Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Rachel Samson . We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Rachel , looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?
The idea of sharing my fun foodie finds dates way back for me, even before the Instagram era. I never thought it would be a job, a career really, and I regret not pursuing it earlier. In 2017 when my friends finally convinced me I needed a separate dedicated space for my food photography, I came up with @stickaforkinme. Even then it was just a lighthearted hobby. However it came at a time when I was transitioning from 13 years of construction management and allowed me to really make it a passion project. The idea of a full-time creator wasn’t as common at that point, and it certainly wasn’t paying my bills at the beginning. It truly took a pandemic to really grow my business and learn where and how to monetize. It has felt right from the beginning. This type of creativity really challenges me and it’s a delicate balance between what I want to show people, what they want to see, what Instagram favors, and there are constantly moving parts. But in the end building a business for myself has really been something I have enjoyed, and truly an endless learning opportunity. I pride myself on doing what I do well and doing my best to evolve with the times. I keep perspective knowing I am behind in certain situations, be it my equipment or knowing I inevitably need to hire in order to further my business. But there is no cut and dry in this industry, no clear answer, no place to get said answers – I think the key is just trying your best!
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers?
As I mentioned I pride myself on doing a good job with whatever it is I’m taking on, and I love that my account provides authentic real time value for people whether they are eating at home, choosing a local restaurant or taking a trip. @stickaforkinme is fun and lighthearted but organized and clear. For example I have a hashtag specifically for my food in New York so if someone mentions that’s where they’re heading, I always have great recommendations handy. I often include video content as I feel like it’s a real in your face way to level up photography and make people feel like they are enjoying the food there with me.
Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?
I remember so clearly the first time I posted a photo of myself in feed. I was so nervous, I wasn’t sure how I would be judged, received, if I would immediately get unfollows… but in the end this is my recommendation to everybody. This is how you set yourself apart. Post yourself! Especially if you are running a food account, anyone can photograph food, people want to get to know the person behind the food to really know that they trust that recommendation. If I’ve got several accounts showing me great food and I’m feeling overwhelmed, I’m going to stop interacting with the one who is a mystery. Give me the personality, show me who I’m learning from and interacting with! It also makes a difference to brands, they want to see who they are working with and know that you are a great representation for their brand and products.
Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?
To be quite honest it’s really easy to give too much of myself away. I’ve had to not only learn boundaries respecting my own time working, editing, but even something as simple as responding to DM’s. I love my followers so much and literally exist for them, but I sometimes need to force myself to stop looking at that DM notification and focus on what needs to get done. Although I’m so grateful to have offers from restaurants and brands to come in and sample different foods or products, I do have to often remind myself that I am a business and unfortunately food does not pay my rent. So I choose some small businesses to support, quite a few actually, looking for local owners who support me and where I can produce great content, but find myself having to say no to more and more work if it’s not paid. I can spend a whole day going to a restaurant, shooting, coming home and editing for four or five hours and realistically it’s not sustainable long term without compensation. This is definitely another one of those “fine line” situations, but in the end I’m a business owner and for me this is my full-time job. Some people use social media as their side hustle or hobby and I have a different opinion on these situations! I have literally spent five years straight, seven days a week working to build my following. I have had to train myself to really see this as my job! I’m looking forward to seeing where this takes me in the future but I love being part of this ever evolving social media industry!
Contact Info:
- Instagram: Www.Instagram.com/stickaforkinme
- Facebook: /etwelltrvloften
- Twitter: @tweetstickafork
- Yelp: Rachel S
- Other: TikTok: @stickaforkinme