Small Business Social Recap | Social Media + Marketing Workshop with Katelyn James Photography

Last Friday, I attended Katelyn’s Small Business Social. It was the first one she hosted, and it was so good!!!

It’s been really amazing to go from being an avid KJ blog reader/fan, to a KJ bride myself and now to a business owner being educated by her. Talk about a transition!!! Katelyn has been able to do really incredible things with her business in the last 6 years. She’s broken a mold and created her own, and I look up to that… a lot.

Even before attending this one-day workshop, I was already trying to take things she’d taught in blog post, and things I’d experienced from being one of her clients, and implement them into my business model. For instance, I decided to start blogging regularly because I love Katelyn’s blog. I’m not a photographer, and I’m not even a bride anymore. But I STILL check her blog every single day. Why? Because I’m invested. I’m apart of her community and I am so inspired by her!! I wanted to mimic that model with DSE, so blogging has become a huge part of my business model.

The workshop was wonderful because I was able to spend time with fellow business owners, and hear so much practical information!!! (And yes, her home is just as amazing in person as it is in pictures!!!) We talked about Marketing, Branding, Social Media & had an open Q&A. I have a feeling she’ll be doing more of these in the future, so I won’t give it all away… you need to sign up for yourself!!! But I’ll tell you a few things that really hit home for me:

– Vision Statement. Unknowingly, I blogged about this a little bit here. But I want to develop an official vision statement for my business… something that I can constantly look back on. I don’t know if it’s something I’ll publically announce… I think it might a personal statement that I have to remind myself why I’m doing what I’m doing, and keep in the forefront of my thought process when making business decisions.

– Inspirational vs. Educational. One of my goals is to inspire. I want to encourage & uplift brides, fellow business owners & my blog readers. If I end up educating you along the way, that’s great!! But my main goal is not to educate. My main goal is to INSPIRE.

– Get better with Twitter. Ugh. Honestly? I really don’t like it, y’all. I know Facebook has it’s faults, but I MUCH prefer Facebook over Twitter. (Actually, my social media platform of choice is Instagram!!) But Twitter is gaining popularity with the “brides of tomorrow”, so I need to get better at it, too.

– Organize my Pinterest. My poor Pinterest is a little out of control. I need to remember that just like other forms of social media,  it’s a reflection of my business. I need to utilize it to show my style, be a helpful resource for brides, and just look more organized & put together!!

– Start/Maintain a DSE Newsletter. This is coming NEXT month!! Woohooo:) Sign up today!!!

Friends, these are just a few things we discussed last week. Katelyn has so much amazing content, that I really encourage you to attend when she offers it again:)

I hope you have a wonderful weekend planned!! Matt and I are going camping with friends, and if you know me at all, you know that I’m doing it solely out of love for him!! Camping is probably my least favorite activity!!! Every experience I’ve ever had has ended badly… I’m sure Monday’s Weekend Wrap-Up will be a fun one:)

xo!! kat