1. What do you think makes your company stand out? Can you share a story?

What makes Babes Who Create, Inc. unique in the world of digital marketing is our focus on COMMUNITY above all else. We have seen firsthand the power of influencer and experiential marketing in modern day business building, but the real magic happens when content creators form authentic and long-lasting relationships with businesses that need their services.

These relationships are always strongest at the community level, which is why our platform of 700+ content creators around the nation are organized into regional groups that regularly meet (virtually, for now) to build bonds, share tips and resources, and collaborate on marketing campaigns that we initiate for them. So not only are we building communities of women that support each other, we are connecting them to businesses within their community that need their support and services. Even national brands that we work with appreciate our ability to access their target audience through customized campaigns tailored to local tastes and preferences.

2. What makes your partnership great, and how do you work together to make sure your company is super successful? What does collaboration look like for you?

Our partnership is wonderfully unique because we (Shelby and Amanda, Co-Owners) are different in ways that perfectly complement each other. If partners are too much alike, what’s the point of being partners? Each should bring something unique to the table otherwise it’s redundant. Equally important is the ability to maintain honest and respectful communications so that our inherent differences do not bring conflict, but rather cohesion and compromise, which we manage to do very well.  

We playfully call each “yin yang twins” for this reason. Our strong working relationship has led to tremendous success for the company because the best ideas and strategies are born from diversity of thought, just as diamonds are created under pressure.  Our unique perspectives are reflected throughout our business model, communities, and communication with the public, which is one of the reasons we believe that our platform has grown so quickly and become so diverse.

3. What do you envision the Diversity & Inclusion Committee doing for the Babes Who Create Community?

We always knew we had an open and inclusive community model because we are so familiar with every aspect of it, but we understand that not everyone has the benefit of this “omniscient”  perspective. And after having some open and honest discussions with our members and brand partners, we came to realize that sometimes this diversity isn’t effectively conveyed through words and images that come out of our many channels. We wanted these open conversations to continue so that we can learn from them and thus improve our communications to more accurately reflect our values and mission. The purpose of our Diversity & Inclusion Committee to help keep us on course and ensure that every woman, regardless of her age, race, sexual orientation, ethnicity, or condition that may set her apart, feels REPRESENTED and HEARD. The committee will consist of members from our platform who represent these unique voices, and they will help us amplify them through new events, campaigns, and trainings.

4. I know you plan to take your business in a bit more of a virtual direction. What will that look like, and what changes can we expect?

The safety of our members and brand partners is paramount to us, and so in light of the ongoing pandemic and the uncertainty as to when we will be able to resume in-person meetups and events, we have decided to “go virtual” through at least the end of 2020. This means that all of the BWC benefits our members have come to know and love will be made available to them through our brand new web portal, which we officially launched at the end of July. Members now have a digital home base that includes regional discussion groups, chat and video capabilities, online polls, resource library, member incentives, event and collaboration sign-ups, and more. Our three monthly meetups will all take place digitally and will be hosted by our Regional Directors, who we are so proud of for adapting to these changing times with us while still staying dedicated to their leadership roles.

5. What benefits and virtual services do you offer clients?

Our benefits and services are two-fold; one on hand, our primary clients are our creator babe platform members, to whom we provide our online portal full of resources, a minimum of 3 opportunities each month to connect with each and create content for brand partners, access to company-sponsored brand collaborations, online engagement support, and regular events and trainings to help them network and build their skill sets. On the other hand, our clients also include our brand partners to whom we provide access to our content creator platform, custom-matching of content creators that fit their brand, custom marketing campaigns, event sponsorships, product/service testing, and other marketing/advertising opportunities within their regional markets. The majority, if not all, of these services are now offered in a virtual format or will be in the very near future, for as long as the need remains.

6. What advice would you give to other female leaders to help their team to thrive?

The best advice we share with other female leaders is that leadership is not about “being in charge” but rather, taking CARE of those in your charge. That’s how we view our leadership roles at Babes Who Create. We have a responsibility to our clients and our team members to serve them well, and we take this role very seriously. True leaders live in a cycle of continuous improvement, staying focused on VALUE, and making sure they are good stewards of other people’s time and resources.

7. How has being an entrepreneur affected your family life?

Entrepreneurship can definitely be difficult to balance with family life, as it is a very demanding role that does not follow traditional hours or have much structure. Websites crash late at night, urgent emails and messages roll in 24/7, public events and meetups need to be scheduled for weekends and evenings…those types of issues can all interfere with spending quality time with family. As the majority of the BWC leadership team are mothers, there have been countless times when we’ve had our conference calls or video trainings interrupted by kids who want our attention. And many times we’ve had to bring our kids to the office, meetings, and events just so that we can spend some extra time with them (or because we have no one available to watch them!). But it’s also a blessing to have that kind of authority where we can make these decisions for ourselves, as well as the flexibility to set our own schedule in a way that works best for our family life.

8. What are your plans for 2021 and beyond? Anything else cool in the works?

We are so excited to revitalize our EVENTS platform in 2021! Online events are fun, but nothing beats the energy and dynamics of getting together IN PERSON to network, create amazing content, connect with local vendors and business owners, and celebrate life. We announced a brand new flagship event at the beginning of 2020 – BABETOPIA, an experiential wonderland – but we have postponed it until 2021 when we can bring our creative visions to life in a way that would not be as effective if done online. In the interest of everyone’s health and safety, we will keep all operations online through the end of 2020, but we know that our members and partners are anxious to get back to in-person events, collaborations, and meetups, so we look forward to bringing them all of this and more in 2021!

9. Why is it so important right now to support women, LGBTQ people, and other creative minorities, and how can we do that?

It’s more important than ever to support our fellow creatives, particularly women, racial and ethnic minorities, and LGBTQ people because they have been oppressed and underrepresented for far too long. We like to think of ourselves as a progressive society and yet we still have battle systemic racism, sexism, and lifestyle shaming on a regular basis. It has gotten to the point that if you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem. BWC is dedicated to being a part of the solution, which is why we first created our Diversity & Inclusion Committee to help advise us. But talking about solutions is not enough, there needs to be actions as well. It’s important to find businesses and brands that are minority-owned, or that have socially progressive values, and throw our support behind them. It’s important to amplify the voices or underrepresented groups by giving them a broader platform upon which to share their messages and personal experiences. It’s important to educate ourselves and seek out factual information on how and why certain groups have been oppressed, and then work to dismantle any system that continues to support that kind of oppression.

10. Is there anything else you’d like to add?

Please visit our website, www.babeswhocreate.com, to learn more about our company and/or join one of our creator communities across the nation!

For media inquiries please email Raquel Figlo Public Relations at raquel@raquelfiglo.com