, please understand… 

Bringing in new followers is easy—I can sense that you just rolled your eyes at me. And I'll get to how it's easy, but holding and keeping the attention of the community members that you already have is where the real games begin. 

I'm going to ask you this question, and I know you'll huff and roll your eyes again, but when was the last time you engaged organically on a social media post? When was the last time you didn't quickly scroll through your feed, tap through your stories, and stop actually leaving a comment or even liking a post? 

I see it so often: business owners want more engagement, but they aren't engaging themselves. 

All healthy and functioning relationships require the work of the people involved. Yet you're asking for organic attention and validation while not reciprocating it to the members of your already existing community.

I challenge you to interact, comment, and like posts while scrolling for the next 7-10 days after you read this (because I know you are) and then see what happens to your organic engagement at the end of your experiment.

For the billionth time, if you've been here a while, your "follower count does not equal your sales count." How engaged you are with your community fuels your sales count.

Location, Location, Location: Why It's So Important For Physical Businesses To Geotag Instagram Posts

Here’s a secret you may or may not know about me: when I’m traveling or about to travel, I search the location of where I’m going on Instagram to see what’s out there. I scroll to see what shops, restaurants, coffee shops, and natural things are attached to the Geo/Location tag of where I am going.

And I notice that what so many businesses forget to do is add a geotag to their posts. This means that they are missing out on the out-of-towners like me who do this same thing to plan where they want to go or where they want to eat.

Instagram geotags are digital markers that offer endless possibilities, from exploring new destinations to optimizing your road trip adventures. Read on for a journey into the world of geotagging and start shaping your next unforgettable adventure.

What are Instagram Geo Tags and How They Work

Instagram Geo Tags are a powerful feature that allows users to add a specific location to their posts, providing a geotag for each photo or video shared on the platform. This function enables users to tag the exact place where the content was created, adding an exciting layer of location-based information to their posts.

Understanding Instagram Geo Tags

1. Location Tagging: Instagram Geo Tags associate your post with a specific place on the map. This can range from a famous landmark to a local restaurant or even a hidden gem off the beaten path.

2. Creating Connections: By tagging your posts with Geo Tags, you can connect with other users who have been to or are interested in the location. This can lead to new friendships, travel recommendations, and shared experiences.

3. Discovery Tool: Geo Tags also serve as a discovery tool for users exploring new places. By searching for a specific location tag, users can uncover many posts related to that place, offering insights, inspiration, and practical tips for their journeys.

4. Personalization: Instagram Geo Tags add a personal touch to your posts, allowing you to share the content and the exact place where you captured the moment. This creates a more immersive experience for your followers, connecting them to your adventures.

How Geo Tags Work

1. Feature Integration: Instagram seamlessly integrates Geo Tags into the post-creation process, allowing users to add a location directly before sharing their content.

2. Manual Input: Users can manually type in the location they wish to tag or choose from a list of suggested places generated by the platform based on their current location or past tagging history.

3. Privacy Control: Instagram offers privacy settings that allow users to control who can see the location tags on their posts, ensuring that sensitive or private locations remain secure.

4. Mapping Feature: Geo Tags have a mapping feature that displays the tagged location on a map within the post, giving viewers a visual reference of the content's creation.

Advantages of Using Geo Tags

• Enhanced Discoverability: Geotags increase the visibility of your posts to users searching for content related to specific locations, expanding your reach and engagement.

• Personalized Recommendations: By exploring posts tagged with specific locations, users can discover new destinations, restaurants, attractions, and accommodations recommended by fellow travelers.

• Community Engagement: Geo Tags foster a sense of community among users who share a love for travel and exploration, enabling them to connect, share tips, and form valuable connections.

By searching for location-based tagging related to their intended destinations, individuals can explore new places, gather travel inspiration, and create a comprehensive travel itinerary. Whether finding hidden gems, trending spots, or off-the-beaten-path attractions, geotags provide valuable insights into various travel destinations.

One of the key advantages of incorporating Instagram geotags into trip planning is the ability to maximize road trip stops. Using geotags, travelers can identify scenic viewpoints, local eateries, cultural landmarks, and photo-worthy spots along their routes. This enriches the travel experience and ensures every step contributes to a memorable and fulfilling journey.

Why Your Business Needs To Begin Geotagging

1. Enhancing Local Visibility

Establishing a strong local presence is often crucial for small businesses to attract customers. Geotags allow you to tag your location when posting on Instagram, making it easier for users in your area to discover your content. When users search for posts or stories tagged in a specific location, yours could be among the top results, thus increasing your visibility within your community.

2. Building Community Engagement

Geotags are more than just a feature; they're a direct line to your local community. By tagging your location, you can tap into conversations and events in your area, fostering relationships with nearby businesses and potential customers. This direct connection with your community increases engagement. It builds brand loyalty, as users who frequent or are interested in your locality are likelier to engage with your content, leading to increased likes, comments, and, ultimately, brand loyalty.

3. Showcasing Authenticity and Trustworthiness

Standing out with authenticity is paramount in a market saturated with advertisements and sponsored content. Geotags provide a unique advantage by adding credibility to your posts by verifying your physical presence in a specific location. This authenticity resonates with consumers, as they perceive businesses with a genuine local presence as trustworthy and reliable. By showcasing your physical location through geotags, you're not just promoting your products or services but also telling a story about your roots and commitment to your community.

4. Targeting Relevant Audiences

Geotags offer a powerful targeting tool, allowing you to reach audiences based on their location. Whether you're hosting an event, running a promotion, or want to attract foot traffic to your storefront, geotagging enables you to target users within a specific radius of your business. This targeted approach ensures that your content reaches the most relevant audience, maximizing the impact of your marketing efforts and driving conversions.

5. Improving SEO and Discoverability

In addition to enhancing visibility within the Instagram platform, geotags can benefit your overall online presence. When users search for local businesses or attractions on search engines like Google, geotagged Instagram posts may appear in the results, thus improving your SEO ranking and increasing discoverability. By consistently geotagging your posts, you can boost your chances of being found by potential customers on and off the Instagram platform.

Geotags on Instagram offer many benefits for small businesses looking to expand their reach and engage with their local community and travelers looking for unique experiences while visiting a location.

From enhancing visibility and authenticity to targeting relevant audiences and improving SEO, geotagging is a valuable tool that should not be overlooked in your social media marketing strategy. By harnessing the power of geotags, small businesses can amplify their presence, foster meaningful connections, and ultimately drive growth in their local market.

So, next time you post on Instagram, remember to geotag your business's location and watch your business thrive in the digital landscape.

Is Posting At A Certain Time On Instagram Relevant For Success

FAQ: What time should I be posting to Instagram?

Answer: Whenever you have the time.

I'd like you to hear me out.

The time you posted actually USED to be a thing, but then a significant world event happened, and we were scrolling at all times.

So...

The time that you POST is NOT more important than

👉 Showing up consistently

👉 Taking the time to create SCROLL-STOPPING Content

👉 Taking care of your IRL priorities

i.e.:

❣️ Running your actual business

❣️ Spending time with loved ones

❣️ Your health <mental & physical>

⏰ The posting time is the tiniest really irrelevant detail in this whole social media marketing thing. ⏰

Sure there are better times, but it's not universal. But you've gotta get down and dirty with your insights and analytics because accounts, like humans, are different.

If you're consistently showing up with good content, which happens when you're taking care of yourself <I've got an honorary Ph.D. in this category because when I don’t take care of myself, it shows in the content>, your audience will show up.

People can smell the burnout of inauthentic posts to post and appease the algorithm through their phone screens. Just so you know. 🤭

But if this answer isn't enough for you, post as early as you can in the day. If you're in a committed relationship with your analytics and insights, find the largest number of your followers> look at the time> and schedule posts 30 minutes to an hour before that.

Bottom line- if you're running your social while wearing all your other business hats, create a posting schedule that aligns with your REAL TIME LIFE because done is better than perfect, and you gotta show up if you wanna be seen.

How To Use Instagram Guides For Your Business

The latest Instagram update has provided us with this rad new feature called “Guides.” There are three types of guides that you can create Places, Products, and Posts. Creating one of these guides is an excellent way to combine your content and share other people’s content on Instagram.

What Is Instagram Guides?

Guides are collections of your posts and other users’ posts related to a particular topic. Think of guides as Instagram’s version of a Pinterest board, a highlight reel for your posts, or as your very own curated digital content zine.

The guides you set up can be about anything you want, but I would encourage you to create relevant guides for your business. For example, when this feature rolled out, I made my first guide for Holiday gift ideas from Women-Owned Business Owners. One of the most significant parts of guides is that they are shareable, meaning that other users can share your guide as a DM, in their story, or as a post.

How Can My Business Use Guides?

With the three categories; Places, Products, and Posts, the possibilities for how your business can make use of this feature are endless. 

If you are a retail business, you can use the product guide to feature your specific products and share other companies that go with your product. For example, sell artisan body care products and feature your products. You can add towels or other home accessories that enhance the user’s experience with your product. If you are a store, you can create a guide representing the products available in your storefront.

I have had a few B2B and other service providers reach out and ask me how they can use guides. If you are a real estate agent, you can use the “places guide” and share posts related to specific neighborhoods of cities that you specialize in. 

B2B service providers can create guides related to your industry’s news, your posts related to the industry, and share other users posts that resource another part of your industry that you do not specialize in but are essential. 

Share Your Guide 

Since this is such a new feature that snuck in the right under the holiday time, many users are not aware of this feature. To bring awareness, make sure that you share the guide that you worked so hard to create in your stories and on your feed. 

If you need ideas on how guides could benefit your business, reach out for a FREE 20-minute consultation on making this feature work for you.

Why Are Instagram Highlights Important To Your Digital Marketing Plan

Every day I see so many important Instagram stories on businesses feeds that would be useful content for consumption in future scrolling. There are a few times that I have gone back to a business’ story because there was something that I saw to see if they saved it as a highlight, but that vital content disappeared because it was past 24 hours.

The Highlight buttons on your Instagram profile are an essential piece of your rented Instagram real estate. Think of these highlights as a landing page for all of the aspects that your business offers. If you are stumped on what types of highlights to create, begin with each category that you have on your website. Give people a taste of all of the products or services that your business has to offer.

As business owners, we already have so much content that we create that should resemble our brands. The good news is that not all Instagram story slides need to be branded.

The point of stories is for people to get a peek into who you are and what goes on behind the scenes at your business. If you are creating content that you know is important and that you are going to want to save into one of your highlights, take the time to brand this content. There are plenty of free story slide design apps where you can create on-brand templates.

My challenge to you is, start thinking about your overall Instagram profile as a landing page for your website ore commerce store. Social media is quickly becoming the second place where potential consumers and clients search for things to buy, places to order food from, or places close to them to visit. Moreover, users consume stories and highlights at a higher percentage than items in your feed.

How Digital Marketing Changes In An Election Year

2020 is quickly approaching, and we are all most likely up to our knees for business planning for next year. One unique thing about next year is that it is also an election year, and election years can throw a wrench is business digital marketing campaigns. 

2020 will be my third election cycle as a digital marketing professional, and up until 2016, everything went pretty much as predicted. Candidates bash each other, supporters of said candidates share opinion pieces about the rival, yadda yadda. However, shortly after the New Hampshire primary in March of 2016, I watched the client’s customer bases leave Facebook with the droves leaving the night and day following when we learned who the nominees were. These people also did not log on or interact again on Facebook until well into 2017. 

At that point in 2016, it was just Facebook where the political advertising warfare was raging among the masses. Instagram was pretty much unaffected by the political advertising machine. Instagram, we were still seeing plenty of dog and latte posts with somewhat positive captions that the masses were even interacting with and again somewhat purchasing from businesses.  

The sales trend for purchasing non-essential products and booking services stayed statistically low, as is predicted during an election year. During election years, statistics show that consumers are more conscious of how they spend their money and are more apt to think twice before purchasing because the outlook financially for the next four years is uncertain.  

However, once Facebook jumping began, marketing plans were altered, and email marketing, SEO, and Pinterest became the focus. Which with these changes, businesses’ monthly marketing statistics stayed consistent as non-election years. People are not going to leave the internet because we live here now. People are, however, going to avoid places on the internet that suck for them. 

If Facebook and Instagram are the only marketing platforms that your business is focusing on, I’m sorry to tell you, but in 2020 they could let you down hard. Facebook has already said that they will not filter and will allow all kinds of political ads to be run. Since late September, I have already seen a dozen or more political all sorts of ads popping up on Instagram. This makes me believe that once the Iowa caucuses happen, Instagram will also become penetrated with ads, influencers, and those dogs and lattes photos we all love will be captioned with political comments. At which point, the cycle of leaving and logging off of social media until November 2020 will begin. 

With all that said, the key to running a successful digital marketing campaign during an election year is to be prepared for anything and focus on areas of directly connecting with customers via their inbox and their searches. What worked well for one month could very well not work the next month or as soon as the news cycle is updated. If this election is anything like 2016, we are all going to be opening up our apps to the wild world wide web together. 

The Struggle To Write A Social Media Caption

Every time I meet one-on-one with a business owner, a consistent struggle comes up one way or another, the effort to write a caption for social media.  

Many times I have heard, "I write something I hate it, I delete it, I write again and delete it. Get frustrated and don't post at all." OR "I'm afraid that whatever I post is going to screw everything up."

I get it; I'm right there with you, and I want you to realize that you are not alone in this. Somedays I also struggle with what to write on my social media because I'm so inundated in the updates on social media that somedays it is the last thing that I want to talk about. I realize that you are all here for those tidbits that you otherwise don't know and how to make those platforms work for you and not against you. Just like your clientele does not know everything about your industry or your product, they are looking to you to educate them on what you have to offer. 

You aren't going to screw everything up unless you write something hurtful to another person that gets shared and goes viral. Does anyone remember the tweet that blew up Justine Sacco's life? Writing things like that is what is going to screw everything up for you. 

Here are a few tips to help you through the captioning anxiety:

1. Remember that people read your captions in their tone, not yours. The tone confusion can happen if you are not posting a video, or they have never interacted with you in person to get a grasp on how you communicate IRL.

2. Learn how your target market communicates both on and offline and work on ways to communicate with them that way.

3. Findings have found that our attention span is shorter than that of a goldfish. Get to the point quickly or risk getting scrolled past. Write what you want then go back to edit to make sure you've gotten to the point.

4. Tweet how you want to be tweeted at or about. Every post you put up and comment response is a reflection of you and your business's customer service culture.

5. Be yourself. Write in a way to the person that if you meet a follower or customer IRL, they feel like they already know you once you begin talking.

Finding your business's voice takes some time, effort, trial and error, but I am confident that you can do it. 

Is There A New IGTV Rewarded Algorithm?

Is there a new Instagram algorithm? Every time something on our favorite app shifts, I get an inbox full of "Is there a new Instagram algorithm?" As far as I know and the trusted sources that I communicate with, there is no such thing as a "new" Instagram algorithm.

Instagram is consistently testing, adding, and removing features. Updates are happening on the weekly, the daily, even on the hourly. Currently, Instagram is testing the removal of "likes" in the following markets: Canada, Italy, Japan, and Australia with more to come. Instagram is testing for the overall elimination of "likes" from the platform, which begs the question of will this leave room and forces people to engage more?

There's a rumor floating around that there is a new algorithm in place that favors heavily on using IGTV. Y'all this isn't new news. Anytime ANY platform releases an upgrade; they heavily prefer the content of the accounts that are using said new feature because they want to promote this new feature internally. IGTV is a little over a year old. I have my hypothesis about the "new" IGTV algorithm. Since I have gotten 10 DMs and four emails asking me about this new IGTV algorithm includes that y' all aren't currently frequenting this neighborhood. I hypothesize that since it's release on June 20, 2018, this neighborhood hasn't grown in the masses that Instagram thought that it would become. That in its 13-month lifespan it hasn't taken down Youtube or even really showed up in the ring as a heavily favored competitor of Youtube as I feel the end goal was. I think that this is the basis of the "new" IGTV preferred algorithm. When the facts point to if you are present on IGTV, you are rewarded for frequenting this neighborhood that Instagram wants to grow. It's like going to a street fair, and you are handed coupons from vendors to come to their establishment for 10% off or a free something or other. You are there in their "platform," and they want to reward you for showing up and showing interest by giving you something in return.

For a few months there, I was animate about recording and adding IGTV content; it helped everything in my digital marketing world for sure. However, life and client work got the better of me, and my IGTV fell to the side. Do I think that not regularly posting to my IGTV is what is hurting views and likes? Nope

I have been marketing on this platform since it's infancy and I've seen and heard it all. In almost nine years on this platform, three straightforward things lead to some measurable "success"

Consistency

A unique photo

Tell a story

Consistently show up by posting, commenting, and interacting in whichever neighborhood of this platform you enjoy the most: your feed, stories, IGTV where the eff ever. But keep showing up. When people trust that they will hear from you, they will buy from you or recommend you to someone who will buy from you.

Sharing a unique photo sets you apart. When I hear from people that they know they photo is from me before they even look at the account name, that feels good. Stop trying to copy everyone else who you think is doing it right and post what is you.

Tell a story, digital marketing is just digital storytelling. If you want to grab peoples, attention tells them a story. We are nosy by nature and want to know ALL the details about the people that we follow and the brands that we purchase from. Give people something that they can relate to because while our experiences are all unique to us, someone somewhere can connect on a personal level.

Please do me a favor; if you haven't heard it from a credible source such as Instagram, someone with an in at Instagram, or some nerd who subscribes to EVERY email that comes from reliable digital sources that have ins at Instagram, then it's just a rumor.

Instagram vs. Pinterest Marketing: 7 Big Differences Between Them

When I am coaching people on how to use Pinterest the first hurdle that we have to get over is that writing for Pinterest is completely different than writing for Instagram.

On Instagram, your followers are brand loyal. They are following and interacting with you on this platform because they enjoy your brand and reading what your brand stands for and offers.  On Instagram, you need to not only have photos that are on brand but you also need to write your content on brand. On this platform, keep in mind that you are also dealing with a seven-second attention span. Your photo needs to be scroll stopping AND your caption needs to be witty and captivating.

In coaching sessions when we are creating pins, clients want to write the pin description as if they are writing an Instagram caption. Writing an Instagram type caption on Pinterest is not going to help you get found on Pinterest, and here’s why.

People searching on Pinterest are not brand loyal. Read that again. People searching on Pinterest are not brand loyal, meaning most pinners do not give a shhhh about your brand. These people are searching to achieve a predetermined outcome in their mind.  

Here’s an example: A pinner types into the Pinterest search bar “San Francisco Industrial Wedding Venue”  what this person wants to achieve is finding examples of all of the Industrial wedding venues in San Francisco that are on Pinterest. When they find a photo that they are imaging as their dream wedding location they will click on the pin and be taken “fingers crossed” to the website of that venue or at least a photographers site that has tagged the venue in their blog post.

The reason that this searchers results came up with so many Industrial wedding venues in San Francisco is that the pin description was littered with these terms.  See Pinterest is a search engine, their algorithm could care less how witty and popular your caption is. Pinterest’s main job is that it wants to show it’s users the most relevant items related to the words that they typed into the search bar.  The results that show up in your search are directly related to the keywords in the description of the pins that are being shown to you.

I heard a saying once that said, “My eyebrows are sisters, not twins.” Not only is that true for your eyebrows but it’s true about the digital marketing platforms of Pinterest and Instagram.

Let’s get into the 7 “sister” qualities on both platforms:

1. On both platforms, you need to have a well lit and captivating scroll stopping photo.

2. On both platforms, the images should be branded, meaning they look like they belong to the same family because chances are if someone is very interested in all the things that you have to say, you want to be recognized on both platforms.

3. Instagram photos with words tend to perform as well as photos without. Whereas, Pinterest photos with words perform exponentially better than photos without words.

4. Instagram: Hashtags matter on how you are getting found.

5. Pinterest: Hashtags do not matter on getting found, it’s all about the search terms baby.

6. Instagram: Witty or emotionally heartfelt captions perform best.

7. Pinterest: It’s all about the SEO, save your emotional words for Instagram.

In conclusion, the moral of the story here is that to be successful on both platforms you need to flip your brain when you are writing for one over the other.  Both of these platforms should be a part of your digital arsenal but how you use them and obtain leads through them are completely different.

Why Your Business Needs a Digital Marketing Strategy

This week the lovely Jamie Teasdale of Propel Business Works  is sharing why having a digital marketing strategy is extremely important to really reach your target market and put more money in your bank account. Jamie’s expertise is creating digital marketing strategies and plans for businesses. This post has some seriously great information! Be sure to follow Jamie on social media using the links at the bottom of the post!

Social media and blogs aren’t just for personal connection any more. Online communication is where the masses are. It’s where people are spending their time. That’s why your business needs a digital marketing strategy. According to the 2015 census 78% of U.S. households have a desktop or laptop computer, and over 74% have a mobile device. That’s an incredible statistic and it makes sense knowing how quickly we have adopted online communities as our new normal place to connect, interact, and find services and products we need.

It also means your audience, your clientele, your target market is there. Whether they are searching for an answer, clicking through ads that caught their attention, visiting an application to catch-up on relationships, shopping for something, leaving a review, or a plethora of other reasons, I guarantee your customer is online. It might be via a mobile, tablet or desktop device, but they ARE congregating with the masses – and they’re coming in hourly droves, sometimes even more frequently.

So, marketing to them where they are makes sense, right? That’s where digital marketing comes in. Digital marketing is different from physical marketing like print materials, signs, brochures, handouts, flyers and other pieces of collateral you have designed and printed. Digital marketing is virtual. It is marketing via communication to your target customer digitally where they are showing up online.

Having A Strategy Is Vital

Marketing in general can’t be done with a half-baked strategy or it will fall short or even fail completely. Spending money and time on marketing materials or support without first knowing who you’re talking to, what they need to hear, how often they should hear it, and how it should be presented is just a waste of valuable resources. (Tweet This)

Do you realize there are different demographics on different online sites? The people who show up on Facebook aren’t necessarily on Twitter or Snapchat. There is a specific and substantial reason for certain businesses to have a presence on Pinterest or on Instagram. Is your business one of them?

What A Strategy Should Include

A solid, researched, and customized-to-your-business digital marketing plan will tell you who you should be targeting and where you should be showing up in order to reach them. 

It will map out the types of emails you should be sending and how often, not to mention what posts you should be sharing, whether on your blog or on a social platform or directory. 

A unique plan will outline the best frequencies for communicating and will lay out your company’s style of communication so you and your team have a reference point every time something is sent out across the wifi waves.

Your plan should be easy to trust and should get your marketing ball rolling in the right direction so you begin increasing awareness, fans, and sales. But be sure to keep your eye on analytics, too. Monitoring what is working and what isn’t will propel your communication to improve.

Where To Start

I always tell clients to just start. All the research and planning can be an activity you pursue during your business planning sessions, or monthly strategy meetings. It isn’t rocket science and tools are available to us nowadays that were never more accessible or affordable.

If you already know who you are and where you need to be, start with one social site. Learn it. Become consistent on it. If you can blog, even once a month, that activity will fuel your social communication and get your creative juices flowing. How to layer on one marketing approach after another will depend on your business and industry, but don’t feel like you need to jump on all platforms or tackle all of the communication opportunities available to you all at once.

When you find yourself too busy with orders or doing the thing you do that you can’t handle all the planning and management that goes along with a digital marketing strategy, we’re here, ready, and eager to help. After all, this is OUR juice. It’s what we love to do and we happen to do it well!

Cheers to a strategic future ahead!

Jamie Teasdale

Propel Businessworks

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Jamie’s professional experiences have instilled exceptional customer service and high standards into everything she does. A music and art enthusiast and animal lover, she has been a marketing junkie since before she can remember. For 10 years her passion for developing and energizing the visions of small business owners was ignited and she hasn’t looked back since.