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

ROCHELLE, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. So let’s jump to your mission – what’s the backstory behind how you developed the mission that drives your brand?

Rochelle Dickerson became a new mom in 2021 during the pandemic. After having a beautiful baby girl, she realized their was a lot of information that was unspoken about being a new mom. As a new mom, she was happy to spend time with her bundle of joy but felt like she couldn’t share her feelings without feeling judge. She didn’t know who she could talk to about her feelings of disappointment with parenting roles/expectations within her marriage or feelings of denial as it relates to enjoying breastfeeding. She felt so alone with her thoughts and ashamed that she was having these feelings at a time where society portrays being a new mom is suppose to be her happiest moment. This was the moment, where The Mommy Link Up was birth to normalize and acknowledge mom’s feelings.

ROCHELLE, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

The Mommy Link Up focuses on the EMOTIONAL aspect of motherhood. Its time to shine a light on mom’s feelings and start having honest conversations about the way we feel as a MOM. If you feel happy, sad, confused or joy we are here to let mom’s know that you are not alone.

As a brand, I’m taking the responsibility to normalize mom’s feelings. It’s imperative that we have safe spaces for mom’s to be vulnerable. So join us on this healthy emotional journey of motherhood.

I created the “In My Feelings” t-shirt which reflects the vision behind my brand. The purpose for the t-shirt is for mom’s to feel seen and have a sense of community that speaks the same language as them. I’m also working on some digital products that will assist mom’s in processing their feelings and learning to let go of negative feelings that will be release early next year. In the meantime, if you want to be apart of a community that acknowledges your feelings as a mom, please shop here: https://themommylinkup.co/

I’m very proud that I have created a safe space for mom’s to truly speak their truth about their journey on motherhood. I grew my instagram followers from 0 to 2500 followers. Once a month, I host live sessions on Instagram where we discussed boundaries, breastfeeding, fear, lose identity as a mom and many more to come in the future. During these lives, mom’s feel comfortable sharing their stories.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

I started my instagram page in January 2022 with zero followers. I started my identifying my niche and target audience. Then, I started to do reels on instagram where I posted relatable content related to motherhood. I also posted consistently on a weekly basis. I would focus my content on being relatable, informational and engaging. Also, I had to be vulnerable and share my truths about my parenting journey. I didn’t care that I had to build from zero followers my mission was more important to share with other moms therefore I would suggest you have a vision for your page and focus on that. There will be times where you won’t get any likes on your post but stay consistent, you will eventually get views and likes. Lastly, I would also use hashtags to grow my audience and expose my content to a broader audience.

We’d love to hear your thoughts about selling platforms like Amazon/Etsy vs selling on your own site.

I sell my t-shirts on shopify platform which is super easy to use and create your shop. Pros: easy to use, customer service support which is 24/7, multiple payment options for customers, allows you to sell different types of products for example, digital or retail, have a lot of built-in apps to choose from and being able to customize your website to your preference. Con: the cost to utilize their platform can be costly if you are a brand new business owner. I like shopify so I don’t have much negative things to say about it.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://themommylinkup.co/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_themommylinkup_/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100086796882276
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@themommylinkup/featured

Image Credits
Photographer: Shane Redman