Create & Cultivate Style Summit
About 2 weeks ago I had the amazing opportunity to attend the Create & Cultivate Style Summit here in H-Town! The fact that this was offered for free by them at the Houston Galleria to give back was so cool. I learned a great deal about branding, marketing and just being a kick ass female at the Summit.
All the big blog dogs were there speaking on panels and offering advice like Courtney Kerr (@kerrently), Paola Mathe (@findingpaola), Dede Raad (@dressupbuttercup) and many more! Not to mention my girl crush, Sophia Bush, served as a perfect keynote speaker. After the event I took everything they spoke about and thought about how I could apply it to myself. So here are some of the key takeaways and quotable moments for me during the summit:
You're Cilantro. We can't kid ourselves. Not everyone is going to like you (and that's okay)! That is something that has always been hard for me to accept and I still struggle with it today. Courtney Kerr said it best when she made the comparison to cilantro. Some people hate it, some people like it in small doses and (as she said) some people put that sh*t on everything! As bloggers and just women in general, it can be hard to accept but once that hurdle is conquered, we can do what truly makes us happy.
Be Genuine. They all spoke about this to some capacity. The big thing this day is branding. Branding. Branding. Branding. We constantly ask ourselves, "Does this align with my brand?". How about does it align with who you are and your morals. Paola spoke about how she views her page as a direct reflection of her, and her business is the brand. In my opinion, I am a brand and a genuine person. So I ask myself, "Does this align with who I am as a person.". This phrase encompasses both aspects of being genuine, but also keeping in my mind your brand image from the viewer's perspective.
Tailor Your Content. This is especially important for those managing multiple platforms and practically everyone touched on this during the panels. For example, keep in mind the age group, interests and overall demographics of followers on YouTube compared to your Instagram or blog. Take the time to filter through the content and put your best stuff in the best spaces. For me, I have the most engagement on Instagram so I keep that in mind for all posts on my feed. However, my blog is my own personal space that is a direct reflection of my brand, so some images are only posted here.
Overall, the Style Summit was a huge success and learning experience for me! I can't wait for more events to continue to take place in H-Town (hold it down) with the rise in local bloggers.
And that's all she wrote.
P.S. Click here for more info about what I wore to the event.