Meet Alyson of Starling Social - Camp Rover Conference 2024 Sponsor
Alyson is such a lovely, energetic, fiery woman that I knew we needed on the team. From our first meeting, I (Amanda) was fired up to get going working with Alyson and the Starling Social team. We’re thrilled with how they’ve been helping things come along for Camp Rover Conference 2024.
Here’s a little more about Alyson Shane (she/her) of Starling Social through a little get-to-know Our Sponsors interview.
What is the hardest part about what you do?
I wouldn’t say that any part of my job is “hard” per-se; there are days when I feel like I don’t have enough hours in the day, but that’s because my job mainly consists of a few things: - Taking discovery calls and closing sales - Meeting with my team and clients - Attending events and networking - Managing and developing the “high-level” strategy on a per-client basis … none of these things are overly difficult, but it’s really just time management that can get tricky sometimes when we’re super busy!
What is the all-time dream part of your job? The thing you still pinch yourself that you get to do? And, tell the people how often you actually get to do it.
I’m a writer who writes for a living, and I love it! I’ve been publishing content online since 2002 and I’m obsessed with how people communicate, and find a lot of joy in “creating something out of nothing” in terms of writing documentation and processes. Luckily for me, I get to do this every day!
If you could tell your Day 1 starting-a-biz-self one thing what would it be?
Get your processes in order so you can bring in supports ASAP. I was lucky: within a few months of working for myself full-time we landed a few major contracts that I couldn’t handle by myself, so I started growing the Starling team pretty early on. Of course, as a new business owner this meant some “trial and error” had to happen in order for me to develop the systems and processes that would allow me to hand over deliverables I’d been handling myself, but I’ve always been a voracious reader and I found lots of resources and guides to help me learn what to do as quickly as possible.
Someone wants to get into marketing. What advice - from an expert - would have saved you a lot of time, sweat, and tears?
If you want to be a successful marketer you need to learn to do a few things properly:
1. Learn how all social platforms work. Being an “expert” on Instagram or TikTok is only going to serve you as long as that platform is popular, and (as we all know) the social media landscape can change pretty quickly.
2. Learn to write. I don’t mean “learn to use ChatGPT” - I mean spend time reading and writing and become as proficient at this as you can. I’m continually shocked by the volume of low-quality content I see online, and how few marketers understand the nuances between how to cater and format content from one platform to another.
3. Learn 24/7. The world of marketing can change almost overnight, so resting on your laurels is a surefire way to get left in the dust and wind up providing sub-part service to your boss or clients.
Fun fact about you or your biz?
I’ve been publishing content online since I was 12! I wrote the HTML for my GeoCities site and have grown up in the “pre and post” social media era. I also have a degree in “Rhetoric, Writing & Communications” so I’ve studied how humans communicate and understand nuances around rhetoric, mediums, and messaging at an academic level. A fun fact about Starling Social is that we’re celebrating 10 years in business this summer! Time really flies when you’re having fun.
Fav book? Fav show? All your time go to movies while working?
It’s hard to pick just one, but here are some of my favourite books: - “White Oleander” by Janet Fitch - “House of Leaves” by Mark Z. Danielewski - “The Blind Assassin” by Margaret Atwood
Closing thoughts for the Camp Rover Community?
I think it’s SO important that events like this exist. As someone who’s struggled to “fit in” to more B2B-style events, it’s exciting to be a part of a community of other weirdos and creatives and I’m excited to get to know you all!
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