We recently connected with Samantha Buschman and have shared our conversation below.

Samantha , appreciate you joining 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 came up with the idea of rating cheese curds on YouTube during Covid. I was bored, unemployed, and wanted to continue to support local. I posted five videos before sharing it with friends and family. The YouTube channel was doing OK, but someone suggested I create an Instagram. I moved over to that platform instead and the traction was much better. Then I began having restaurants reach out asking if I would visit them and post about it on social media. After that started happening, I came up with the idea to start traveling out to different Wisconsin cities – and get paid for it. It took a lot of research, a lot of rejection, and a lot of hit-or-miss opportunities. Launching the blog came with it’s own set of challenges but now I see every opportunity and every failure as it’s own lesson.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I work with restaurants, tourism bureaus, and public relations firms to assist in promoting their businesses on social media. I visit different areas to take photos and videos which I then use to create content. I have a travel blog where I link businesses to assist in the SEO efforts, as well as several social media channels where I post the content. I have different package offerings for clients based on their budget and needs. I just started a monthly newsletter which will also highlight a small business every month as well as a restaurant every month. I focus a lot on food, which is what makes me a little different than most travel bloggers. Coming from Wisconsin, I highlight cheese curds (and other cheese) throughout my travels.

Alright – let’s talk about marketing or sales – do you have any fun stories about a risk you’ve taken or something else exciting on the sales and marketing side?

I was working to create a deal with a potential client and they were asking to focus on a lot of things. Typically, I will focus on 8-10 “stops” on a trip, but they wanted around 20. I suggested that we do 3 separate packages all with a different focus. I quoted them a lot of money and did not think there was any way that they were going to go for it. I was worried that it was going to cause them to back down from their original agreement, too. To my surprise, they welcomed the idea and the dollar amount. That was when I learned that if I don’t ask the questions, I won’t get the answers.

How did you build your audience on social media?

It has taken me awhile to build my audience on social media, but my biggest tip is to be consistent. You never know what content is going to hit and what is going to miss. You have to try everything – like throwing spaghetti at the wall. See what sticks and what your audience enjoys. Even now, some of my content ends up being very popular albeit unexpectedly. I am still learning every day but I always make sure that no matter what, I post.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.wisconsincheeseplease.com
• Instagram: @wisconsincheeseplease
• Facebook: /wisconsincheeseplease
• Youtube: wisconsincheeseplease