We were lucky to catch up with Kerry Pieri recently and have shared our conversation below.

Kerry, appreciate you joining us today. What was one of the most important lessons you learned in school? Why did that lesson stick with you?

This is a story of following your intuition, focusing on what interests you and lights you up. I was a Journalism major for most of college, and while that allowed me to take a lot of writing classes, it turned out that the actual journalism classes bored me endlessly. I was in a smaller city and they focused on local crime and politics, and there is almost nothing that I wanted to read about, much less write about, less. At the same time, I was minoring in photography and loved it. The mix of my more literary writing courses and photography felt like a dream at my small liberal arts school where most people majored in business. Every professor I had was so passionate about their subjects, I was immersed in art history and the greatest authors and poets that ever lived and each day was a new journey into someone’s creative flow. So, senior year, I switched from Communications and became a Fine Art double major in writing and photography. Some people would think that this was an irresponsible choice and took me far from any succinct, reasonable career path. In truth, my professional life in magazines was served beautifully by my education. I had wonderful photo and art references when I was setting up shoots, ones that could be unexpected and more niche. And while the rules of journalism apply to fashion writing, the more creative approach that I immersed myself in served to better explain the process of designers and speaking to trends in an elegant and unexpected way. In short, follow what interests you rather than what you think you’re “supposed to do” and the world might just open up to you in ways you wouldn’t expect.

Kerry, 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?

My background is that I was the digital fashion director of Harper’s BAZAAR for 11 years. I basically helped bring the website to life. It was, for lack of a better word, a blog when I started at the publication. It was just me and one other full time employee, who hired me. I, with a team, built up the social media platforms and embraced new ones as they were created. I oversaw digital cover shoots, decided how to do shopping market features online, and tell stories that were interesting and engaging to an audience with an ever-decreasing attention span. We hired a team of over 35 employees over that decade. It was a new build-your-own-adventure every day and I loved it. It helped me build a skillset that is impossible to fully explain. I can move quickly, and iterate on the spot, but I also have a fashion editor sensibility for having a taste level and high bar that are not easily met. In my new freelance life, I can use this to continue to write stories for myself and other publications, as well as create on social media, consult for brands on their product, messaging and social media, and give relevant advice to those just starting out in the fashion and interior design spaces.

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

I first built an audience on social media as a fashion editor at a very well-known magazine. When I was creating this following it felt effortless. I posted my outfits, took my audience with me to fashion week and press trips, and only posted when I felt like it. I had no idea this was actually a missed opportunity. I should have been posting more and sharing more about myself. By the time I realized that social media was a legitimate alternative career path, the landscape had become much more difficult and saturated. Gaining engaged followers is harder but not impossible. I’ve personally shifted my approach to more utility-based content rather than showing up as a “personality.” I think you have to truly add value in some way. To share my expertise in style has been fun and the reaction has been super positive. I post 2-3x a week now instead of intermittently. Affiliate sales are not to be minimized and a great way to direct your focus while mixing in brand deals. Always think about content, whether as an individual or a brand as “for them,” and not “me centric.” Ask, what value am I adding with this post? And if you don’t have an answer don’t post it.

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

I think that my professional experience speaks for itself, but when I take on a social media client, copywriting, or branding client, I need to prove myself all over again. I work as hard for smaller projects as I do for big name clients, and that consistency has helped me gain new clients via word of mouth. For social media projects, I am easy to work with in the sense that I take direction, I never miss a deadline, and I give my all to it. You still always need boundaries, but being an adult and doing your job go further than it should in this landscape.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://kerrypieri.me
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kerrypieri/?hl=en
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kerry-pieri-b6605a7/