Marketing Happy Hour - Building a Social Media Side Hustle While Working Full-Time | Josie Maida of Maida Media

Episode Date: January 7, 2022

We're kicking off season 3 of the Marketing Happy Hour podcast with a conversation with Josie Maida, founder of Maida Media and former social media team member for The Walt Disney Company.  Josie shares her incredible journey of building a business while working full-time for a large corporation. She also gives us her secrets for how she moved up with Disney several times by using her networking skills and by readjusting her mindset. Not only that, but Josie gives us her tips for growing your following on Tik Tok after taking her page and her clients' pages to "influencer status." If you’re a social media freelancer or you're looking to grow your business while working full-time, this episode is for you!  Grab a drink and listen in.  ----- Other episodes you'll enjoy if you enjoyed Josie's episode: How to Make Your First $1K as an Influencer | Influencer Coach Kahlea Nicole TikTok 101: How to Build an Engaged Audience | Zaria Parvez of Duolingo Why Every Brand Needs a Podcast, AND How to Build One | Rita Richa of Reignite Media ____ Say hi! DM us on Instagram and share your favorite moments from this episode - we can't wait to hear from you!  Please also consider rating the show and leaving a review, as that helps us tremendously as we move forward in this Marketing Happy Hour journey and create more content for all of you. NEW: Check out our website! NEW: Join our email list! Follow Josie on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/josiemaida/ Check out Josie's TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@josiemaida Connect with Josie on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josiemaida/ Follow MHH on Instagram: https://instagram.com/marketinghappyhr Follow MHH on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/marketing-happy-hour/ Subscribe to our LinkedIn newsletter, Marketing Happy Hour Weekly: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/marketing-happy-hour-weekly-6950530577867427840/ Join our Marketing Happy Hour Insiders LinkedIn Group: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/9238088/

Hey there, welcome to the Marketing Happy Hour podcast, where each week we're learning career-defining advice, powerful social media strategies, unique creative tips, groundbreaking influencer marketing tactics, and more from marketing experts that represent some of the world's leading brands. Let's dive in. Grab a drink and join your hosts, Cassie and Erica, for this week's episode. Hey guys, and welcome to season three of Marketing Happy Hour. I'm so excited to kick off this season with some awesome

social media tips that I don't think are going to become irrelevant anytime soon. First tip I have for you guys is definitely prioritize short form video this year. So short form video is becoming wildly popular on TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook. In fact, Facebook is actually releasing reels onto their platform as we speak. So with the implementation of these features on all of these platforms, it's basically them trying to tell us, we want you to create and post more of this content. So if you're not currently focusing on short form video for your business, make sure you get on it as soon as possible. Second tip I have for you is making sure that you have an intentional strategy behind each piece of content that you're creating and posting. What I mean is a lot of people nowadays

are just posting to post. They want to stay relevant. They want to get their face in front of their audience, but there's no real meat and potatoes to that specific content. They're just posting because they want to post really. And that's not what we're just posting because they want to post, really. And that's not what we want to do. We want to have an intentional thought and strategy behind each of our content pieces that's pointing back to one of our goals within our business. And that way, we're not wasting our time creating content that isn't doing something for us. Hey, Marketing Happy Hour listeners, it's Erica, and I am so excited to be kicking off season three in 2022 with all of you. We have some incredible surprises in store this year, and your girl finally got a microphone. So fingers crossed

for no more poor audio quality on my part. Really believing that one for myself. This week, we're chatting with Josie Maeda, founder of Maeda Media, a boutique public relations agency located in Orlando, Florida. Prior to creating her own firm, Josie was a content creator and social media manager for the Walt Disney Company. And if you know anything about Cassie, you know she loves Disney. So she definitely had a blast recording this interview. Josie has some incredible insight to share and I can't wait for you to hear it. So without further ado, let's listen together. Josie, how are you? Hi, I'm so good. How are you Cassie? Doing well. Thanks so much for being here. I am so excited to speak with you, but before we jump in, we do have an important

question that we ask all of our guests because it is marketing happy hour, but what is in, what is in your glass tonight? And it could be anything. Um, I, my go-to drink is always a dirty Shirley so you know a Shirley Temple and I I like a Shirley Temple with ginger ale not with Sprite so you know a a Shirley Temple with with some vodka although not cherry vodka I will specify because I find that then it's too much cherry it's just it's just oh my goodness I have not tried that I grew up drinking Shirley Temples but I actually haven't had an alcoholic version now that I'm 21. That's what I hear a lot of people say. And I'm always like, you have to get on it. It will change your life. Once you have it, you'll want to just keep having it.

I certainly will. Is there a place that you love that makes the best one or just anywhere? No, anywhere, anywhere. Although I should have become that child who had that crazy account blow up, you know, the Shirley Temple King. Yes, yes. I should have been like the Shirley Temple King, although I don't think I'm quite as cute as he is. So I don't think I could have gotten away with it.

But he is adorable. And I find his account rather informing. So I will usually kind of check it out. Yeah, it's pretty great. Such a clever idea. But so we're going to go ahead and jump right in and get started. So at the beginning of this year, you launched your own PR agency while working full time. And you recently actually took the jump of leaving your nine to five and managing your, your firm full time. So congrats on that, by the jump of, you know, leaving your nine to five and managing your firm full time. So congrats on that, by the way. Thank you.

But yeah, can you tell us a little bit about Meta Media and the type of services you all offer? Yeah, sure. So it's kind of been this crazy journey of, you know, I was working in internal comms at Disney and I loved it so much, thought I would be at Disney forever. And I still have so much love for the company. I definitely think, you know, that door could open again one day. But, you know,

I started this company during COVID-19. I had been let go and I honestly could not find a job anywhere. And I didn't want to stop working in PR because I loved it. And my first client ever reached out, asked if I could do some social media management. And I was like, sure, absolutely. I can do that. And as I was doing it, I was like, wow, I should open, you know, like a small business. And so that's what I did. And it's kind of been this crazy journey of then, you know, Disney kind of came back into my life and I was doing both. And yeah, it's been a crazy journey. But I do social media management. I love working specifically with TikTok because I got a lot of experience with that at Disney.

I've helped some of my personal friends and family to grow their accounts into influencer status, which has been really fun. So I also like to help with influencer communications on behalf of brands, whether that's helping to, you know, plan events or to build media lists that include influencers for them. All things like that, really anything under the communication umbrella. Again, it's been this crazy journey. So I'm just kind of getting started and figuring out, okay, I can do that service, but maybe I don't want to offer it.

You know what I mean? Like it's kind of at the beginning of this where I'm so used to being, and I always used to say, which makes me laugh. I called myself a Josie of all trades because I have always just kind of done a little bit of everything under the communication umbrella. So what's really great, I think about owning my own agency is starting this journey of, okay, well I can do that service. But just because I can do it and can do it well doesn't mean I want to be doing it, you

know, and I can kind of hone in on the things that I want to do more. And one of those things has been writing. So I've been doing some freelance writing under the umbrella of my little communications firm, a PR firm as well. And so that's been a lot of fun just being able to get into freelance writing as well. That's awesome. I it's actually so funny that you kind of shared that bit because I just had a conversation with my husband before this about how in our firm, we offer a little bit of everything, like you said, and I'm kind of at the point where I'm like, you know, there's some

things that I don't like as much. There's some things that I love. So just really, especially stepping into the new year, kind of figuring out what pieces I want to hone in on and, and just focusing there, you know, because being a jack of all trades is great, but it's also really awesome to be known for certain things known for doing it really well. So that's, it's, it's funny you mentioned that. Cause I'm literally kind of in that same area right now trying to figure it out. Yeah, I get it. And I think that's kind it's, it's funny you mentioned that because I'm literally kind of in that same area right now trying to figure it out. Yeah, I get it. And I think that's kind of an important part of the conversation for me. This last year has been such a whirlwind, which I feel like it has been for everyone.

And I feel like we're almost so removed from the beginning of the pandemic at this point that we don't realize that we're still kind of in it. And like, we're still in it in the sense that like, it's still impacting our everyday life. And you know, this is not what I expected my life to be. Again, I thought I'd be working for a big corporation forever. So I think I can be a little hard on myself sometimes. So I feel like that's also something for this new year is kind of like, exactly honing in on what I want to do, figuring out the things that I don't really want to be doing, even if I can do them well. And just giving myself kind of that grace and ability to explore that and to learn more about what it means to own a business. Yes, absolutely. And I love to, it was a small thing

that you mentioned, but talking about how you never know you could end up back with the Walt Disney Company. You know, I think a lot of times entrepreneurs, especially at our age, they get really excited about starting their own companies and they kind of shut themselves off to never wanting to be back into the corporate world again. But I, I've seen, you know, so much fruit come from my time at the corporate experience and I'm sure you did too. So, you know, you never know where your journey is going to take you. You know, if you are called to go back into the corporate space and learn a little bit more from there and then, you know, launch a company again, I think it's important, like you said, give yourself grace, you know, be flexible and just kind of see where your journey takes you as well. So I love that.

I was just talking about to my significant other this morning about how I think it's so, I was telling him it's really difficult because I'm one of those people who likes to get excited about what I'm doing. And that's another thing for this past year. It's like, okay, well, I'm doing MetaMedia and I'm doing Disney and I'm excited about these two things separately, but I'm being pulled in so many different directions. And I still kind of feel like I'm in that period right now. Like, I wish I was coming to you being like, I have it all figured out, but I kind of feel like I'm in this space right now where I'm like, the next few weeks, the next couple of months are going to be very telling. And I'm just going to, I I'm learning right now as a person to just be like, okay,

well I have to see what happens in these next couple of months and how things pan out because it's just, you know, will I end up back at Disney? Will I end up, I really, at this point I'm like, I don't know, but I'm really excited about all I end up I really at this point I'm like I don't know but I'm really excited about all the different projects I'm working on and I'm gonna take it one day at a time which again I hope I don't know if you've any I wish I was coming on here like I have everything super figured out and I know exactly what I'm doing um and in terms of like knowing how to use my skills I do but in terms of this is what I'm doing next. And this is what it's going to look like. And this is how I'm going to build my empire. Like we're taking small

steps there right now. Yep. Yep. And that is okay. And I think that's encouraging for people to know that it's okay not to have it all figured out, you know, in your twenties and your thirties, even, um, even in your forties, shoot. I know people who have changed careers in their, even into their fifties. So it's okay. It's okay. And I I know people who have changed careers in their, even into their 50s. So it's okay. It's okay. And I try to remember that too, because I'm, you know, I'm 26. And for me, I sometimes I'm like, well, I should have this figured out. And I should, you know, the comparison is the thief of joy. But then I realized, everyone's on a different timeline, you know, and, and I'm still young, and I have the ability right now to kind of figure out what's

going to work best for me. So yeah, and it's an exciting time. And maybe who knows, I'll come back on in a few months and have a totally different journey I'm telling you about. I'll have to keep you updated. Absolutely. Did you, when you were starting your company kind of in the midst of working full-time, did you find it difficult to be doing both at the same time? And do you have any advice for someone kind of looking to start something, a side hustle per se, while they're working full-time? So I was, it's kind of like this crazy, again, this crazy whirlwind of a timeline. So I was actually, when I started the company, I was nannying. And a lot of things in the last few months and in the last, I guess, a year now of COVID have, two years have happened kind of,

as soon as one door opened, the next one closed closed and I'm talking about like the exact day so I was nannying was my first pandemic job just because I was so miserable being in a house all the time and it was a perfect fit these beautiful little boys I loved them. And they moved over an hour away. And so I couldn't nanny for them anymore. And literally the next day I got this call from this client that they wanted me to start working for them. And so I started, they were my client and that was what made me be like, okay, I'm working for this client. I'm going to turn this into a business and work for many different clients. And then a few months in, as I was really getting into building the business, starting the process of like, okay, I'm going to turn this into a business and work for many different clients. And then a few months in, as I was really getting into building the business, starting the process of like, okay, I'm going to start reaching out to new clients.

That's when Disney reached out to me and I started working for Disney. And then that client couldn't afford my services anymore. And so we parted ways and I went to Disney. And so it's been like this ebb and flow. Since I've been at Disney, I was working, you know, pretty much full time hours there. And then on the side, I was doing different projects, whether it be some writing or, you know, some some work for different for different clients, some small one off projects. So it's been a blend. It's been a blend of like starting the business, digging into it, working full time, not working full time. We're going with the flow, which is I'm not a very go with the flow person typically.

But my advice would be to never to just kind of not bite off more than you can chew. You know, when I was working full time with Disney, I was very careful to analyze. OK, can I get this project done? You know, if I'm going to take on this new client and this new project, can I give them 100% of myself while still giving Disney 100% of myself? And that was always really important for me. And also, you know, the Walt Disney Company is a huge company. So for me, it was also, are there any conflict of interest here? Or can I take on this, this work in this project? Yeah, absolutely. That's always something very important to keep in mind, especially in this marketing space is not, not having too many overlaps because you know, you don't want to be marketing one company against

the other. So, you know, and it's really, yeah, it's hard even just like, not that I would ever be marketing one company or over the other, but it's really also difficult in this space, especially I think, and this is just like specific to Orlando, but we have a lot of theme parks here, you know what I mean? So like it does make it difficult. And I, I think my specialties really are kind of that theme park food travel space, that whole overarching entertainment hospitality space. And so it definitely was a balancing act of, okay, I have to make sure I'm being careful. So that was huge for me too while doing both. But again, I think what's really, really important is making sure that you're not

biting off, you know, more than you can chew, not signing up for projects. And then or, you know, however you run your business, signing up to do, deliver on whatever it may be. And then, you know, not really having the time to do it. For me, that time management was super important while I was, you know, doing both working full time and running my business. Yes, absolutely. So your prior role, as you have been mentioning a little bit about with the Walt Disney Company, you were in content creation and social media management. So at the end of your tenure with the company, what types of specific strategies were you guys

focusing on? And you mentioned a little bit about TikTok. But did you all see there were certain platforms that were outperforming one another? Or, you know, what did that look like for you guys in terms of focuses? I don't want to share too much on behalf of the company. But I would say just in general, in in the social landscape, I think we can all see, and I'm going to say this is personal opinion, that there's a huge competition right now between Instagram and TikTok. I think anyone can really see that they're both fighting for users to be on their platforms more. And we see short form video content, again, across all platforms, really, really, really competing, whether that is Snapchat. I know they have, I think there's this called Spotlight, Snapchat Spotlight, and then there's YouTube Shorts. And then there's obviously TikTok and Reels. And now Reels can be pushed directly to Facebook. So again, just I

think in general, people can see that that short form video content is really king right now on all platforms across platforms. And I think what's important just in the space in general, again, my opinion, but knowing how not only each account is different, but how, you know, each platform is different, you know, people interact and engage differently on each platform. And there is kind of that psychological human element to it behind each platform where people just are engaging differently. Yes, absolutely. I love that you mentioned that I've, I've spoken to quite a few people in kind of the tourism space. And they've said the same thing,

you know, having kind of distinct personalities on the different platforms because ultimately, you know, you want people to follow you on all of the platforms and not have the same experience. So they're deterred from following you across the platform. So I think that, you know, the Walt Disney Company does such a great job of doing that, of really engaging their consumers where they are in the platform based on the different demographics and the segments across those. So yeah, that's something I tell all of my clients, how important that is to really build a separate identity for those different platforms. Yeah. And I think it can all be, you know, kind of under the same voice, under the same, I don't know, I don't know if we're saying the same things, but like under

the same voice, under that same personality, but just at least a little bit different content. And maybe, you know, on TikTok, maybe you are a little edgier than you are on Instagram, you know, and sharing something a little bit different, but that's hard. That's really hard for a lot of brands because, you know, being a social media manager five, 10 years ago, when it first began, is so different than what the role is now in the fact that it takes so much more. There are so many more platforms. All of them want you to engage with all of their features. And every platform has multiple features.

So I think it's hard on businesses all across the board to really authentically engage just because of the time it takes to do that. Yeah, absolutely. And I think that's what's so awesome about all of these boutique agencies popping up around us because, you know, people can hire companies like yours who have specialties in influencer marketing and, you know, have team members who can kind of manage the different areas of business that maybe as a small company, they're not able to manage on their own. So I think it's, it's really awesome how now we have these great resources and contractors and freelancers out there who can kind of own those different categories. And I know too, you mentioned doing influencer marketing. It's just crazy that that's kind of a newer segment now

within the social media and in marketing space, even still, you know, I know when I first started in the space, that wasn't really a thing. And then we started seeing all these creators pop up, you know, businesses started seeing, oh, I could use this as a way to, you know, further promote my business. So it's crazy to see how that's happened. Absolutely. And it's funny to hear you say that because I always, when I say to people, I'm like, yes, it's new, but in the same sense, it's not new at all.

Because when I was a sophomore in college and I had one of my first agency jobs, we were working for influencers, but they were just called bloggers and they had some social media following, but we were really going after their VPN on their blogs and were looking at their blogs and would put together blogger tours. And it's the same thing.

You know what I mean? Like this is nothing new. And I watched something recently and I wish I could think of what the documentary was or what the short form piece of content. But essentially how, you know, the original influencers. Oh, I'm sorry. I talked at a school recently. I spoke at a school and one of the other gentlemen who was speaking, he had worked in the 90s for a with a record company.

And he was saying how back in the day they would locally find what essentially was influencers like, OK, who is the coolest person on this college campus? Who is, you know, who are the upcoming artists? Who are the upcoming people in the area? And so I think the idea has been around for a long time. But I completely agree with you in the fact that I do think it's new in the sense that like, it's really being almost reborn, I think with TikTok. No, you're right, though, that it is an interesting point that you made that it is kind of been around for a long time. You know, we had Tumblr back in the day. And for a long time, we had these bloggers that were kind of doing very similar things that they are today. And it's just great to see how these bloggers have found a way

to kind of evolve as the platforms have shifted and changed. And we've been introduced to new platforms. And, you know, that's important, not just on the brand side, but on the influencer side as well to just kind of be a little bit flexible. Yeah, absolutely. But again, I do agree with you that it is it's new and old. You know what I mean? Like it is I think right now we really are in the height of it where it's really being reborn. And it's not a question of are we going to do this? It's kind of like your brand really has to be doing it, you know, especially with TikTok. I think it really is becoming more important than ever. Yes, absolutely. So you working for the Walt Disney Company, and I'm sure you've faced this a little bit with your clients as well, is, you know, with different anniversary celebrations, like the Walt Disney World just started their 50th

anniversary celebration and different kind of timely events for you both in your time now with your agency, but also with your time at the Walt Disney Company. What type of social content and kind of campaign planning went into planning for big timely events like an anniversary or like, you know, things like that? Well, the 50th was incredible. I am so incredibly grateful I got to be a part of it. I was doing social media content creation for two very different accounts. And so, you know, from the TikTok side, it was about kind of just exactly what you would think like, okay, what are all the cool things that are going to be going on? I mean, the Walt Disney World 50th anniversary is really such an incredible example because

that's bigger. That's bigger than most anniversaries that any companies are going to be celebrating just in the fact that there are so many offerings. And again, none of this, I'm being very careful. I have so much respect for the Walt Disney Company. I don't ever want to share anything I'm not supposed to. But these are all things that are open to the public, you know, that there were so many special offerings.

And to be a part of that was really special. But just for anything we shot for TikTok, it was about thinking, okay, well, if this is going to be available to the public on X date, what date do we have to film it by to get it filmed and edited and approved? And, you know, so it's out on time. And so I would say with any timely event, it's just that magnified, you know, because instead of, okay, well, we have this cool thing going on and we'd like to put the content out and we want to make sure it's approved on time. When it's a timely event, it's like, no, you have to make sure you get it out on time or it's gone, you know, the moment is gone. And so I think it's just about that good time management and having open

communication. I mean, I had a client where we were working with them and they had briefly mentioned that they were launching a new product. But that was it. I never got a date. I got like, oh, this quarter. You know what I mean? There was no date associated and time went by and then it was like the week before and they had kind of left me out of the entire process and I was managing their whole social media everything every part of their social media um presence and so that was really difficult because at the end I had to kind of scramble to get something out there for this new product launch um and it really was kind of a miss because if they had kept me in the loop, I could have done so much more for them.

So I think it's really about making sure that there's good communication and good planning so you can get as much out of your, you know, timely and exciting announcements as possible. Because for some companies and clients, those don't come around all the time, you know. Like Walt Disney World, of course, again, the 50th was a huge, like, cannot miss. But at Walt Disney World, there's always something cool going on, you know, like Walt Disney World, of course, again, the 50th was, it was a huge, like cannot miss, but at Walt Disney World, there's always something cool going on, you know, where if you're working for a smaller client or, you know, not that their brand is less important in any way, but you really have to make those timely moments count. Yes, absolutely. And speaking of that too, just for a general recommendation that you would have, how does, how should a brand kind of plan ahead, um, content wise specifically, how should a brand kind of plan ahead? Um, content wise specifically, how should they plan ahead, but also kind of be able to work on

their toes in terms of things that may pop up that aren't expected like timely events or, you know, it's so hard. Yeah. It's so hard because you want to be able to plan in advance and everywhere I go, I'm like, this place is going to be better and things are going to be planned so far in advance. And there's going to be this perfect content calendar planned. No, no, no, no, no, no. Nowhere I have ever worked has that been the case. Especially now with TikTok, like again, you can't plan for what's going to be trending tomorrow, let alone a week from now. So and I think that makes it more difficult, you know, because TikTok video editing does take even a little bit more time. But I think on the whole, think of holidays and have those concepts for holidays, maybe to your photographer or content creator as early

as possible, because those dates, you know, are not going to move. If you have, if your brand is an e-commerce brand and you have sales, again, try to plan those out as much as you can, even if it's just the big ones. Okay, we know we do one for Black Friday. And okay, we know our brand likes to do one for Valentine's Day. Whatever it is, maybe try to plan those in advance. Even like funny, silly holidays. If you're a chocolate chip cookie brand, you're going to want to know when National

Chocolate Chip Cookie Day is. So again, kind of doing that little bit of research I think is helpful. That's where I typically try to start for a content calendar for the month or for a quarter is, okay, what are those timely dates that we know are not moving because they're national or, you know, global holidays? And then, you know, build out from there. Yes, absolutely. That's so great. So I'm going to shift a little bit into more of like a career discussion here. So a lot of people that I've met along the way who've worked for, you know, large companies like Disney, you know, people who are in kind of the marketing space now within those companies,

they had to start more on an entry level side of things and work their way up. So I know you prior to working in social for the Walt Disney Company, you were working specifically for the Walt Disney World for a few years. So do you have any tips or recommendations for someone who is in an entry level position looking to kind of work their way up into the corporate side? I do. I do. So I always knew I wanted to work for the Walt Disney company. I had a lot of opportunities at Walt Disney World, which is why I stayed in this area. I've always worked for, you know, Walt Disney World. And so I started on my college program. I came after I graduated from college and I started on my college program. And

I remember my first day I met my proprietor. So at Disney, you'll have like, you know, the base level and then you'll have like a coordinator and a leader and then your proprietor. And so they're a little higher up. And I met her on my first day of my college program and I said, I'm going to stay here and I'm going to work in PR. So if you have any contacts that I can meet, please let me know because that is my goal. I'm going to stay here and I'm going to do that. And so I think it's all about doing that. Like making time for meet and greets was so important.

At Disney, we have an internal system where you can look up literally anybody in the company's email. And, you know, I'm sure a lot of companies have tools like that, or you can ask people, you know, just try your very best to go on meet and greets. Like I would go on meet and greets all the time within the company because I knew that's what I wanted to be doing. So whether, you know, okay, maybe you don't want to grow at the company you're at, but you know, you want to grow in the field, maybe be looking on LinkedIn, or if you are working

in a big company, look within your own company because you never know who you're going to meet. I remember I had a meet and greet with this wonderful connection. His name is Aaron. He works at Epcot and he worked in entertainment. And I met him while I was in one of my frontline roles opening, opening ropes for people in the theater. I just started chatting with him because he was standing close by to me. And he offered to have a meet and greet with me. And it wasn't it. He

didn't work in public relations. He didn't work in social media. He worked on the entertainment side of things. And I very specifically remember saying someone saying to me, well, why are you going to go on a meet and greet with him? Like he doesn't even work in the field you want to go into. And I said, well, he's a very important player at Epcot. He knows a lot about the entertainment line of business. And I want to learn as much as I can. And he's an incredibly kind man who's been so sweet to me. And I'm going to take that opportunity to, if he's going to offer me an hour of his time or a half hour, I'm going to take it. And he actually ended up introducing me to who would be my first boss in a communications role in a corporate role at Disney. So if it wasn't for him, I would have never made

that connection. And who knows where I would be today. And he is still a wonderful colleague. And he's an incredible man. So I'm very lucky. And I'm grateful that I had that attitude of just meet with whoever you can, learn whatever you can about the business, even if it seems trivial, because you never know when it's going to be helpful. And also do what you can in the role you're in. That was some feedback I got from one of my first mentors when I was at the University of Rhode Island. I was very active in the Public Relations Student Society of America. And our, one of our chapter, you know, advisors, his name is Steve, and he works for FM Global. And he's, again, wonderful. And he said, you know, he talked about when he was young,

how he just offered at a place where he was already working to do essentially do some communication work for them. And so that was one of my first internships was I worked at a place where he was already working to do essentially do some communication work for them. And so that was one of my first internships was I worked at a summer camp, you know, the first few years, first few summers when I came home in college, and I offered to do their social media. Again, at the time, it's so crazy because it wasn't that long ago. But that literally meant Facebook, like brands weren't on Instagram yet. Or if they were, it was like big brands. You know what I mean? It wasn't small brands. So I offered to run their Facebook page and to help

with, you know, communicating with parents in that way. And so I was able to get that on my resume as an internship, which helped to build me up. And then when I was working at Disney in another frontline role at Club 33, I offered to help with a cast newsletter. And that ended up, I revamped the cast newsletter. It was internal just for our team. And it ended up getting sent all the way up to like the VP of our department. So that was another great thing that I was able to have that experience on my resume that, okay, well, I'm in this frontline role, but I made a space to do what I'm passionate about and to add value. And again, I think you should get paid fairly for your work. There's like a whole conversation there.

But I was, you know, paid for that opportunity. I do think there's, you know, different levels where, and I feel like this conversation comes up so much now as we're talking about influencers, but you need to figure out what that level is of like, okay, this is worth me putting in the time and effort, even if I'm not getting paid or, or, you know, if it's, this is not worth the time and effort, you know what I mean? You kind of have to have that conversation with yourself in both cases. For me, I was lucky that it was worth for me at the position in my career I was in, you know, to kind of put in that time and effort. And again, back to your original question, which was, you know, you're starting at the bottom of this company, it might be worth it

to put in a little time of effort if you know, time and effort if you know there's going to be financial payoff and gain, you know, down the road. Yes, absolutely. And to your first point about just meeting as many people as you need to, you know, especially being in the marketing space, having as much knowledge about the inner workings of the company as a whole is so helpful because, you know, you have your ground, you're kind ofanslate it into your marketing efforts. So, you know, yeah. So twofold kind of like you were saying within a career standpoint, but also, you know, if your goal is to be within marketing, just educating yourself and meeting everyone in, in range of, of positions is so important. So I love that you mentioned that. And for me, I've worked in public, you know, the more public relations side of this whole communications umbrella that, you know, I would put both PR and marketing under. I've worked on more of the public relations side. So more of that

organic relationship building. So again, like you said, yes, knowing as much as possible about the companies and clients I work with is really important because if I'm doing, you know, organic community management and someone messages me with a question, I need to be able to answer them in a timely fashion and a voice that fits your company and your brand. Or I need to be able to, you know, engage in a way that makes sense for your brand. You know, a lot of brands like the Walt Disney Company have a lot of nuances that you can't just learn overnight. Yes. yes, absolutely. So educate yourself as much as you can meet everyone within the company, you know, setting up those meet and greets. I think

relationships in general are so valuable, even if down the road, it doesn't lead to some sort of opportunity. Career wise that you're looking for, you never know, you know, like you said, who they can introduce you to or what kind of other opportunity those can open up. So relationships are so important. Yeah. And that man, Aaron, that I talked about, again, he is so wonderful. He and I worked in the same office. So he introduced me who would become my first boss in a communication role.

And then we worked in the same office. So I got to see him all the time. And it was wonderful. And he's such a good person. And yeah, again, it was I always remember someone saying that to me. Like, why would you meet with someone who has nothing to do with the field you want to be in? And I think back to that, I'm like, wow, if I had listened to that advice, I would

have never met this man who's become so impactful. You know, as I look back in my journey, he really was very impactful. So definitely, definitely if you have someone who's offering I look back in my journey, he really was very impactful. So definitely, definitely. If you have someone who's offering to be interested in your career, what a gift, take that, take that gift. Yes, absolutely. I wholeheartedly agree. I love that. So, um, you talked about this a little bit, but what was it like making the decision, um, of leaving your nine to five and kind of going headfirst into building your own company?

Was that kind of a scary decision? Yeah, it's scary. Yeah. So in my last role with the Walt Disney Company, I loved it. I signed on for a four month contract. I was offered some additional time and we just couldn't come to an agreement on what that contract would be in full transparency. And I think that's because I had kind of, this was an incredible role.

But I had outgrown it a little bit. I was ready for more responsibility. And of course, more responsibility translates to more of a financial gain. And that's not where this role was. You know what I mean? Like there was just this juxtaposition. And I kind of needed to make the decision, again, with no hard feelings. I'm literally sitting in my Epcot themed office right now. Like I love Disney. It's where me and my partner met.

He still works there. And again, who knows if I will be there again soon or not. We don't know. But it just was, it came down to really doing what was right for me. And I think that also comes with what is my biggest piece of advice right now is kind of give yourself grace to find new goals. You know, my goal forever was I want to work at Disney. I want to work in social media management. I want to do work for Walt Disney Imagineering. And this last role was all of that. And so once I did it, it was kind of like, okay, I did it. So now I have to let myself be okay with finding a new goal. And that's kind of where I am right now. You know what I mean? I'm all about the hustle.

I'm all about like making money and making smart decisions. And I know I have talent that would be helpful to clients, but I am still in this part of like, okay, I'm feeling things out. And I always was the kind of person who was like, I have a 15 year plan. I'm going to do this, this, and this. And it doesn't always pan out that way. You know what I mean? Life is really complicated and complex. And I very much am a planner still to this day. Um, but I think just like, just like in PR, you have to be able to plan, but you also have to be able to be flexible. I think that really translates to life because, you know, if you're not, there are a lot of things that you might never get to experience. You know, Club 33 was not a part of my five-year plan, my two-year plan, but I am so thankful because that was the craziest experience.

And for listeners who don't know, Club 33 is a private members-only club within the Walt Disney Company. And for a Disney fan, it's very prestigious. And I had dreamed about going to Club 33 since I was like 10 years old. So the fact that I was on the opening team of the one in Walt Disney World, that is insane. You know what I mean? Like that never was on my radar because it didn't exist. You never know what's going to come up next. TikTok wasn't on my radar because it didn't exist. And now it does. So give yourself that grace. And again, like I did what I set out to accomplish to do with Disney. Of course, I would love to do more down the line if that's where life leads me. But right now I'm so excited about working with, you know, people in

this tourism, travel, food industry, working with, you know, local brands that I'm passionate about and really diving in and finding, you know, that's the I'm passionate about and really diving in and finding, you know, that's the great thing about running my own business is, okay, if I don't want to offer a skill, even if I am good at it, I don't have to offer it or I don't have to offer it unless I'm charging a premium, you know? So that's really nice too. Yeah, absolutely. And, you know, a lot of people, when I first left my full-time job, people asked me, you know, is. And you know, a lot of people when I first left my full time job, people ask me, you know, aren't is this what you want to do for the rest of your life? You know, is this? Are you sure about this? And I just kept telling them, you know, this isn't it doesn't have to be permanent, you know, worst case scenario, if I decide down the road, this isn't what I should be doing anymore. Or I have new goals, like you said, I ask patients for myself, that's okay. And, you know, there's other opportunities out there in a corporate setting that I can pursue. A lot of people you'll talk to nowadays to, you know, executives with companies, they'll say that having self-employment history is really great because there's a lot of things

that you have to do as a business owner that are harder. There's a lot more responsibility, you know, so if you're able to kind of do that side of things and manage a company, that's that looks really great to corporate, you know, executives and managers. So, you know, there's a lot that that can be taken into a corporate setting into self employment and vice versa. And so, you know, people can't downplay the fact that it's okay to kind of switch in between and, you know, you don't have to feel like you have to be kind of stuck in one space or the other long-term. Absolutely. Yeah. I'm hoping I can, again, I feel like my

life is like, again, I wish I could be like, this is the exact plan right now because that's such the person I am. That is so me. But I really am in this position. Like I'm talking to different people. I'm talking to different companies about potentials for jobs. So like I don't know what's going to happen next, but I love owning my own business, whether it's freelancing on the side or it's a full fledged agency. I don't know which one of those two things is going to happen next, but I love that I always have it there because it's mine. Nobody can take that from me. You know what I mean? Like even if it's just me and I'm working with clients on the side while working

a nine to five, or again, I go the route where I'm building it up either way. It's my business. It's my services. It's my time, um, that I can use that extra time to, to make money and to continue learning and growing in my field. So for me, no matter which way it goes at this point, it's a total win-win. And yes, I've definitely been able to talk about it and share, you know, as a business owner, I was doing things that I might not have done working in a big corporation because it's just me.

You know, it's just me. So I have to do it. Yes, absolutely. So you talked about not knowing too far in the future, you know, what kind of your plan is and stuff. But currently for Made in Media, do you have any specific goals that you all are trying to work towards right now? Yeah, so I do.

I'm actually working on my first influencer event. It's going to be here in Orlando. It's with a brand that I'm pretty excited for. And I'm excited to be working on that. I'm trying to get into influencer communication, again, because I know it so well. I have my own platforms that I've been able to start to slowly monetize. My significant other and his best friend, again, I helped them to grow their TikToks kind of as their social media manager to some pretty high followings. One of them hit 260,000 followers this week. And so I

have a lot of friends who are influencers in the area. So I'm starting to get into how that will work if I interact and engage with brands on their behalf and help them to find partnerships and find partnerships where they're being paid fairly. And it's partnerships that they are passionate about because I think a lot of people who end up in this, you know, micro influencer space, they might not know how to do that. They might not have the confidence to do that. They might not have the time to do that because content creation, especially for multiple platforms is very time consuming. Um, so I want to get into that.

Um, I dream about really, if I, if I'm talking just about, you know, a future on my own and, you know, again, who knows what this future will be, but I would love to work more with local Orlando businesses because I love this area. Um, I'm very, very passionate about the homelessness crisis here in the Orlando area and about the lack of low income housing. And so I would love to really build up my brand as made a media or just as a person and be able to find a way to help, help, um, organizations or help people who, who are facing those challenges. Um, because it's, it's one that's very close to my heart. So that's kind of what I think about for the future is, is again, working with influencers and, and working on local events and, and just really digging into

the local Orlando community, um, with all the fun, incredible brands that we have here and finding my place within that community. And again, we'll see what happens, but definitely working on some, some influencer events on behalf of brands and working with some incredible influencers that I know in the area, you know, just testing it out, seeing what works, seeing what doesn't in a very safe way. And I'm super lucky that I have that opportunity. Yeah. Well, I am excited to follow your brand and see kind of what comes to fruition. That's so exciting. And I love that events are slowly coming back. So I'm sure that's rewarding for you to be able to start putting those together again. So I've actually, I've never done it. So I had an idea and there's a big local brand and I was there buying something and I just pitched it and they were super excited about it. So it kind of

came about just out of nowhere. And this one actually is just completely, again, we talk about is it worth, you know, doing something for no money. And I'm doing this one completely just because I want to. I think it'll help me grow in other ways. It's a really great brand. It's, you know, a national brand. And I think it will help me to grow my business in a lot of other ways I'm looking to grow. And again, they're not paying me. So it's really this fun way of me to be able to test it out for that first time because I have faith that I can do it and I'm excited. So again, just testing it out at this point and seeing what happens next, learning and growing. Um, I'm sorry, my roommate just came home. So I'm trying to, oh, you're good. Um, and learning and growing and finding a way to just, um, you know, I'm,

I'm very lucky that I have that opportunity because I know a lot of people don't have that flexibility financially that, that I might have right now. And again, we're going to try it out for this first client and see how it goes. And I hope it's a service I'll be able to offer to clients, you know, for, you know, as a paid service soon. Yeah, no, that's, that's amazing. Congrats on that. And I think that's another kind of learning point that everyone could probably take away is, you know, the, the old school method of just walking into someone's business and meeting them face to face and introducing yourself, you know, that's not old and dead. You know, that's still kind of

a relevant thing today. So I love that that's kind of the story of how that came to fruition, because that's still impactful nowadays. Yeah, it is. And I had, you know, sometimes some brands are not as active on social, I think, especially this is a big national brand, but we're talking about their local presence, you know? So the big national brand might be easy to reach, but that local shop might be more difficult. So sometimes if you go in, you really can get connected. And so I'm really excited to see where it goes. And I'm really hopeful that it leads to something.

You know, I'm going to be working with a lot of influencers in the area. I'm going to be working with this big brand. Like, again, there are a lot of things that I was like, OK, this is worth it. And I'm lucky that I have the opportunity to just kind of do this one for fun and do it under MetaMedia and see where it goes and see what I can do. I'm very excited. That's so awesome. And we've mentioned TikTok a lot in this, uh, this episode,

and I know, I'm sure you have some great tips and kind of, um, recommendations for people out there looking to grow their platforms and their pages. So that's definitely something we'll have to have you on to discuss more at a later time. I was always, yes. I'm always my favorite. Yes. It's something that I, I know with my clients, it's, it's something we're not doing as much of. So, you know, having partners out there, other businesses that are great at it, but I'm always so eager to learn people's tips for it and stuff like that. But do you have one tip you want to share today for everyone? So many, but I would say, and it's hard because I would give this advice to clients and they're like, well, we just don't have the time.

But if you can get a client who has the time, convince them to get into it now. Because I keep saying TikTok right now is like Instagram in 2012. The growth is unparalleled. That's how people are growing so fast on these platforms. I've been working on my personal Instagram platform. Granted, I've taken some breaks, but for a couple of years, and again, with some breaks, with some super, super consistency and then, you know, falling off, but TikTok just has this unparalleled growth right now. And so if your brand can get in on the ground floor of that, take the opportunity, because if you're dragging your feet and you want to get in a couple of years, it's going to be more difficult to grow. As the platform monetizes, as more and more and more people are creating content, there's more content to choose from. There's more people to follow.

It's going to be more difficult to grow. So if you can get in as early as possible, that is going to be such a gift. Because again, at this point, we know that TikTok is a viable platform and it's worth putting your money into. This is not like, you know, I know sometimes it takes some time as different platforms pop up. And we have platforms like Clubhouse. You know, it's fun. And I've seen people use it here and there. But it has not taken off in the way.

You know what I mean? That I would tell a brand, okay, go pour significant money and time and effort into this. I just wouldn't unless there was a very niche circumstance. But TikTok has proven that they are here and they are here to stay and they're putting money into their programs. They're putting money into their creators, money into their platform. And the algorithm is just insane. The algorithm is great. So yeah, that would be my one piece of advice is if you can find the time, get into it. And if you can't find the time right now,

make an account and get your username before it's gone. That is my advice always. Even if you don't think you're gonna use a platform, get the username because once it's gone, that's it. It is gone or you're paying through the nose to get it. Yes, yes. I like what you said too about the algorithm. I feel like TikTok is so incredibly intelligent

in terms of just providing me with content that is so relevant to the things I'm interested in. You know, it's really good at trying to find those niches that you're into and really serving you with those. So for brands who are looking to get on there, it's just really kind of honing into those niches and speaking to that directly and kind of the consumers and what they're looking for.

I'm super excited about the platform. Like I said, it's something I need to really dive into even more and really get my feet wet with it. But I love hearing about what brands are doing and kind of their recommendations there as well. Yeah, absolutely. For sure. Well, before we end, we love asking this question to all of our guests, but is there anything you know now that you wish you knew when you started your career? Oh my gosh. I think it's kind of what we've talked about, but just that like

your career is probably not going to go exactly how you think it is. You know, I was my plan was I was going to do the college program. I was going to get a professional internship. I was going to move into a job in PR and I was going to work at Disney until I died. And that was the plan. And on my college program, you know, my mom was was terminally ill and I didn't know if I'd even be able to finish my college program. You know, my mom was terminally ill and I didn't know if I'd even be able to finish my college program. And then once I did and I realized I would be finishing it, all the public, all the professional internships were gone. They had already been filled. And then I got an internship at Edelman, which was an incredible experience. But I didn't think that

was going to be part of my plan. And I met my best friend who's like my sister now and has really become my family here in Orlando when I had nobody. And then I worked, you know, in Epcot opening ropes for people. And I was working seven days a week. And that was not the plan. And then I got in the Club really discouraged. And I remember crying and then getting another rejection and thinking, you know, am I fighting for something that's never going to happen? But I think there's a lot to be said for having a goal in mind and just taking the next right step to get there. Even if it's not the one that you planned for, even if it's not the one that you thought it would be, keep moving. And don't get caught up you know I

know in a big company at Disney I'd hear people say oh well I want to stay in this role checking ropes at Epcot for you know at least a year and I was like why like it's great that you're here it's great that you're here you're willing to start from the bottom but if you have an opportunity take it I totally think the old adage of you have to stay in a job for two years, especially if it's movement within the same company, is to me, it's just not where it is anymore. You know, if there's a good opportunity, take it because it might not be there when two years comes around. So yes, yes. But also, like you kind of said, don't discount those small steps along the way because you

never know where those are leading you to. Even if it seems like a small opportunity, if it's an opportunity, take it, you know? Yes. Yes, absolutely. Well, Josie, thank you so much. I really enjoyed this interview with you, learned so much and I can't wait to see what further content we can create with you, but absolutely. You have to stay in touch and please, I hope again, I hope I can come on in a few more months and have a more clear path. But I hope at least it inspires someone to know that if you are not on the clearest of paths right now, even if you're a planner like me, that's okay sometimes. Yes, yes. Preach. I'm learning so much from you. I know these are the words that I needed to, because I, like I said, literally just had a conversation about this. I'm like, what am I going to do? Where am I going? But that's okay. And it's just a good time to

kind of sit down and figure it out. And you know, you will figure it out and everything's going to be fine. So I love that. Thank you so much for having me. Yes. Where can everyone find you really quick before you go? I'd love for everyone to keep up with you online. Yeah, of course. So you can find me on Instagram at made a dot media. And, um, you can also find me on Instagram at Josie made a, and from my at Josie made an Instagram, you can find pretty much everything. All the links and all the good things are right there. So if you're, if you're looking, whether it's for my, um, you know, for, for my agency or for my Tik TOK or whatever it might be at Josie madeable. We'll pretty much get you to everything. Awesome. Thank you so much,

Josie. Thank you. Bye everyone. That's it for this week's episode. Thank you so much for tuning in. If you're new to the marketing happy Hour podcast, be sure to check out the archive of season one and two guests representing some of our favorite brands like Angelica Song of Google and YouTube, Jenny Park of LinkedIn, Kaylee Plotkin of Digiday and Glossy, and more. If you enjoyed this episode, please remember to rate and leave a review.

And as always, follow us on Instagram at Marketing Happy Hour. That Instagram at Marketing Happy Hour. That's at Marketing Happy HR.