We were lucky to catch up with Jenna Palmer recently and have shared our conversation below.

Jenna, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. It’s always helpful to hear about times when someone’s had to take a risk – how did they think through the decision, why did they take the risk, and what ended up happening. We’d love to hear about a risk you’ve taken.

I started The Taste Report a little over two years ago, with food and coffee as my content focus. I’ve always loved finding new and fun places to eat or have coffee, so this was an exciting endeavor for me to pursue. At around the one year mark, I started to feel like I wanted to do more than just food content. I really enjoyed seeing lifestyle influencers share their lives, their favorite things, and really connect with their audience on a deeper level than just the material. With that kind of sharing comes a huge risk.

I think it’s hard for anyone to open up to the world, especially if you’ve really never done that before. This fear of being open stopped me from taking that risk. I continued to focus on food content for the next year, but definitely felt like I was losing my drive. Going out and sharing my foodventures started to feel like a job rather than something fun. I was also starting to feel discouraged that my audience wasn’t growing, and the Instagram algorithms were making it more and more difficult to reach those who were following me.

In all of this, I was only focusing on Instagram as my content channel, even though TikTok was really taking off. I had the idea that TikTok was for a much younger crowd, so I avoided it for as long as I could. It wasn’t until I noticed TikTok content crossing over onto Instagram that I started to realize TikTok was for more than just dance videos. I finally downloaded the app. I saw so much amazing work done by other content creators, it was really inspiring to me. I saw creators who were sharing so much variety, I thought that this could definitely be my opportunity to start a brand shift or addition.

While my Tiktok (@jennavictoriah) channel is new, I feel very excited to keep making content that feels different than what I usually put out on Instagram. The best part is that I can post food still, but I have the opportunity to go beyond that with this channel. Sometimes it’s gaming, sometimes it’s mental health, sometime it’s fashion. I’m in the middle of this “risk” I’ve taken to show more of my life on social media outside of foodie things, but just allowing that to happen has relieved the creative block I had – and that’s improving my content on Instagram! My food content doesn’t feel like a chore anymore and I’m ready to keep growing outside of Instagram.

If you’re a content creator who feels blocked or thinking of becoming a content creator, I say take the risk and do it. It’s scary what people may think, but realize that social media is so large that there is bound to be a community that will appreciate what you put out. Plus, just do it for you! I don’t know if my TikTok will take off, if my LikeToKnowIt (@jennavictoriah) will reach anyone, or if my Instagram will ever expand, but I do know I am doing something I love and that’s what’s important.

Jenna, 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 am a content creator who focuses on food, lifestyle, and really a little bit of anything. I started out with Instagram, creating @thetastereport to share my food and coffee finds around San Diego and anywhere else I travel. While this isn’t a full-time or paying job for me, it’s something I love to do.

Now I make content beyond IG and have branched out to TikTok and LTK. I love having a variety of content so I can connect with as many communities as I can that I relate to. I am a foodie, a gamer, a girl in her late 20s working full-time in corporate marketing, an education-lover, a wife, and so much more. We all have multiple facets of our lives, and I love seeing what similar experiences we face in these facets.

I really hope to create communities that relate on these different levels through social media and creative content.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

The most rewarding aspect of being a creative is when I put out something that relates to someone else who felt unrelatable. Sometimes we can feel isolated, especially in the climate we have lived in recently, and I think social media allows us a space to connect with others through our art. I don’t want anyone to feel alone or like they are the only one going through what they’re going through. Seeing a video on TikTok about depression or a post on Instagram about financially struggling can resonate with someone and let them know they’re not alone. It’s so rewarding to be able to mix art with a message and create something meaningful.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

My drive in my creative journey is to not only have an outlet for myself, but to also provide a place for others to escape. I want people to look at my content and feel joy from what they’re seeing, feel safe, or just feel something positive. Whether they want to escape something bad going on in their lives or they want to feel seen, I want to use my creativity to reach them how they need to be reached. I experience that with other creatives/influencers and it helps me, so I wish to be that for others.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @thetastereport
• Other: TikTok: @jennavictoriah LikeToKnowIt: @jennavictoriah