We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Abriana Johnson a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Abriana, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Coming up with the idea is so exciting, but then comes the hard part – executing. Too often the media ignores the execution part and goes from idea to success, skipping over the nitty, gritty details of executing in the early days. We think that’s a disservice both to the entrepreneurs who built something amazing as well as the public who isn’t getting a realistic picture of what it takes to succeed. So, we’d really appreciate if you could open up about your execution story – how did you go from idea to execution?

One of my favorite things is helping people go from simply ‘knowing’ to actively ‘doing’. I started my podcast in 2019 as a passion project, well ahead of the great civil unrest of Summer 2020. During the summer of 2020, the horse industry (especially equestrian brands) realized their antiquated ways of monochrome marketing were not going to suffice going forward. I was asked to speak on many panels, write for equestrian media sites and consult on DEI efforts across the industry. This activity allowed me to really get in tune with my podcast audience (then called Young Black Equestrians), but I started to get a bit of feedback… “I love what you do, but I’m not young.” “I’m not sure if I fit into your demographic, but I am a Black horseman/horsewoman.” My response to this sentiment was always “Young is a feeling! You are young at heart if you are riding horses…”, but this started to weigh on me.

I wanted to create an inclusive environment within this identity. I wanted a safe space for all to come and connect and learn from each other. I wanted to be a resource, and I couldn’t do that if most of my active audience members had one foot out the door. After my 100th episode, I took a long break to reflect. It didn’t feel good to me to continue with the YBE branding. It didn’t align with my vision for the work and I needed to rebrand. In comes “Black In The Saddle”.

Now that you have some context, here is how you go from idea to execution:
1. Have a general idea of your vision & WRITE – Everyone says “get clear on your vision” but you can get stuck in a vicious cycle of analysis paralysis if you search for clarity for too long. Once you have a general idea of what you want to do and what you need to get there, WRITE IT DOWN. Get out of your head and start writing to flesh out additional details. If you absolutely abhor writing, record yourself thinking out loud and transcribe/take notes afterward.
2. Accept feedback – Find someone who will gas up your idea and not shut you down. If you don’t have that person in your personal life, search for them in an online community. There are many places to find and build community out there. You should be talking to the people you want to serve as well (your potential audience or customers). See what they like and don’t like and incorporate their feedback into your plans.
3. Listen to your intuition – The new name for my podcast came to me in the shower several weeks before my 100th episode. I am an author, so alliteration and acronyms are like candy to me. Black In The Saddle’s acronym is BITS and some riders use bits when riding horses, so it felt fun and the marketing/messaging/merch potential was endless. When you have downloads like this, hold on to them. You never know when you may need them.
4. Experiment and reinvent – If I wasn’t willing to adjust my brand, I wouldn’t be writing this today. I would’ve quit. The misalignment led me to be bitter about the work and I’m sure that energy was felt by my audience. Life, love, and business are all an experiment, so feel free to try new things, reinvent your ideas and collaborate to think outside the box. It is truly worth it.
5. Delegate what you don’t like – Not only did I rebrand. I also hired an assistant. I knew I wanted to approach this season with a clear mind and will positive intentions. It’s important to me to be able to bounce ideas off of someone who is as passionate as me, so hiring my assistant has been a game changer for possibilities with this brand. She does the day-to-day tasks that I don’t enjoy and we work very well together.

Abriana, 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?

Abriana Johnson is a brand strategist, author, and coach with a passion for horses and an eye for design. She uses her love of technology and strategy to help horse industry professionals build impactful brands and digital experiences that build community, connect content to culture, and establish their digital hoofprint. Her horse obsession started at 7 years old and continued well into undergrad as she attended NC State University completing a Bachelor in Animal Science with an equine focus. Being a big picture thinker and wanting to make an impact on the world through holistic animal-inspired education, Abriana completed a Master in Health Sciences, concentrating on One Health, through the University of Florida.

A fervent student of life and experience, Abriana’s personal and professional experiences led her to carve her own path in entrepreneurship. Abriana is the creator of Cowgirl Camryn, an edutainment brand equipping kids with the tools and resources needed to improve their emotional and behavioral development, exposing them to equine experiential learning, and encouraging them to see the world through a more holistic (One Health) lens. When she is not working on Cowgirl Camryn, she is coaching, consulting, and presenting to small businesses and equine entrepreneurs on brand development and design via her business, Black Unicorn Creative.

In her downtime, you can find Abriana sharing her latest industry insights and musings on her podcasts (Black In The Saddle and The Digital Hoofprint podcasts) and on social media. Her hobbies include gardening, creating art, and studying viticulture and the wine industry.

Can you open up about how you funded your business?

Initially, I started with free tools that would allow me to get by. I was interviewing people on the floor of my closet, dealing with the 40-minute Zoom time limit and editing on free software. I put up my own capital from my job to afford the initial website hosting and created merchandise for my growing audience. After the merchandise dropped, the online sales paid for other operating costs. My employees at my previous job gifted me a podcasting mic for Christmas (shout out to them for supporting my dreams!) and that was a huge step forward in quality.

You will hear entrepreneurs say to build your business using OPM (other people’s money) and that usually means investors or pre-sales. Once I started taking podcasting and forming this community seriously, I started applying for grants to support the growth. With such in-depth questions and requirements, submitting grants has allowed me to get clear on my intentions, direction, and strategy for Black In The Saddle. Not only did I apply for grants, I picked up a contract position within my industry that supports my personal and business expenses. I get to work with potential clients and grow my business at the same time.

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

My favorite quote is “Be relentless in the pursuit of what sets your soul on fire.” When I speak, write, work or show up in this space, my passion and intention are clear. I aim to acknowledge and celebrate the impact and influence of Black people on the horse industry through podcasting, speaking, and contributing to industry-wide conversations. This level of consistency and positioning has allowed me to be a catalyst for connecting people to other people, businesses, and community programs.

I am a creator and someone who lives by the motto “everything is figureoutable”. Through the work I have done on my own brands, I have been able to secure additional clients because they are looking for very similar results.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: www.instagram.com/blkinthesaddle
• Email: [email protected]
• Twitter: www.instagram.com/theabrianaj
• Youtube: www.blkinthesaddle.com/youtube