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

Arica, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today. Folks often look at a successful business and imagine it was an overnight success, but from what we’ve seen this is often far from the truth. We’d love to hear your scaling up story – walk us through how you grew over time – what were some of the big things you had to do to grow and what was that scaling up journey like?

When I started my first business, I was a highschool sophomore and micro influencer promoting my cosmetic company through Instagram and the hallways of my school. Now at 20 years old and a full time college student, I have a selfie museum, You Love Selfies, located in Crabtree Valley Mall in Raleigh, NC. Five years later since the start of my entrepreneuurship journey, I have now been able to merge all my businesses into one, cultivating a large following for them all. I was able to continue to grow my business and venture out by consistency. I feel like many people aren’t aware of how just by practicing consistently how far they could grow. Some of the strategies I used was constantly showing my products online, posting constant amounts of contents, and just getting the word out about my business.

I have had many obstacles such as slow days, not making any sales, or just having content that flops- but the challenge is whether you are going to give up or not. Thankfully, I have not given up. The key to become a successful business owner and influencer is learning to market yourself in numerous ways. Of course you will make mistakes or have struggle days, but i view as the risk of taking the entrepreneurship journey. Many people aren’t very such if they should take that risk or not but you just have to strongly believe that you will be successful.

I speak very highly on manifestation and praying. I strongly believe that my business and platforms is where it is today due to the fact that I believe in myself and the fact that if I stay consistent, I will see results. If you stay consistent, you will see results as well. It all comes down to your mindset and how much you want to be successful.

Arica, 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?

My name is Arica Damaya, You Love Arica on social media, and I am a business owner, realtor, author, and influencer. I have a cosmetic line and I am the owner of You Love Selfies Museum in Crabtree Mall located in Raleigh, North Carolina. I am also the author of “Bag Talk: 21 Ways to Secure The Bag”. I started my business from seeing the growth of social media platforms and how many online businesses were successful and driven just through social media. What sets my business apart from others is that we are constantly on top of what is trending and “in the loop” with the newest trends, looks, ideas, and etc. What I am the most proud of is how You Love Selfies Museum has became a place for other influencers to grow their platforms and make content, which is the exact reason why I decided to open the museum in the first place.

How did you build your audience on social media?

Before opening You Love Selfies Museum, I was able to cultivate a following on TikTok just being myself and show my personality. Once that audience began to grow even larger, I decided to post about my business and that is how I generated more attention to my business and what we did.

What’s been the most effective strategy for growing your clientele?

The most effective strategy that I have used for growing my clientele is just by being consistent with staying active on social media platforms. I feel like it is important to update those on the new things your business is offering because it keeps people interested in your business. So I would say that the most effective strategy is really consistently promoting yourself.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.youloveselfies.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/youloveselfiesmuseum
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/arica-scott-332611174/
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/channel/UCePc4ryEssywgdnjTmxYJIQ
• Other: www.soglossy.me

Image Credits
@Youloveselfiesmuseum