140: {Interview} Why You Should Join us at DGML with Shelby Clement

In this engaging conversation, Shelby Clement shares her journey from corporate marketing to becoming a successful social media agency owner. She emphasizes the critical role of social media in modern business, the importance of networking through live events, and the necessity of investing in oneself to achieve entrepreneurial success. Shelby also discusses overcoming common objections to personal investment and finding a deeper purpose in entrepreneurship. The episode concludes with an invitation to the DGML event, highlighting its unique offerings for women entrepreneurs.

takeaways

• Shelby transitioned from corporate marketing to owning a social media agency.
• Social media is essential for businesses to reach their audience.
• Investing in live events fosters deeper connections and networking opportunities.
• Overcoming objections to investing in oneself is crucial for growth.
• Finding a strong 'why' is essential for entrepreneurial success.
• Time management is key; prioritize what matters most.
• Trusting oneself is vital when making business investments.
• Social media can be overwhelming without a clear purpose.
• Networking can lead to significant opportunities and collaborations.
• The DGML event offers valuable insights and connections for women entrepreneurs.

Grab your TICKET and follow Shelby for more at @itsshelbyclement

Transcript

Shelby (00:00.814)
Yay! I'm so excited. She was recording when we first started. screamed. Y'all probably would have turned it off immediately, but that's... It's been too long,

Caroline Pennington (00:01.171)
Welcome Shelby!

Caroline Pennington (00:11.073)
I know. Okay, so for those of you that don't know, Shelby, Shelby is a top podcast host. She owns a premier social media agency in Louisiana called SCM. And she also is the host of the live event DGML. And so Shelby, tell us where you are and how did you get there?

Shelby (00:30.136)
Hey guys, okay, so I'm Shelby. Those of you that don't know me, I'm like a lot of energy. You either love it you hate it, but I'm here for it. But I am Shelby Clamwell. I came from the world of corporate. For eight years I was in oil and gas and the man's world where I thought I had everything figured out. I was their director of marketing at 23 years old. I'm not sure how I got that title or how I deserve that title because I did not.

And then in 2021, I launched my business because I had this little inkling on my heart. Like I went interview after interview and got turned down saying you're overqualified just because I had that stupid title. And all I really wanted to do was learn and have a mentor and all those things. so social media marketing world happened in California in 2021. I came home and I was like, 2020, it happened in 2020. Came home and told my husband, you know, I think I want to go out and be a social media manager. And at the beginning guys, like I got some...

riff-raff about that, because one, nobody knew what that was in Louisiana. They were like, what do mean? You're going dance on internet? I think they thought I was going go be an influencer or whatever it was, because I think TikTok was just popping off at that time too. And now it's four and a half years later, and I have a thriving social media agency. And I love it. It's a love-hate relationship, should I say. But I work with a lot of brick and mortars and just helping them increase their brain awareness. So I met Caroline in

What? Like Carolyn, we met in Keisha's event. I mean, Keisha's mastermind in 23. God, time flies, but also I feel like I've known you forever. And we kind of just connected at the hip. And now we're just like soaring the world together and taking over and just giving it to you real. So I hope you guys are ready for this episode.

Caroline Pennington (01:53.035)
Yeah.

Caroline Pennington (02:00.909)
Yes. Okay. So you said something on unpack more and we're going to talk about the event and why it's important to get in the room. Cause that's how you and I connected and have stayed connected. And we both have had ripple effects, situations, scenarios, all good positive about getting the room. But why does every single business owner need to be using social media to market their business?

Shelby (02:22.158)
Because it's free. off, if you don't have a budget to order, if you don't have a budget to hire an agency or have someone come in house or have an intern, whatever the case may be, you still have no excuse to get on social media because truly that's where everyone is. They are scaping the news. They're not reading anything anymore. Literally everything else is dead. Don't come at me, any of my friends that are in traditional media. But social media marketing is the number one place that you need to be as a business. So for example, if you are thinking of

a restaurant that you want to go to, you're going to go to their Instagram, or you're going go to their Facebook, or you're going to go to their Google My Business. Google My Business is still considered an actual social media platform. So all of those things, if you want to be in front of people, this is where they do their doom scrolling. People are so addicted to social media at this point that if you are not advertising organically on social media, you are doing yourself a disservice. And honestly, if you don't do it, your competitor is, and you might already be kind of behind at this point. So I would kind of buckle up today and start posting.

I'm just...

Caroline Pennington (03:23.725)
I'm so glad you said that because literally I have this conversation like over and over and over again. I'm like, everyone lives online. Like if you don't exist online and have a social media presence, like you might as well close your doors because people are looking online and they can't find your Facebook page. They can't find your Instagram. Like what are you even doing with yourself?

Shelby (03:42.606)
Yes. And it's like where they're that's where they go to understand who you are, what you do. And honestly, too, if you if you are not showing up on social media as a human being, like what are you even doing? Like if you're literally just showing up saying, this is my product, this is my service, this is what I have to offer, I can fix your problems like, cool, awesome. So can your competitor. So like, how are you standing out as a human being? How are you showing them who you are? Because truly the only way that you are different from your competitor like

There is not another social media agency that does it different than me. Like truly, like we all do the same systems and processes and we actually deliver probably some suck and some are good. But at the same time, I'm considered a luxury social media agency. I'm very expensive, but at the same time, I am selling my brand and me and my experience and my knowledge because there's so many agencies that are out there that are saying like, I can hear your social media, but yes, all they know is social media. They don't necessarily know the marketing. And truly like all of this is just marketing 101.

Do you understand marketing? Do you understand where your audience is? Do you understand every single interest that they have? Do you understand the emotional, psychological aspect of them that's gonna make them swipe that card to continue to stay with you, to tell their friends about you? If you're not marketing in that front and showcasing who you are, what is your mission? What are your values? What are your non-negotiables as a human being, as the brand, as the owner of the company that started this? What all that looks like, then you are not gonna be different from anybody else that does the exact same thing that you do. Sorry, I came out hot.

Caroline Pennington (05:04.013)
Oh, so good. And so I'm gonna pivot now from that. So, okay, you have a amazing event that you've done. I've spoke at, had the privilege of speaking to, you have had people come from all over the country to attend the event. You and I met at a live event. Okay, let me back up real quick. To you guys that are listening, Shelby and I met. We knew of each other online for a little while and then we were both selected. We had to apply and we were selected to be a part of the mastermind group.

Shelby (05:21.496)
Yeah.

Caroline Pennington (05:33.773)
a little over two and a half years ago. And this was a podcasting mastermind. And so it what we did was we both invested in ourselves about to get in the room. And this was specifically for a podcast growth mastermind, but to generalize this topic and just kind of make it about the event and getting in the room and all the things. Why is it important to get in the room?

Shelby (05:58.52)
I think when it comes to investing in your business, there's just so much that you can do with a course or with group coaching or whatever the case may be. And there's so much more that happens when you invest in your business and you get in a room. You connect with people on a different level. First off, I'm from South Louisiana. So we love the intimacy of hugging and getting to know someone. I feel like it's very unmatched than getting in a room. You get to understand that.

person, get to understand their struggles, you actually have like a deeper conversation than you would surface level than you would have on Instagram. Because you get to know them as a person. And I do believe this, I've invested a lot into my business. I've gotten into a lot of rooms. I've spent $25,000 to be in Jasmine Star's mastermind. I spent a couple thousand to be in Kasia's mastermind. I've literally flown across the country to be in all these rooms. And honestly, my very best friends that keep me from burning this shit to the ground.

keep me going, they believe in what I have coming versus like where I was or where I've been. They believe in me so much and I would have never ever ever ever ever met them unless I put myself in a room. And so like to anybody listening to this, if you are thinking of getting in a room or investing in a mastermind or going to an event, like do it, like do your research, understand who are the other people that are going to be in that room. If the host or the creator did their job, they're gonna have such, such unstoppable people that are gonna be

people that can help you move the needle into your business. So if you do your research, don't just go to an event because you love that person or that one speaker or whatever it is. Understand who's gonna be in the room. Understand what the timeline is. Understand are you able to network with people? Are these people that are gonna be like your colleagues? Are these people that are gonna be a client? Are these people that are gonna help you get to the next stage of your life and in your business? Because being an online entrepreneur is literally...

probably one of the most brutal things that I've ever done in my life because it's lonely, but it also, if you surround yourself with people that are in these rooms that have been there or done that or are going through what you're going through, it's gonna allow you to get to that next level faster. It's gonna allow you to get to that next level with people that help you think outside of the box that are at bird's eye view of your business. It's gonna help you just get to the next level and get known way faster than you would have because you're timid to spend a couple hundred dollars, a couple thousand dollars because you're scared of what if.

Shelby (08:17.752)
Like yes, walking in a room, it's not magical. It's not gonna do it itself for you. You have to go in there strategically with a plan. I wanna meet this many people. I want to help this many people. I need to make this type of connection. I wanna get podcast guests. I wanna get speaking gigs. I wanna have a client, whatever it is. You have to be intentional with every room that you walk into, but I promise you, if you invest in your business and you are intentional with it, you will meet some of the most amazing human beings that you would have never met if you would have stayed timid at home.

hiding behind the social media.

Caroline Pennington (08:50.701)
All right, let's overcome these objections that both you and I hear when it comes to investing in yourself, investing in the rooms. And for me, and I would like to hear your opinion about this too, it's I don't have the time, I don't have the money. And those are the biggest excuses I hear from everybody and that's fine. But when there's a will, there's a way. When you do find the time or you do find the money, a lot of times these events offer payment plans. And so do something like that. Like that's completely okay too if it's not.

in your budget to drop $1,000 to be in an event or $500 or 5,000, whatever that number looks like. So you have to prioritize your time and your money wisely. And this is the best investment that I've experienced myself as a podcast host, as a business owner, as a founder, all the things.

Shelby (09:36.558)
Yeah, I will have to agree with you. I will say this. Like if your objections are, don't have time, I don't have the budget. First off is if I don't have time, I'm going to tell you this straight up. I don't think anyone's busier than anybody else. Number one, I have two very small kids. I'm running a business. I'm about to buy another business. Our personal life is so hectic. We're getting to that age. So like if I can do this, you can do this. That's number one. Number two is

you make time for the things that are important to you. So if you're wanting to move the needle in your business, if you want to build a legacy, if you have such big ass dreams that you want to overcome and actually accomplish, then you have to make time for it. Like there's no such thing as more time. And the more you wait for that time to happen, it's your life is gonna pass you by and you're gonna be like, holy shit, like I literally never had time because I never made the time.

Caroline Pennington (10:14.977)
Thank you.

Shelby (10:26.562)
That's number one. Number two, investing in your business. It's scary as hell. Not everybody has the money to do it, but guess what? Did I have $25,000 to go invest in Jazz and Stars Mastermind? Nope. But like, did I almost like literally fold our company? Ooh, we got really close because I literally spent so much money at one time. But I'm going tell you this, my growth the following year doubled, if not tripled from that. One, was, my podcast was born. My event was born.

My name got known, I got linked with other speakers. I was able to get hired to speak. was my agency thrived. If I would have never made that investment in myself and in my business and trusted that I would do whatever it took to keep afloat or to trust that I would get in that room and be intentional and meet every connection that I could and do all the things that I could. If I didn't trust myself, then I would have never done it. You have to also trust yourself. Like I don't.

don't think God's gonna give you anything more than you can handle and I think he always provides if you're strategic and you're smart in the decisions that you make. I'm not telling you to go rogue. I'm not telling you to go invest in a whole bunch of shit. I'm telling you to invest in the things that are gonna move the needle for you when you do the research and it feels right. So the bullshit of I don't have time, I'm scared of what people are gonna think, I don't have the money to do it, I think that's all excuses because in reality is this, there are payment plans.

or there is a way, find a will, find a way. Like you literally can change your life if you get in a room and invest in yourself, watch your business unfold. I've seen it myself with my business. I've seen it with all of my closest friends. I've seen it with the people that have invested in my events. Y'all my events are not cheap, especially this year. It is not cheap, but I've set a standard of what I want in that room. And the people that are serious about investing in their business, the people that are serious are coming to the table, not the people of like who's who's just in the room. I'm not for that shit anymore.

This is let's move the needle. Let's go to marketing plan in 2026. And this is why I want and I price it the way that I did. So if you do your research and you understand that this is what you want in your life and in your business and all the things, then figure it out. That's all I'm going to tell you. Just figure it out.

Caroline Pennington (12:27.309)
Oh my gosh, so good. And I'm gonna add to this. Okay, so I'm reading a book right now and the author of it is the top podcast host of Entrepreneurs on Fire. Don't quote me on this, but I think his name is Josh Dumas. It's like the modern version of Napoleon Hill thinking grow rich, okay? Hang on with me. His podcast does over hundred million downloads, like crazy eight figures. Like this guy's been doing it for eight years. He's got over 3000 episodes. And he said this, if someone asks you,

Shelby (12:28.94)
want you to see them.

Caroline Pennington (12:54.007)
How are you doing or how's life today? And you say, my gosh, so busy. And you fall out with them with the question of exactly what goals have you accomplished in your past 30 days? He said, most people will tell you the BS, the kids, dog, work, whatever, fill in the blank. And then they look back 10 years later, same story, 20 years later, same story. He's like, the entrepreneurs that take things seriously and actually want to move the needle in their business can tell you at least three things that they've accomplished with their goals within the past 30 days. And that's the game changer.

Shelby (13:03.008)
Shelby (13:25.678)
Cause that's so true. That's so true. like, honestly, I like people that call the bullshit cause he just called the bullshit because like you could say I'm so busy, but do them, do them what? Do in life, do in the life that you prayed for, for so long that now you're living it. But yet you don't want to take that extra step to chase your dreams or build out a legacy or show your kids that you're a bad ass and like you're building something really cool and you're making time. Like, listen, I understand this. And if you are a mom that's listening to this, don't come at me for this because I actually don't really care if you do, but

This is the thing, I grew up as a child of entrepreneurs and look at me now, I'm an entrepreneur. I do remember late nights at my parents brick and mortar store, watching TV upstairs or sleeping there upstairs. They built like a loft upstairs while they worked really hard at 2 a.m. in the morning, whatever that looked like. I do that now with my kids. I plug in a TV in my office. If I have to work late, they watch it or they fall asleep in here and I move them to their beds. Listen, whenever my kids go on content shoots with me or they're with me this summer, they were with me a lot to work.

They love seeing it. They're like, I want to help mama. I can make 50 cents. Like, obviously I'm going to say like, yeah, I can make 50 cents. I've never heard someone be more excited about making 50 cents. But at the same time, it's like you're instilling in other people that you are committed to a goal that you set. So whether you are a mom or you're not, if you have a goal and a legacy you want to leave, but if you cannot set a goal and actually accomplishment, you accomplish it. Then you have zero commitment to anything.

Why would someone even want you to work for them or to do anything with them if you can't accomplish these small goals that you set for yourself? Because you don't have time and you have kids. If that were the case for every single person, then no one in this world would be successful. You have to understand what do you want the most and how are you going to accomplish that? You can still be present in your children's life. You can still build these amazing children and have this time with them and live off the land and do exactly what I do. But you can also be a workaholic and build a brand that's so amazing.

that God put on your heart from day one. So like with the excuses, cut it out of it because like that just sounds like something that's inserted into your vocabulary that someone told you a long time ago that gave you the, it's okay. Give yourself grace. Bullshit. I'm all about giving yourself grace, but I'm not about you not chasing your dreams because life, you get one of them. Are you actually going to do something about it? Are you going to sit back and in 10 years be like, wow, I really wish I had done

Caroline Pennington (15:45.313)
So freaking good. And for any of you listening, if you haven't, if you don't follow Shelby, go follow her on Instagram and then find the video that she did this summer where she went out to California and she spoke in of 600 women and she brought her mom, she brought her two little boys to watch her. I mean, it will seriously give you some serious chill bumps if not make you cry. So she just was showing her children what an example is to be a mom that does follow her dreams.

Shelby (16:05.4)
Yes.

Shelby (16:12.332)
Yeah, I literally remember that and it's still so chilling to me because I remember them. They like stood at the back of the room. They had their iPads because we were nervous that they were just going to be over it and like lose their shit. But like truly they were standing on the chair over the people watching me so they could see because they couldn't see in the back. And it was like the cutest thing because every time in the corner my eyes when I get nervous or I mess up or something, I would just like see them. And I'm like, this is why I do what I do. So like

This is what I tell every single person. Social media will eat you alive if you don't have a big why, if you don't have a purpose. And it's not just money because money's gonna run out or you're gonna get rich and then you're still gonna be unhappy or you're gonna keep setting these goals of money. Trust me, I've been there, done that. And if you don't have a bigger why of why you're showing up, why are you doing what you do, all these things, what the hell are you even doing? Go work at Costco. Because truly,

If you just want to clock in and clock out and get a paycheck, do that because entrepreneurship is not for the faint of heart. It's not for everyone. But if it is for you, you have to understand why you're doing it because the highs of highs happen, but the lows of lows also happen. And if I didn't have my boys and wanting to show them what a legacy is, and if I want them to dream big and want to be an astronaut one day or the president of the United States, I don't know, whatever they want to be. know, when you're little and you're like, I want to be a firefighter, whatever.

walking my dream and like doing it scared and showing up and like continuing to do it day after day after day with discipline. Like what am I showing them? What am I showing them how to be a hard worker if I don't do that? So I would say if you have something big on your heart, like find your why first and understand why you're doing it. And then start doing it then start really going hardcore on social media and advertising your business then invest in your business then getting rooms and connect and rub elbows.

That old saying of rubbing elbows, that's real. You gotta go rub elbows if you want the needles to move. Like the only reason Trent Shelton is on my stage twice for two years in a row is because I got the courage to ask him in 23 at Keisha's event in Denver, which I was so scared when my friends just pushed me and it was really just me on my podcast.

Shelby (18:29.066)
Now we are actual friends. was on his podcast. He's now coming back to Louisiana for a second year in a row. If I would have never invested myself in myself and put myself in that room to ask him that we wouldn't be here. I mean, I would, but like the capacity of where I am today is, is basically it has relied on what I've done in the past to get myself here because Caroline and I talked about this right before we got on this call is, know, people look at us and they're like, well it's easy for you now because you have X amount of followers or like

You do this every day. Yeah, cool. Did you see my cringy journey of like when I started on Instagram, I was dancing in front of a camera because I thought that's what you were supposed to do. Are you following me on TikTok right now? Because I really don't know what the hell I'm doing over there and I'm going rogue, but I'm like, they told me to do it. So here we go. And I'm scared of it. like, are you cannot compare your day one to someone else's year four or year 10. You have to just put the work in and I promise you it will pay off.

Caroline Pennington (19:28.557)
Oh, so good. I'm going to end on that note because, okay, if you're listening to this, you need to come to DGML. I'm speaking, Shelby will be there, Trent Shelton will be there. Like it's a room you're going to want to be in. It's November 6th in New Orleans, but Shelby, tell us more about DGML and how can our listeners find you?

Shelby (19:44.31)
Yes, connect with me on Instagram. I'm sure she'll put my name in the show notes, but it's it's Shelby Claymore, Claymore, like Clement CLE, me and T. Our event of the year, it's literally not just like a marketing inspo motivation. Yes, you're going to get that because of the speakers. And that's just who I am in my nature. But at the same time, like when I recreated DGML, this is year three, I wanted it to be different because now there's marketing events that pop up everywhere. And when I first

started this, I was like, you know what, when I was in corporate or year one Shelby wishes that this was a thing and wish it would have existed, but it didn't. So when I created this year, first off, we moved to the city. We moved to New Orleans so you can fly right on in, get off an airplane, 10 minutes and you'll be at the venue. Number two, it's more of like roll up your sleeves this year. It's like, I want you to come with understanding what you've spent in the past. What has worked, what hasn't worked, what were your KPIs, all of those things, because now we're going to speak high level marketing and business. We're not just going to have

marketing experts, personal branding experts, mindset coaching. We're gonna have selling, we're gonna have business, we're gonna have literally my personal attorney, my entire financial team is gonna be there. It's gonna be all of the things that's gonna help you evolve into a great business and continue to scale if that's what you want. So we have about 26 tickets left. I definitely capped it, made it a little bit more intimate this year. I'm so excited. But if you want a ticket or more information on this, it's an all women's event, entrepreneurs, send me a DM.

DGML and I will send you over the link and I can send any listener that you have Caroline a code to get it at a great price. So let me know if y'all want it. We'll put everything in the show notes and then also just DM me DGML and I'll send you the link.

Caroline Pennington (21:23.275)
Be there or be square.

Shelby (21:25.302)
Yes, what she said. Thanks, Caroline.

Caroline Pennington (21:27.735)
Thanks Shelby.