We were lucky to catch up with Brittany Valera recently and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Brittany, thanks for joining 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?
Throughout the years as a multipotentialite, I have had multiple creative endeavors while attending school and gaining professional experience–most of which involved training others. There has always been a duality of life: do I pursue singing, pursue art, or pursue climbing the corporate ladder for learning and development? I answered myself with trying everything and seeing what sticks. It takes a lot of balance, pondering, and research, but it has lead to a lot of discovery. In summation, I have multiple small businesses: I am the managing owner of an original band, a communication company, and a makeup and hairstyle service.
After a couple of years of writing and performing with the original band started in 2016, we registered Jamina Band LLC through the Department of Corporations, created an EIN, purchasing a domain and website services through GoDaddy, copyrighted our songs, and released our debut album in 2020 through the Distrokid distributer. This was a big step after just having a Facebook and Instagram account and playing local shows. At the same time, I had been a self-taught makeup and hair artist for a few years and began working with more social media and freelance copywriting through my jobs and friends. These projects have been more about connecting in-person and building a portfolio, or communicating with clients as events get planned. I love them! However, working full-time has made it difficult to do more with them. But what if I made myself my own full-time career that created enough flexibility for me to balance my creative endeavors and raise a family?
Fast forward to 2022 after I had been writing some SEO blogs, social media content, and webpage content within and outside my full-time jobs, I broke into manuscript editing. It started by simply telling an author friend what that I have been freelancing in copywriting and copyediting and having an organic conversation about his upcoming series. I felt passionate about the ideas of his series and he felt he could trust me with its development and editing. Thus started what I felt could one day become my full-time gig. This aligned with my degree in Communication Studies and allowed flexible, remote work. I have decided that that would be the direction I pour a higher volume of consistent energy into. To build any brand, there must be consistency.
In January 2023, I took my previous knowledge of starting a small business and applied it to myself. Execution began! After pivoting on a company name when the original idea I had was already registered, I started Bee LeeV Creative LLC, my one-stop communication company, and registered my d.b.a. for Vivid Valera Beauty. I designed my logos and create graphics using Procreate for iOS and an Apple Pencil and/or Canva. I realized that I would not be able to get clients if I did not have somewhere to send them to learn more. I purchased my domain and set up my web services through GoDaddy again. I created a Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn profile for my new company. I wrote my own web and social media content, I am on UpWork and I printed business cards. All the while, I made more of a point to build my online makeup portfolio through Facebook and Instagram as my band finishes recording an album.
In August 2023, I graduated with my Master of Arts in Communication with Distinction after completing an organizational communication study and building a training and development module for middle managers. Then it hit me–I wanted to focus on scaling my communication company into a B2B brand that could become my main venture.
Presently, in 2024, I hopped right into building the extended brand once my full-time job’s contract expired. I toyed through some conversations to see if the main company and brand would make sense together, and differentiated my services on a new website and new social media pages that interact with the main brand. I gain a few clients per month through networking and am building more awareness of what I can offer not just creatives and individual professionals, but businesses. I am still in the beginning stages of generating leads and email automation.
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.
In 2011 I began doing makeup for friends and family for prom and other special events. A couple years after that, I had my first paid client who was the younger sister of a friend for her prom. Later, I had my second paid client who was the mother of the bride in my friend’s wedding. Bit by bit I started booking more and more weddings and eventually work on the bride and bridal party for both makeup and hair. I still offer weeknight and weekend special event makeup and hair services under Vivid Valera Beauty.
In 2016 I joined an original band as the lead singer, lyricist, and social media manager. Everything we did from logo design to networking was a group effort. We began playing shows due to my bandmate’s knowledge of the local industry. We are available to book shows and festivals that include hard rock and metal music. More of the administrative operations and networking is my responsibility, and I eventually realized that what I did for the band as the new managing owner, I can do for a more scalable business of my own.
After 13 years of professional experience and completing a graduate degree, I realize most of my roles and freelance work has consisted of training, event planning, creating and teaching workshops, management, consulting, and social media marketing. The last year and a half, I have been taking a next step: combining my knowledge and skills into a communications business.
At Bee LeeV Creative LLC I offer wraparound marketing and communication services. I help transform ideas into reality with expert content writing, editing, and branding. I am proud of establishing creative voice for authors and creatives, and establishing a professional image for people in any industry that resonates in today’s competitive landscape.
I offer all stages of editing: assessment, developmental edits, line-by-line edits, and proofreading for everything from web content, blogs, children’s books, through adult fantasy series. I also offer resume and cover letter editing. Moving away from written word, I offer coaching and workshops for professionalism, interviews, and leadership. After offering those services for six years in workforce education, and managing a team to do so in higher education, I am uniquely qualified to help people and their teams.
This particular fact led me to expand a B2B brand of Bee LeeV Creative LLC, Bee LeeV Solutions, to offer transformational organizational communication assessments and trainings. With a focus on empowering leaders and fostering collaboration, I provide tailored assessments, custom training programs, and innovative solutions that address the unique challenges faced by businesses today. Whether it is the written or spoken word, effective communication is a must to keep professionals and businesses thriving.
In my career, I have witnessed middle managers getting placed and promoted without training, and high employee turnover due to unclear expectations and low accountability. Even the most well-meaning leaders lacked resourcing and whole departments operated in survival mode without S.M.A.R.T. goals. I know I can be the catalyst to conquering team dynamics by consulting executive leadership on how to resource their middle managers, how middle managers can lead their teams, and how low management and workers can respectfully voice their concerns to keep a constant flow of improvement. Connectivity is key, and I want to unlock the unique solutions each company can employ to keep their employees.
My goal is to scale and help improve lives—whether you’re aiming to publish your manuscript, advance your career, enhance your professional image, or improve team dynamics.
We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?
From helping clients, employers, and my own businesses with social media presence, I have learned a few things.
First, consistently posting pushes your page and increases visibility. Using a post scheduler and taking one day to set up your month can really help. Set it, forget it, and then follow up on engagement. Look into your analytics to see what has been working, and then adjust your plan for the next month.
Second, interaction pushes your posts which can lead to even more engagement as comments and sharing increase. Simply posting is not enough. You need to have a caption or content that encourages viewers to become engagers through saving and sharing. This means your posts should not just be selling, but adding instant value to followers. Maybe it’s a quote or template they can share. Perhaps it’s infographics they can save to view later. These types of interactions push more than liking and commenting, but interacting and answering comments helps, too.
Third, branding is important. Choose a color palette that fits your logo or brand, pick a voice. Maintain a consistent color scheme, style, and voice so you are attracting clients that would engage with that type of content.
Fourth, if you are starting out, “free is for me”. Free schedulers using your Meta business account, or using what you already pay for with your web service would help you most. Also, getting a handle on the trends for each tool you are using to gain engagement without running ads can save you money. In addition to these, putting some money into the marketing would work, but there are steps you can take before doing so.
What’s been the best source of new clients for you?
I cannot stress enough the usefulness of networking and being kind to others. Building relationships organically and just doing your job well is a great foundation. Most people who know me and know the quality of work I provide are willing to say my name in a room and offer referrals. Your reputation precedes you.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://beeleevcreative.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beeleevcreative
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/103573602627926
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/beeleevcreative/
- Other: Bee LeeV Solutions, a brand of Bee LeeV Creative LLC: https://beeleevsolutions.com/Vivid Valera Beauty: https://www.facebook.com/vividvalerabeauty
Jamina: https://jamina.rocks/
