We recently connected with Jenieka Dixon-Spencer and have shared our conversation below.

Jenieka, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Alright, so you had your idea and then what happened? Can you walk us through the story of how you went from just an idea to executing on the idea

I always knew I was destined for more than the traditional 9 to 5. Even when I was graduating high school and planning for post secondary I was so torn on what I wanted to do next. I planned on applying to a business management program and my Mom immediately told me “Jen, don’t do it! You’re not going to enjoy office work or sitting at a cubicle for hours.” and she was so right! I was always inclined to creative hobbies, whether it be musical theatre in middle school, dance classes throughout university or in-person anchor reporting after I graduated.

About 3 years ago, I was simply posting on socials and tagging my favourite brands because that’s what the social media gurus were advising to do. I didn’t really have a defined strategy or a specific goal, I just wanted to grow a following and continue to enjoy the content I was posting. One day by fluke, a brand that I had been a long time customer noticed my content and offer me not only free product but also payment for my content equivalent to a few weeks pay. In that moment, I realized that my content and a career in Influencer Marketing could be very lucrative!

As I grew my brand and started to strategize more, I took my following on the journey with me (how I brainstorm, how I create content, how I outreach to brands and more)! This then transitioned into me doing consulting and helping others with their personal brand. Finally, within the last 6 months The Marka Agency (@themarkagency) was born. A full service Influencer Marketing and Branding agency based in my hometown Toronto, Canada.

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 Jenieka S. Dixon. I am a Digital Creator and Influencer Marketing Specialist. I got my start in the Influencer Marketing Industry about 3 years ago after gaining the attention of some of my favorite brands. As I’ve gone along my journey, I’ve been sure to put a focus on never gatekeeping and sharing all my tips and tricks with my following. My audience has been on this ride with me from day one and we are building together.

This has lead my following to becoming my clients and I’ve been able to help them overcome some of the struggles of being a creator: personal brand identity, consistency, pitching and so much more!

While creating for my own brand and coaching others, I have also noticed the disparity of black and brown people in Influencer Marketing like many other industries. There are definitely plenty of opportunities and instances of BIPOC in the industry excelling but there are still instance of pay gaps and lack of representation in campaigns.

With this and more in mind, I was inspired and joined forces with my business partner Mieka Crystal to establish The Marka Agency a full service Influencer Marketing agency.

Any thoughts, advice, or strategies you can share for fostering brand loyalty?

Yes, yes and YES! This is so so important when it comes to building a long term brand. I do this in 2 ways. The first being when I collaborate with a brand on a social media campaign, I always answer any communications immediately and submit content by specified deadlines or earlier. After the collaboration is complete, I still maintain communication with the brand, this ensure a continued partnership rather than a one time collab.

Second way that I keep in touch to foster brand loyalty is reaching out to my consulting clients periodically after we’ve wrapped up our sessions to ensure they’re on track with their goals but also to simply see how they’re doing and feeling in this phase of their journey.

Building your brand and your business is not only based on your bottom line but on the relationships built. People won’t always remember what you taught them but they will definitely remember how you made them feel.

Can you talk to us about how your funded your business?

My business is pre-dominantly funded by my full-time career in Human Resources and Recruitment. In the last few years we’ve seen such an increase in entrepreneurship and it is a beautiful thing. But, I always want people to understand that entrepreneurship is much more than what it is shown to be on social media. Running and funding a business is hard and there is nothing wrong with bootstrapping and working a job to fund your dream business, especially in today’s day and age as the cost of living is rising so drastically. It is important to still cover your expenses while building your business!

Contact Info:

• Website: jeniekasdixon.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/jeniekasdixon
• Facebook: facebook.com/jeniekasdixon
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeniekadixonspencer
• Twitter: twitter.com/jeniekasdixon
• Youtube: youtube.com/jeniekasdixon

Image Credits
Leo Obi Makokolee Owan (@leo_owan)