Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Benjamin Lewis . We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Benjamin , appreciate you joining us today. Let’s talk about social media – do you manage your own or do you have someone or a company that handles it for you? Why did you make the choice you did?

I manage my own social media. When I started my business I made it a mission to learn how to take my idea, turn it into a business, and grow it into an international brand via social media. I invested in books and took time studying the different algorithms of the platforms I would utilize in bringing my product to the masses. If you get frustrated quickly when you don’t see results I recommend hiring a company to handle your social media. If you have the patience, you’re willing to experiment, and put the time in it can be a valuable skill to learn to do it yourself. No matter if you pay someone or do it yourself I recommend learning the ins and outs and the impact social media can have on your business.

Benjamin , before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I have been an entrepreneur my entire life starting my first landscaping business when I was only 10 years old. I’ve always had a desire to work while in middle school I started cutting my own hair and by high school I was cutting some of the other young men I grew up with for extra spending money.

In 2005 I started BLew Entertainment which was a promotion company specializing in night club events, music marketing, event coordination, radio and television production. All of these experiences came together in a perfect storm where my passion for health and wellness met my passion as an entrepreneur and 216musCLE was birthed.

Since 2017 216musCLE Brand Apparel LTD. and 216musCLE Training & Fitness have grown into brands. We have carved out a space in health and wellness world where we offer personal training and group fitness classes in personal or via zoom all around the world. Our understanding of social media and marketing allowed the company to thrive during the pandemic when travel was limited and gyms were shutdown. With all of my years working in corporate America in business management, marketing, and sales I was able to combine these skills with my lessons as an entrepreneur and in 2020 launch Its Just Words Media.

Through Its Just Words Media we have an eight week Brand Builder Boot Camp to assist other companies “Grow Your Business to a Brand with just The Phone in Your Hand”. As I have continued to build my personal brand and companies I have been honored to be featured on The Today Show, in Who’s Who in Black Cleveland, be the key note speaker at The Xtreme Hip Hop Stepchella Instructors conference, and host a weekly segment on the radio one affiliate 93.1FM WZAK entitled ‘Work Out Wednesday’. Whether you follow 216muscle on all social media platforms, itsjustwordsmedia or visit 216muscle.com we are here to assist with your health and wellness journey or develop your business into a brand.

Can you talk to us about how your funded your business?

In March of 2017 while stopped at a red light my vehicle was rear ended. From this accident I received a settlement check and I used those funds to launch 216muscle Brand Apparel LTD. The success of the clothing line lead to me launching 216muscle Training & Fitness in 2018.

Any fun sales or marketing stories?

In February of 2018 the clothing line was paying for itself and turning a small profit, but it wasn’t growing fast enough based on the goals I had set. With just enough money in my pocket for gas and utilizing hotel points to pay for a room I went to the Arnold Classic the largest fitness expo in the world. A friend of mine reached out and said he needed a room so I sold him the rest of my hotel points for his room and this was the money I used to eat with over the weekend. Wearing my apparel and with samples and a few items to sell in my book bag I walked around at this expo introducing myself and networking with some of the biggest names in the industry. I joined every weight lifting competition I could find that weekend documented it all on social media and by the end of the weekend grew my social media accounts by over 7,000 followers.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.216muscle.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/216muscle?igsh=MXBmMDQ2dDNkZWdkOQ%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
• Facebook: 216muscle
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@216muscle?si=SEwZmS0aAXlY7waH