Today we’d like to introduce you to Laura Kaiser.

Hi Laura, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.

After working in banking for over 20 years, I moved over to the non-profit sector and started handling their social media accounts. Many of the member companies and attendees would notice the increased engagement and updated content and ask how I could help them, so I started Engage Social Media in 2018 as a side project. My first real client was an huge international company, and the first year working with them allowed me to pay off my student loans. I gained real confidence with that client, and the j0urney from bare scratch to finished project encouraged me to continue.

While recovering from major back surgery in 2020 during COVID, I started making a dark chocolate peanut butter fudge and put up a photo on Facebook in September. A friend asked if I would be in an online community of other sellers, and I sold 35 boxes of fudge nationwide that October! I quickly sourced the packaging, deciding on my vibe and making a logo, stickers, figuring out mailing and other retail challenges, like a seller’s permit, etc.

As of early 2022, I am now working as the finance person at a specialty law firm of owners and staff that I love, working with 5 clients at Engage Social Media – all with different needs, but all teams I also love, while I am expanded Simply Impeccable Fudge to include a variety of fudges, sea salt caramels, turtles, peanut butter energy bites, marshmallows and more – all gluten-free!

The flexible-but-busy schedule allows me to prioritize my physical and mental health care, and be the most productive I can be for myself and my clients! It’s a very non-traditional arrangement, but it’s the happiest I’ve ever been. The only huge downside is sourcing my own health insurance.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?

It has most definitely NOT been a smooth road. I’ve lost and left jobs along the way, with a lot of blood, sweat and tears along the way. I tend to be a people-pleaser and put everyone else’s needs above my own.

The 2021 high school graduation of my son (and incredible independence) really forced me to look deeper inside for what I wanted and needed for the rest of my life – both professionally and personally.

Crafting this life of mine may look random from the outside, but it was curated with my own best intentions.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Engage Social Media?

At Engage Social Media, I help mostly small businesses help engage with the community – though social media, of course, but also events, photography, newsletters, networking, building connections across the ecosystems and opportunities to both cross-promote and elevate in the business community. The businesses are varied and allows me to really expand my own horizons with knowledge and ensuring I’m always promoting in each one’s “voice.” authentically and organically.

Organic engagement focused on hearing about businesses and services through social media tags, mentions, word-of-mouth, referrals – basically soft leads. Paid media is when a company may boost a post to ensure a wider audience sees it. Paid ads work in a similar manner by targeting the demographic audience on social media or placing ads in certain publications.

I can do paid media, but I really enjoy the challenges of building my client’s base with organic curated graphics and building connections manually. I also post my content organically for each client, focusing on tags and handles for each platform. I’m proud of the success I’ve seen for each of my clients in this manner. I’m also passionate about each of my clients. I love working on their materials!

So, before we go, how can our readers or others connect or collaborate with you? How can they support you?

for Engage Social Media – If you know of any small business that may need some help with telling their story through organic social media, I’d love to see if we’re a good fit. I always leave a little space in my schedule for new clients. While I’m not a perfect fit for everyone, I’m a great fit for many!

Simply Impeccable Fudge is always open to online collabs! We have done a few great ones in the past.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://simplyimpeccablefudge.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/msmoxiemadison/?hl=en
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/laura.m.kaiser/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lmk1975/
• Twitter: https://x.com/LauraInMadtown