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

Hi Caroline, thanks for joining us today. Owning a business isn’t always glamorous and so most business owners we’ve connected with have shared that on tough days they sometimes wonder what it would have been like to have just had a regular job instead of all the responsibility of running a business. Have you ever felt that way?

All the time, especially when it comes to bookkeeping. Ha!

But really, I’m an oldest child and a rule follower. I never saw myself being self-employed because going to college and getting on a career path with an established company was all we were ever taught in school. Grow up, go to the career fair and get a job, rinse and repeat. Self employment was a big no-no. I’m glad I’ve had experience working in both situations, for agencies and for myself.

There’s something to be said about the security of a 401k, a guaranteed paycheck and the resources, team and perks that come with working “in house”.

There’s also something to be said about making as little or as much money as you want, choosing your own hours and having unlimited creative freedom.

I think the last time I thought about this was when I visited with a friend who took PTO. When you’re self-employed, it’s really hard to check out and step away from work. While I can work from wherever and whenever I want I can honestly say I haven’t completely unplugged and taken real time off (like, given clients a heads up this is what’s going on and I’ll be back in the office) in years. That’s one of my goals for 2024.

My advice: Make a list. You just have to lay it out, think about the balance and the sacrifices and then decide what’s best for you.

Caroline, 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?

I’ve always been a “horse girl”. Thankfully, it’s much cooler to be one nowadays then it was when I was growing up (thanks, Yellowstone!)

My love (ahem, obsession) with horses really introduced me to the Western industry early. When it came time to start thinking about college, I knew I wanted somewhere with a Western feel, and by chance, I toured Oklahoma State University, fell in love with the campus and headed to Stillwater in the fall of 2013. After some experimenting with the arts and graphic design, I got a generic email from the College of Agriculture talking about the Agricultural Communications degree option and all you could do with it — writing, graphic design, social media, photography…the list goes on. It was a gut punch and I switched my major that week.

Being a suburban kid in ag classes was a little intimidating at first, but I quickly learned that my experiences growing up in the suburbs gave me great marketing insight for reaching consumers with ag education. In other words, I could help better bridge the gap between producer and consumer for an industry I was quickly falling in love with. According to the American Farm Bureau, and the average American is at least three generations removed from the farm, so I was excited about all I was learning and how I could help bring some communications back to consumers in a conversational way.

The communications skills I learned in my time at Oklahoma State University opened so many doors, including to some impactful internships and my first job at an agency out of college. After a year or so, I wanted to get back to more livestock and equine marketing and found a great job with an equine marketing social media agency, who introduced me to real social media marketing. I really wanted to bring what I learned in this role to the western performance horse and livestock industries.

I’m most proud of myself for taking a chance and starting my own business in an industry I often feel like I have imposter syndrome in. I’m not sure if that feeling will ever 100% go away, but I think that my unique perspective gives me strengths and ideas that are truly original and all mine.

I hope followers and clients will be able to see me in my work, and know that with every project, caption, design or hashtag, know that it’s truly an honor to be able to share their individual stories digitally.

What’s been the best source of new clients for you?

Word of mouth. The Western industry is so tightly knit, and word goes a long way. I so appreciate my clients and friends who pass along my name and for every share and repost from friends and family.

We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?

While social media is usually a highlight reel, the average person can sniff out authenticity. If you’re not completely behind the story you’re selling on social — whether it’s on your personal account or a brand’s — people will realize that. When building an audience, it’s like making friends. There’s no quick way to do it authentically. It’ll take time, trial and error and a lot of elbow grease. Be patient!

My favorite way to build brands authentically is to really spend time and engage with similar and non-similar accounts. Take 30 minutes a day (doesn’t have to be all at once!) to scroll and comment (nothing cheesy or generic, remember, we want to be authentic!) and connect. That’s what social media is all about, being social, so don’t be afraid to put yourself out there, especially if you’re looking for growth!

x 

Contact Info:

• Website: www.carolinearendtcreative.com / www.carolinearendt.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/caroline.arendt/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/carolinearendtcreative
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carolinearendt/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/hashtagcaroline

Image Credits
The second photo is by Rosman Enterprises