Stephanie Stabulis

The message should always fit the medium🧐🙈 also I’m also team “Never do something just cuz an algorithm favors it” if it doesn’t fit your business model, but we knew that, right? #contentcreator #contentcreationtips #contentmarketing #contentcreation #contentstrategy #branding #brandingstrategy #brandstrategist #influencermarketing #influencerlife #influencers #influence #motivation #contentinspo #inspire #growthmarketing #growthtips #socialmediaconsultant #socialmediacoach #influencerstyle #marketingstrategy

~3 years ago I got to design + run an influencer study for @visitcarlsbad and @theflowerfields ... this weekend I finally got to experience them. ⁣ It was a beautiful experience. The flowers were gorgeous but I think what I was most proud of was how I experienced it.... ⁣ 👉🏽 I used my phone to take pictures but I didn’t edit or post anything while I was onsite. I wanted to really stay present and not be on my phone. It can be totally hard when you are in a spot designed for a photo shoot, but I really want to make sure I’m not doing things just for a photo and I’m experiencing life through a different lens than just the camera. Just my own value and preference. I no longer have the will or wallet to keep doing things solely for the gram photo. ⁣ 👉🏽 I played by the rules. There’s a lot of damage done to flowers and the soil if you step where you aren’t suppose to. And there’s a 10 min rule for photos. It seemed like when one person “breaks” the rules for an Instagram photo, others follow. I’ve been way more conscious not to prioritize a photo over something truly harmful or disruptive to the experiences of others. We aren’t always conscious of the negative implications of the photos we post online - but it’s a real thing. We are shaping our culture with what we post - does it make you more thoughtful? I definitely feel more conscious around what my actions online contribute to and try to make clearer decisions about what I support and value and what I don’t. And I think working behind the scenes really gives you perspective at how hard people work to bring beautiful things to life - don’t take it for granted!

👀👀 who should have creative control in an influencer partnership? My take: is that it’s both equally brand & influencer (maybe skewed a little brand heavy!) and here is why 👇🏽 ⁣ 1️⃣ we know for a fact that authenticity is a top ranked factor in how a piece of content performs and no one knows authenticity quite like the influencer. They know their audience, their personality and what will/won’t resonate. The personal and human piece is also critical - influencers are expected to always bring their own spin to branded content. Brands should never tell you how to be you 🙅🏻‍♀️.... ⁣ 2️⃣ BUT.... its fact that brands who can get creative, theme their campaigns & partnerships, make them relevant to what is happening in the world, and integrate influencers into bigger, what we call “multichannel campaigns” also outperform less creative partnerships. The brand should always be bringing some kind of creative idea to the table that is brand relatable, yet still allows each influencer they work with to create something unique and different. ⁣ 3️⃣ and it’s also the brands responsibility to bring the higher level social media “marketing” expertise to the table. Influencers are certainly getting more educated on the marketing piece - but there is SO MUCH detail and thought that goes into the creation of content that resonates on a deeper level. There is also much deeper understanding of consumer psychology on the brand side that can help fine tune partnership details to make it truly successful. ⁣ Partnership seems like a redundant word, buts it’s the most reflective of the fact that sponsored content and ads should always be a collaborative creation ✨

Read between the lines. “Brand safety” needs an overhaul. And I say this with the utmost respect to both brands & influencers. So I fixed it. Here’s why: 🤚🏼 if you are unfamiliar with what “brand safe” means, it’s a catch all word that brands use to assess whether an influencer is a risk. It’s warranted - anytime a brand is partnering with you as a HUMAN, they are making a strong statement about values. Peep David Dobrik for a run down on brand risk. 👉🏽 however, brand safety has also historically marginalized some influencers and creators from having a voice about social and political matters, as a brand is tasked with associating themselves on stronger opinions that could cause controversy. Brands have stayed away from swearing, politics, religion, social issues and more to mitigate risk - making influencers feel as if they need to be “stifled” and stay small so they are not at risk of missing brand deals. 🤟🏽 I’ve always been down with brand safety, but the guidelines need to change to keep up with the times, even if that means hard conversations need to be had and change has to happen organization wide. (It won’t happen overnight but it does need to start!) Even if that means that marketers, like myself, need to held responsible for pushing for it. It’s one of the big changes I’m pushing for. I understand there’s a world where some brands may still stay a-political but I understand there’s also a world where more brands start to have the hard conversations around opening up brand safety and be more cognizant if it’s negative impact.

In case you haven’t heard “likes” don’t mean anything more than the fact that someone likes your photo. 🥸 First audience size was a big deal, then brands were like “nah dude, it’s engagement rate!” And then brands were like “nah dude, it’s not even engagement rate. Likes won’t tell me if you are truly influential, if people really like the depth of you, if they are interested in more than just a photo.” So we started getting pickier and digging deeper for indicators that your engagement is deeper, more “REAL” and that you are capable of being truly influential. This isn’t info that’s spit out on any given platform, it’s stuff that casters have to dig for, so if you want to make your “real” engagement more noticeable and increase our chances of finding real evidence of your influence and audience connection, do this 👆🏽👆🏽👆🏽👆🏽 #discoverunder1k #discoverunder5k #influencer #influencertips #influencerhacks #socialmediahacks #influence #influencermarketing #contentcreators #contentcreation #contentcreationtips #contentcreator #marketingstrategy #personalbranding #personalbrand #influencerbranding #influentialwomen #socialmediamarketing #socialmediatips #socialmediamanager #bloggersofinstagram #bloggerstyle #influencerstyle #behindthescenes #enteprenuer #marketingagency #marketingresources

What are you doing with that attention and why? It’s such an important part of being “an influencer” and building community and so important to the distinction between simply being a content creator and being of influence. Do you take attention for granted? #contentcreator #contentcreationtips #contentmarketing #contentcreation #contentstrategy #branding #brandingstrategy #brandstrategist #influencermarketing #influencerlife #influencers #influence #motivation #contentinspo #inspire #growthmarketing #growthtips #socialmediaconsultant #socialmediacoach #influencerstyle #marketingstrategy

#Podcast world can be intense sometimes. There is this so much pressure to record interviews, put out episodes, to move quickly and to monetize to be “successful”. ⁣ I often have to re-ground myself and remind myself right now that my podcast is what it is and have 0 expectation for it other than being another vehicle for valuable information and learning. I often tell myself that it’s okay if this doesn’t go anywhere, because “going somewhere” isn’t the point - having these conversations is. I have zero expectations for it, so doing interviews feels like a blessing to me, not a chore or obligation. I’m genuinely excited to release and share episodes - and I’m more humbled by the reviews and feedback. ⁣ You don’t need these intense goals for everything you do, sometimes it’s okay to play. ⁣ 👀👀 new cover art to bring the podcast up to speed with the new branding! See it across iTunes, Spotify & SoundCloud (links are in bio!) #contentcreator #contentcreationtips #contentmarketing #contentcreation #contentstrategy #branding #brandingstrategy #brandstrategist #influencermarketing #influencerlife #influencers #influence #motivation #contentinspo #inspire #growthmarketing #growthtips #socialmediaconsultant #socialmediacoach #influencerstyle #marketingstrategy

As a creator, you are LIABLE for following advertising law with every brand partnership you do. 😱 most know about FTC disclosure, but advertising law goes way beyond just FTC disclosure and unless you’ve worked with a bigger brand with stricter regulation, you may not know about all of the advertising laws you must follow. Let’s cover 3 more. ▫️ CERTAIN INDUSTRIES HAVE AD REGULATIONS... and If it’s illegal to run an ad on Facebook, it’s also against Instagrams terms of service for paid influencers partnerships. This is one of the biggest issues with cannabis entering the influencer space as its currently against Facebook TOS even though its legal in many states. Dietary supplements have FDA ad regulations as do pharmaceuticals and cosmetics which require you to have certain language in your post or things you can and can’t say since you are a sponsored ad. An example hot in the health space is making unsubstantiated claims about products. ▫️ your ad can’t have copywritten material. We talked briefly about what this meant in terms of images and music, but this technically extends entirely to what’s in your media including your clothes and what may be in the background of your shot especially in video. Visible logos and artwork you didn’t produce, which are often trademarked and copywritten can’t be used in paid ads. Pay close attention to what you wear and your scenery when you shoot. Avoid any visible brands and labels when working with another brand especially in clothes. ▫️ it’s illegal to use anything not cleared for non-commercial use. Commercial use basically means you are using something primarily intended to gain money from its use. So for example, you bought a podcast mic that was branded for non-commercial use then started using it in your webseries which is sponsored and monetized and the mic logo is clearly visible, this could go against the cleared usage of the product. If you used Canva to create and edit a sponsored post, with Canva fonts, shapes, stickers - this may go against commercial use law, as Canva Terms of Service prohibit commercial use of their designs and templates.

So you want to start working with brands.... or maybe, you HAVE worked with brands, but you felt lost, or you didn’t know quite know what to expect, or you felt uncomfortable pushing back on edits, maybe you felt clueless signing your contract or you don’t know how to use your experience to get more deals. I got you covered. 👉🏽 the Creator Elevation Digital Workshop took me nearly 2 months to compile 10+ hours a day and early Covid weekends, but it’s A-to-Z going to teach you everything to expect from being an influencer. 👉🏽 it’s infused with brand insights and I own that. I’ve come from the business & brand side of things and I’m here to teach you HOW to better work with brands, even while maintaining your own power, worth and individuality. 👉🏽 swipe to see at LEAST 8 things you’ll learn, 10 are in my stories 👆🏽 if your curious. If you are interested, you can click on the WORKSHOPS link in my bio to download a free sample, read through all topics covered or if you’re ready to really elevate add any of the SINGLE modules to your cart and use APRILFOOLS at checkout to buy 1 module and get 1 free. (Good through April 7!)

The super unsexy but important topic no one is talking about ☝🏽 Legal compliance. I actually have multiple posts coming up with more detail on this, but let’s start with 3 basics. 1️⃣ FTC compliance: anytime you are gifted or paid to promote a product is must be clear and obvious. It’s most commonly referred to as “FTC disclosure” but is a form of compliance. A special note on compliance from my off podcast chat with the @theinfluenceratty - guidelines are put out by the FTC and “interpreted” by lawyers (brand lawyers, talent lawyers, etc) so you may see varying “interpretations” of what “clear and obvious” means. You are required to abide by BRAND SPECIFIC guidelines, if they differ from your own interpretation, as most of the time the greater liability is on the company over the individual. This can change the details as some may require a hashtag, some may not, placement may matter and verbiage may matter. Get up to SPEED on this! (I also have a highlight above on the FAQs called ‘FTC dump’) 👆🏽 2️⃣ media must be your own when doing a paid ad. That means images within blog posts cannot be from Google. Often you cannot use stickers in stories. You can’t use a green screen with a background that isn’t your media. A lot of things we are used to doing for fun in manipulating images or content may not be as friendly or compliant so be a bit more careful about media, clips and artwork used in brand campaigns. 3️⃣ you cannot use music that isn’t clear for commercial use in brand campaigns. Not on your Reel, your Tik Tok, your Youtube vid, your story, your podcast - and this can get as granular as sound effects. You must hold the license for the sound to use it, the brand must hold a transferable license, or it must be license/royalty-free and clear for commercial use. Many of the platforms like Tik Tok and IG will have sounds for commercial use, but be wary about the sounds you use in paid ads. Did you guys know compliance this deeply? Honestly, I feel like learning about the legal side of creation is constant and ongoing for me! 🙏🏼❤️