We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Kalah Taylor a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Kalah, thanks for joining us today. Do you think folks should manage their own social media or hire a professional? What do you do?
In the past I’ve been used to utilizing my social media as a way to showcase the work that I created during my time as a student. However since wrapping up my time as a student I’ve began the process of discovering what it’s like to truly make work for my self without having the background objective of trying to do well for the sake of school. This has been super important to me because of the desire that I have to grow more confident as a creative.
Since I create all of the content that I include on my social media accounts, it’s been really important for me to build a regimen of creating different pieces of work that I can share everyday. It’s a process that’s definitely not easy but it’s been super fun and has even encouraged me to market myself to different creative communities like Women of Type (ig: @womenoftype) and Ladies who Design (ig: @ladieswhodesign) who have played a key part in me slowly but surely starting to grow my following on Social Media.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers?
Even though I’m just starting out I’ve spent a majority of my professional career as a Graphic Designer, and I’ve loved every moment of it! I was fortunate enough to have had experiences interning and working for non-profits including but not limited to the Boys & Girls Clubs of America and Make-a-Wish Georgia, in addition to spending time as a government contractor. I recently began my journey into Art Direction after concluding my Master’s of Arts Degree in Advertising from the Savannah College of Art and Design last June, and am currently working as an Art Director at FCB Chicago where I’ve been fortunate to work on campaigns within the beauty industry.
Since concluding my time in school I’ve spent a lot of my free time creating work for my self and I’m beginning to discover the love that I have for illustration, and its been fun for me to create work outside of the traditional graphic design and advertising work that I’ve been used to creating. One great thing that I feel came out of this is an upcoming feature that I’m going to have in the first ever printed Women of Type Book, and I’m so excited about it!
Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?
One of the main ways that I’m working to build my audience on social media is by networking with other creatives and creative communities on social media. Submitting my work to be featured and be a part of other creative opportunities, has played a key role in me growing and continuing to grow my social media following.
Is there a mission driving your creative journey?
Since concluding my time as a student I’ve had the goal of being purposeful and diligent when it comes to creating new work. I would ultimately love to one day be in the position to where creating my work is the main source of my living and how I get to spend my time
Contact Info:
- Website: https://kalahtaylor-design.com
- Instagram: @designedbytaylor_
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kalah-taylor/
- Other: pinterest: https://pin.it/5YitN2v society 6: https://society6.com/designedbytaylor_