We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Kyle Schmidt. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Kyle below.

Hi Kyle, thanks for joining us today. Looking back, do you think you started your business at the right time? Do you wish you had started sooner or later

I believe I started my business at the perfect time. As I mentioned earlier, my passion for videography and social media has always been strong, but when I first began, it was more of a passion project than a business idea. I was still in college when I launched it, and that allowed me to learn in a low-pressure environment. It gave me the flexibility to experiment with different content styles and figure out what worked best for me. My business is an extension of myself, and it’s evolved alongside me every step of the way.

I’m grateful that I was able to work through many of the early challenges while I was younger, learning valuable business lessons along the way. Now, as I’m further along in my career, I feel incredibly confident in what I can offer my clients—and it’s only going to keep improving!

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 Kyle Schmidt, and I am the founder of Orchid Media. Orchid Media is a social media management and content creation agency, where we understand the power of a strong digital presence. With expertise in social videography in Philadelphia, a passion for creative storytelling, and a recipe for results, we help businesses craft captivating content that truly resonates with their audience.

We’re not just social media experts—we’re chronically online ourselves. This means we live and breathe the platforms your audiences use, staying ahead of trends and turning insights into strategy. Whether it’s a TikTok campaign that goes viral or carefully curated Instagram content, we focus on delivering scroll-stopping content that drives engagement and growth.

Our process is simple yet effective: Concept, Create, Calibrate. We start by developing engaging concepts tailored to your brand’s goals. Then, we create the compelling content that stands out among the rest. Finally, we continuously refine our strategy based on the data-driven insights you content provides.

We are located in the heart of Philadelphia.

Orchid Media is here to help your business blossom, one post at a time.

We’d love to hear the story of how you turned a side-hustle into a something much bigger.

My passion for creativity has always been strong. There’s something truly special about capturing people’s most cherished moments. What began as a hobby quickly grew into something more. In college, I discovered I had a natural eye for photography and videography, which led me to take on graduation shoots and other small projects. From there, things really took off!

What sets us apart is the firsthand experience I bring from growing my own social media channels from 0 to nearly 300k followers. I deeply understand the challenges and intricacies of building a presence from scratch. I always say, going viral isn’t luck—it’s the result of a strategic formula that takes time to master. One of the most rewarding aspects of my work is sharing that formula with my clients and celebrating their successes alongside them. Starting any business is a risk, but when you are passionate about what you’re doing it really doesn’t feel like work!

We’d love to hear about how you met your business partner.

For the first year of my business, I was handling everything on my own. While it was incredibly rewarding, it also came with its challenges—managing every aspect of the business by yourself is no easy task. I’m grateful for that experience, as it gave me a deep understanding of the work that goes into running a business. However, I soon realized that to scale in the way I envisioned, I needed help. About six months ago, I hired my first employee, a social media manager, and it has made a world of difference. Having someone to bounce ideas off of and provide a second opinion has been invaluable. Outsourcing certain tasks has also given me more time to focus on building and nurturing client relationships.

I found my social media manager through a LinkedIn post, which felt like a rare success, but we clicked right away and share a similar working style. I believe one of the most important factors in hiring, especially for a startup, is finding someone who fits your company culture. Your first hire plays a crucial role in shaping the brand, so it’s essential to find someone who can ride through the ups and downs with you.

We’re currently looking to hire another video editor as we continue to grow. One of the key lessons in entrepreneurship is recognizing which parts of your business can be outsourced. While it can be difficult to relinquish control, you can’t scale without investing in people who make your workload lighter so you can focus on growth.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.orchidmedia.co/socialmedia
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/orchidmediaco
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/Orchid-Media/61557446652060/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/orchid-media-llc/
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@orchidmediaco