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

Hi Chelsea , thanks for joining us today. Earning a full time living from one’s creative career can be incredibly difficult. Have you been able to do so and if so, can you share some of the key parts of your journey and any important advice or lessons that might help creatives who haven’t been able to yet?

I have not been able to earn a full-time living off of my creative work. Something that I wish I would have focused on a lot earlier is learning the game behind social media. CDAAP’s biggest platform is Instagram, and I was able to grow it to where it is now due to studying how others grew their social media, as well as how the algorithm works and changes each year. Doing research about this earlier, and as thorough, could have probably pushed my content further, however I’m very appreciative of where I am and who supports the business. Some of the things that I consider major milestones for CDAAP are collaborations. I have been able to work with companies like Goode Entertainment as a sip & paint instructor, Skinnovations LLC as a product photographer and CISE Store designing a bag for their showcase. Being more social, participating in intentional networking, and just saying yes to things out of your comfort zone can really benefit business overall. Collaboration challenges you in ways that helps you improve running a business, expanding your own vision, and just entering spaces you never thought you could necessarily fit in. All this to say, putting more effort into social media has gotten more eyes on CDAAP, which led to the collaborations that have been so fulfilling and eye opening to potential ventures that I could take to eventually turn my creative services, into full time funds.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

My name is Chelsea Beckton, and I currently work full time as a Marketing Specialist, and I would like to think I am also a full time creative. I graduated from Florida State University with a degree in Information, Communication, and Technology (ICT) in 2019.

Chelsea’s Digital Art and Photography (CDAAP) is a company that specializes in all things digital and visually creative. I soft launched this business in 2014 when the amount of requests for art and photography services started to increase. It was towards the latter end of my high school career and my parents encouraged the idea of starting a business while you’re young. My creative ability really began when I was in preschool and one of the teachers convinced my mother that I truly have a natural artistic ability, and that I should be in art school. My art school journey began in middle school where I majored in visual arts, and then in high school I majored in digital media. Merge those skillsets together, and you get Chelsea‘s Digital Art and Photography. CDAAP has created things such as custom bags and shoes, grad photos, product photography, single covers, and more.

However after I graduated college, I was working part time, traveling, and getting inspired to create more art like I used to. I suddenly didn’t want to use canvases anymore, and thought, “How can I make art that you show off outside of the house?” So why not customize some of these plain purses that I see. I went to DD’s Discounts, bought some affordable purses, and got to work. From there, the custom era bloomed, and really took off bringing CDAAP a whole new audience. From there I have continued to expand, and as of late, been delving more into interior decorating with CDAAPxInterior.

As a company, CDAAP is most proud of its versatility as there is not much that we will say “no” to being able to provide. What sets us apart is the undeniable gratitude that is given to our customers, and the love and ingenuity that goes into each and every product or service provided. Sometimes you have a vision but need help executing it. Everyone and their ideas are welcome.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

This may sound a little cheesy but the most rewarding aspect of being a creative is the fact that the idea of what success could look like isn’t quite definitive. It’s so abstract. I don’t have to reach a certain amount of sales, make something in a very particular structure, or hit certain numbers by a specific date. You do just what’s in the title, you be creative. One month I could be focused heavily on customizing shoes, the next month I could be creating DIY packages, and the next I could be designing a living space. Then August, I may choose to take a break. There’s no “oh, you have to design three living rooms by the end of the month”, or “you need to paint five pairs of shoes by this date.” Your goals are free flowing.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

My original audience consisted of friends showing support, and then gradually shifted to strangers that were showing support. CDAAP originally started only advertising photography. I used to take my camera everywhere and I began posting photos of family, friends, and nature that I casually took. Then I expanded my portfolio by posting the editorial shots that I had taken for school purposes, and started doing free editorial shoots outside of school as well. There were many friends that had concepts in mind, or just simply wanted to model. With this, I was able to give them the images they wanted, and have the content I needed to keep up a social media page. This alone allowed for the people that I worked with to share the content, and others started to gain interest in what I was doing. My page really grew in college through collaboration! I joined DWF Magazine at Florida State allowing me to network, expand my portfolio and gain a bigger audience. Again, took my camera everywhere and would take images of organizations and strangers that I would meet and greet, and tag them to draw them to see my other work, opening the door to even more collaborations for fair prices. After college, I started to play the social media game with the algorithms. Posting photos with niche hashtags, posting videos to draw attention, giveaways, and eventually when reels came about, using that to my advantage. How could I forget a main ingredient; good customer service. People are likely to refer others to you, if you just try your best to accurately bring their vision to life, along with being as kind as possible.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.cdaapxchelsea.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cdaap/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cdaap
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/cdaapcustoms/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbQFO1XdSOSCghxR6ZBHMyQ

Image Credits
CDAAP or Chelsea Beckton