74: {Interview} The Power of Authenticity on Social Media with Shelby Clement

Are you overwhelmed with trying to figure out how to use social media to grow your business online? Today I have the social media queen and expert Shelby Clement with me! 

Shelby shares her journey from corporate America to entrepreneurship and the importance of authenticity on social media. She emphasizes the need to show up as your authentic self and humanize your brand to set yourself apart. Shelby also discusses her upcoming launch of a membership program that helps businesses post consistent content on social media. She encourages people to embrace imperfection and stop striving for perfection. 

If you own a business and use social media to help promote your offers, services or products this episode is a must listen! 

Takeaways

• Embrace authenticity and show up as your true self on social media to set yourself apart from competitors.
• Humanize your brand by sharing your values, mission, and non-negotiables to connect with your audience.
• Failure and fear are opportunities for growth and pushing yourself outside of your comfort zone.
• Stop striving for perfection and embrace imperfection to be relatable and memorable.
• Trust and collaboration with clients are key to success in marketing and social media management.

Shelby Clement - Louisiana native, wife to a total stud, and momma bear to two little tikes. Oh, and did I mention she's also a kick-ass entrepreneur? She's all about helping small businesses crush it in the social media game.

​So, if you're ready to level up your social media presence, you've come to the right place. Her team is all about killer content, strategic planning, and mad SEO skills. They will make your biz shine online

Register for her webinar HERE
More on SCM Marketing HERE
IG: @itsshelbyclement

Start your podcast today!
Interested in starting a podcast, but don't know where to start? Check out Riverside.fm. It's easy!

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.

Transcript

Caroline (00:00.876)
Welcome, Shelby.

Shelby (00:02.094)
Hey Caroline, thanks for having me. I'm so excited to be here!

Caroline (00:06.348)
So I want to hear your story. You started out in corporate America. You had this fancy big marketing job in oil and gas. You were flying around private planes. You had a big salary. And then three years later, you're up the band -aid off and decided to go full on onto the entrepreneurial journey. And now you have a wildly successful marketing agency. You're the event host of Damn Good Marketing Live. And you have a podcast. So tell me all the things.

Shelby (00:32.366)
Yes. Okay. So yeah, I was in corporate and it was fun for like 0 .5 seconds. I'm kidding. I was there for eight years. When I graduated college, I thought like, holy crap, like this is a dream job. I was 23 years old, fell right into a marketing director role, basically taught myself a lot of things from the ground up was what like she said, flying around on private jets. And I was at conferences and all that. And then I got married and had a family and I was like, this is not the life I wanted.

But in that moment, I was like, my gosh, I'm gonna be a CMO. That's so cool. Like that was just my big dream at the moment. But over time, as I had a family and started to evolve as a human and what I really wanted and desires, I was like, this is not the job that I want. This is not what I wanna do. So interview after interview after interview, I literally got turned down. They were like, you're overqualified or this is not the good fit for you. So I'd go home crying to my husband saying like, I just don't understand. Like.

is God's plan, me being a mom and go to eight to five. If that is, I guess I'm gonna just surrender and let that be. And not that that's a bad thing, I just felt like I was made for more. 2020 came around, I went to a conference in California right before the pandemic and I learned that social media managers were a thing. And I was like, I don't even know what that is, but I love marketing and I do like social media and how do I incorporate this? What do I do? Well, obviously the world had different plans.

COVID like had us homebound. I was newly pregnant. I had a toddler at home with me and I was just like, I know I can't leave. We both financially contribute. So that would be kind of silly. So basically I took everything that I learned at that conference and I started implementing it for the company I was with. Now, oil and gas is straight LinkedIn. Like, yes, we did Facebook for employee morale and all that stuff. And we didn't even touch Instagram then, like nothing. It was all LinkedIn and it was powerful. And so in February of 21, I got my first...

social media client and it kind of just like skyrocketed from there. I was still working at corporate. So it was kind of like a hush thing. Like no one really knew I was doing it on the side, but I was doing it to just renovate my, my kitchen when we lived in Thibodeau. And then truly I was like, John, I really think this could be something. And he was like, as long as you can match your salary, like I'm fine with taking the risk. And I was like, okay, cool. So let me mind you, like I didn't just have a salary. I had a salary, I had benefits, I had a company car, I had company gas, I had literally everything. And.

Shelby (02:45.71)
So it was gonna be a huge risk for our family to take, but it was a risk worth taking and it's been a fricking amazing journey. It's been like the highest of highs and lowest of lows. But like you said, I have an agency that's thriving three years and I have a conference, Dam Good Marketing Live Conference. It's absolutely amazing. I love, we pour everything into it. And then the podcast, I just get to talk. I mean, if you know me or you don't yet, like I absolutely love to talk. So the podcast was perfect for that.

Caroline (03:12.78)
So what was it like? I mean, everything you just described, your corporate salary, the benefits, the car, everything, that's what I call the golden handcuffs. And I had the same thing too in my corporate job. How do you have the courage and the cojones to actually be confident in yourself and that your skills and that you can actually do it and make your own money?

Shelby (03:21.006)
Yeah.

Shelby (03:33.55)
Yeah, so at first I was very scared. So I was like, I was like, can I do this? But I was so miserable, Caroline, that I was like, if I don't, then I'm gonna regret this forever. And like, I already saw what was happening with not even me advertising or having a real business yet, like nothing. And everything like really just kind of was a blessing in disguise. And it was really perfect timing. And I was very scared. But I also would tell myself like this, I said,

If I fail or this does fail, like I know I'm smart enough or I have the credentials to go get another job, like go work for someone else or go do something else. Maybe this wasn't it, but this is my stepping stone to what's next. So like me, definitely over the last three years, I feel like one, it's made me grow up really fast. And two, it's also made me realize that failure is also really good. And fear is also really good. When you have fear and you have failure, you learn. And with fear, it means you're just being pushed outside of your comfort zone to the next level.

of success that you're craving and going for. So to me, I say welcome fear with open arms and that means you're heading in the right direction of what you want to do in your life and in your business.

Caroline (04:38.668)
the messy middle for me, it's been where I've learned and grown the most. And everyone likes to look at the highlight reel, the, you know, you're, you're blowing it up on social media, you're on Amazon, whatever fill in the blank, the highlight reel is. They're not really seeing like the backend scenes of like, holy crap, can I afford this or can I, you know, hire somebody else or can, how do I do taxes?

Shelby (04:43.374)
Yes.

Shelby (04:57.23)
Yes.

Shelby (05:03.502)
Exactly all of the things that you just don't know and the thing is a lot of people don't talk about it and I like to joke about this all the time is I know like I think I even put it on LinkedIn because like at this point I'm like I don't care I'm like an open book and like someone actually emailed me a while ago was like what questions are offline I mean off off Whatever off limits for when we interviewed and I was like nothing I literally want to be an open book for that one person that's either in corporate

in entrepreneurship that's like scared of like what to do next or just to know that like not every business owner or successful business owner have it together. But also that corporate person that may be like, I really want to make this leap of faith, but like I need someone else to guide because like no one's talking about it. And I remember the day I actually started crying on the internet and I literally was like, this is hard. And I put like all the quotes around like everything a business owner feels when you're crying about running a business or living your life on social media, because it's not a highlight reel. It's

I want to be an advocate for you to say like, this shit is hard, but if you put in the work, you can achieve anything that you put in the work for. And so like dream big. And if you fail, it just means that's your stepping stone to the next thing that you're supposed to go to. So I just think that like a lot of stuff, like growing up or even just like a couple of years ago, it was just very gatekeep to like how hard it is to actually run a business and be successful when in reality.

It's only the people that make it through that should be talking about it because a lot of people say, I want to be an entrepreneur and they can't get through the trenches of what it takes to run a business.

Caroline (06:31.468)
Don't get me started on the excuses of time and money. I just know. Okay. Moving on. You talk a lot about authenticity and why that matters and why that you need to be showing up as your authentic self on social media. So unpack that more for me. Why is that so important and why is that crucial?

Shelby (06:32.526)
Thank you.

Shelby (06:50.894)
So a lot of times when I tell people this, I get very passionate because truly you and your competitor do the exact same thing. You offer the exact service, you offer the exact product, whatever that may look like. You didn't just reinvent the wheel unless like truly you're someone that actually reinvented something. Like truly that's all you got. You all have competitors and the only way to separate you from who does what you do is by showing up as authentic as you can. Pull back the curtain, let people get to know you. They wanna know that you're human and especially,

2024 going beyond these years in social media, they wanna see the human behind the brand. So the more that you humanize your brand and your authenticity is what are your values? What are your mission? What is your mission? What are your non -negotiables? What are you ruffling feathers on? Why are you being a disruptor? Should you be a disruptor in your industry? Absolutely do the things that make you memorable because people work with you or buy from you or support you because of you and how you make them feel and how they feel related to you. So like,

That is truly the only way to set yourself apart with the noise of social media because it is over consumed and over utilized and very, very, very saturated. And all these people are consuming all of these trends and all of these things that are being done. What are you doing to set yourself apart that people are going to remember you and say, I'm going to work with Caroline because she knows her shit. Now you and someone else could have like the same knowledge and same experience and same everything, but like,

how you make someone feel and how welcoming and relatable that you are is going to be the differentiator of if they choose you or they choose your competitor.

Caroline (08:23.852)
So someone's listening to this podcast now and they are inspired by everything you're saying because you've inspired me on Instagram specifically. Where do they start?

Shelby (08:35.117)
just come follow along, like truly. Like I give you all the goods on social. Like I've been up in my LinkedIn game. So kudos to Caroline for that. But Instagram is my jam box or my email list is my jam. I love conversation. I'm not asking for you. You don't have to pay to be in my orbit. You can just literally shoot me a DM or an email. Like I'm the only one in my inbox. So like I'll have a great conversation with you. You have a dream. You want to bounce the ideas off someone.

It's Shelby Claymore, she'll probably put in the show notes, but it's spelled like Clement, C -L -E -E -N -T, but just come over and chat, or even on LinkedIn, hell, just come in the DMs. Don't be creepy in my DMs, don't try to sell me something in my DMs, because I ain't gonna answer you, but if you're just like, hey Shelby, I heard you on XYZ, and I just want, I have this crazy dream, and I just want to know if you think this is a great idea. And of course, probably most of the time I'll say yes, but just have a conversation, just come and get in my orbit, and I just want to cheer you on.

Caroline (09:32.812)
So you are working on something very exciting coming up in July. And as the founder of a drinkware company, when you told me about the idea, I was like, hell to the yes. Because as a founder of a product and a service based business, I could use your services and what you're creating, what you're doing, because I'm just like everyone else. Like I overcomplicate things in my head or whatever. So talk to me about it.

Shelby (09:47.694)
Yes.

Shelby (09:58.734)
So truly, like as you say that, the more and more I'm learning myself is I overcomplicate quite literally every single thing that I do. Like the thing we're gonna launch, we were overcomplicating it so much that I was like, hell no. So yesterday we changed everything up again and it's just so crazy. But we're launching, well, number one, we have a webinar coming up July 17th, which is free to everyone or anyone that wants to join. It's all about creating content under an hour. We are a group of social media managers. We've been doing this for three years and we constantly hear the,

I don't have time, I don't know what to post, I want to handle my own social media, maybe you don't have a budget for the agency or whatever that may look like, or you're posting and spending so much time on this content, it's just falling flat. Whatever your excuse or actually reality is for you, we hear you loud and clear, and so we're developing something that's just so good. And what it is is it's a membership where it's going to give you the means and the resources to post consistently for 30 days, if you want to, every single month.

And so we're doing all the heavy lifting for you. I mean, like we're designing it, we're writing it. All you have to do is it's a plug and fricking play. And it's literally cheaper than your monthly coffee order. Like truly all of us are obsessed with coffee. Maybe it's shopping, maybe it's getting your nails done. I don't know what the heck it is if you're listening to this, but it's the founder's price, which will never be this price again is definitely under a hundred dollars. And so like, it's something that you get group coaching. You get all of these like things handed to you on a silver platter where then you cannot have an excuse of,

I can't, I don't have time to be consistent. I don't have time to show up on social media. I don't have the budget. I don't know where to start. I don't know what time to post. I don't, my engagement's down. Like all things are falling flat. You don't have, you can't say those excuses anymore because we're giving you this on a silver platter. And it's, you best believe that this program is something that's going to push all of you outside of your comfort zone. Number one, because you're going to be posting consistent. Number two, because it does incorporate video. And like the only way to really set yourself apart is to start utilizing video in a sense of.

I'm going to show up messy and I'm going to do it anyway and I'm going to hit record and I'm going to post it and I'm going to be okay with it being ugly at first. But the more I do it, the more I put the reps in, the better I'm going to get and the more my actual clients and community is going to love it. So it's something that's just going to be so dang good. And the more it gets closer, the more excited I get about it because it's just like, it's definitely a necessity, especially like as social media managers and hearing like what people need and like actually implementing it and putting it into play for them is just so beautiful. And I'm so excited.

Caroline (12:22.892)
So I want you to talk about this more because I agree with you. Why is everyone on social media obsessed with the idea of perfection? That they need to show up online looking perfect with makeup, with hair and everything because trust me, I look like a sweaty troll most days.

Shelby (12:38.926)
Truly, I literally say I'm either dressed to a nine or the tens. I don't know. I don't know whatever or I literally look homeless like you it's it's one or the other there is literally no happy medium and I mean right now I did slap some makeup on my face because I was like Caroline LinkedIn blah blah blah But before this my hair was literally in a knot on my head I had zero makeup on bags under my eyes because we're working on the things behind the scenes right now, but truly Perfection intimidates people prime example. I went to I want to like learn how to bake sourdough. Okay, cool

My sister does it already, but I need the gluten free version. And I went and looked up this account and they were like, it's beautiful. It's amazing. And like her account intimidated me so much that I got off of it. Listen, you will attract your aesthetic girlies and whoever you're trying to attract with the perfection. But like people also in 2024 are seeing right through it. They're not going to work with you. You are not relatable. None of this actually is a thing if you don't just show up messy and how you are because they want a human. It goes back to being authentic of like perfection is

Of the past if if I had to be perfect all the time I would not be as successful as I am because like I want to show up and be as Relatable as I can so people feel like they can do it too because if you show up perfect like perfect every time People will get intimidated and they're like I can't do that. Like I'm not doing that and then they like log off and they forget about you and you're not memorable so That's out the window. Stop trying to be perfect. And I think

Caroline can vouch for this. Even LinkedIn is like show up as you are. I mean, don't be crazy. Don't be as like laid back obviously as like Instagram is or TikTok is or like any of these other platforms, but it's not stuffy. It's not whatever show up as you are. Like I can only give so much of like perfect to LinkedIn as.

It's almost just like, this is who I am. I do curse. Obviously my brand has the word damn around it. Like there's things that I can't avoid because it is my brand. It is who I am. And I'm unapologetically myself about it. So if you are 100 % for who you are as a human being, then do not shy away from it. Be exactly who you are and show up exactly how you are.

Caroline (14:45.1)
Okay, that's pure gold right there. So in addition to the webinar in July, which everyone needs to go and sign up immediately for this, it's in the show notes. What is lighting you up about some of the clients you're working with right now?

Shelby (14:58.158)
I think what lights me up the most is like the wins and the fact that they trust that we know what we're doing. Like if the clients that actually give us the reins to be like, you have to do this, this, this, this is what we need in order for you to be successful. Or the people that trust us that know that like it takes time. It makes me so excited and actually just like reaffirms like what we're actually about to push out and do. It's just like the conversations I guess I'm having lately. It's just like, it's all falling in alignment and it's literally lighting a fire.

to be like, we need to get this thing launched and July 17th, it's like right around the corner. But like I, we're excited. That's definitely lighting me up at the moment.

Caroline (15:37.644)
So how can our listeners find you?

Shelby (15:39.822)
Instagram girlfriends and boys if you're listening men, I guess gentlemen, I don't know what you call them but Wow Instagram and I'm on LinkedIn Shelby dimma Sally claim all those so it's my middle name name I probably should change that Carol and I'll let me know that but anyway, You just shout me out and I'll send you all the things and the show notes will have a I'll give Caroline all the freebies where you can like get in my world, but

I am so excited to have a conversation. Just, I am human, truly, just slide in my DMs. I literally could talk your ear off. So I'm here if you need me.

Caroline (16:13.228)
Thanks Shelby.

Shelby (16:14.414)
Thanks, Caroline.