We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Zoey Berg a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Zoey, thanks for joining us today. What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?

I’m an equine videographer, photographer, and editor, and I launched my LLC in February 2024. In just eight short months, it has become the most rapidly successful venture I’ve ever embarked on! Ironically, until November 2023, I had never even held a camera. That’s where my journey begins.

I’ve always had a passion for content creation and have been active on platforms like TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram. Initially, I used these apps as a personal diary, sharing my experiences in the equestrian world—my rides, triumphs, challenges, and the moments I spent working with horses. As I documented my journey, more and more people began to follow along. I started landing partnerships, sponsorships, and creator funds. At that point, I was filming everything with my iPhone and editing on generic apps, but I reached a point where I wanted to elevate my content.

So, I decided to invest in a camera. With no prior knowledge about photography, I set a budget of $1,000 and visited my local camera shop. To my surprise, I walked out with a $7,000 setup—way more than I intended to spend. It felt like a huge, impulsive leap of faith, but something told me it would pay off.

Diving headfirst into the world of cinematography, I immersed myself in learning as much as I could in a short time. As I began posting the content I filmed with my new camera, people started to take notice. I began filming and photographing friends and family, and soon random people began reaching out for sessions. That’s when I realized there was a market for my work.

With renewed determination, I established my LLC and reached out to a prominent, local Horse show organization in Colorado, hoping to become their videographer. It was a challenging journey, filled with perseverance, but I eventually landed a contract with Langer Shows at the Colorado Horse Park. This was my first big break, and working there throughout the Spring, Summer, and Autumn series solidified my passion for pursuing this path in life.

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.

Hello! My name is Zoey Berg, and I’m a 21-year-old equestrian, business owner, and college student. Currently, I’m in my fourth year at CU Boulder, where I also own and manage my own videography LLC, creating reels for clients as they ride. I’m an avid rider myself, recently moving up to the 1.20m level!

I’ve been riding horses since 2018, and from the very start, I knew my life would revolve around this passion. Anyone familiar with the equestrian world understands just how expensive it can be. As I embarked on my riding journey, I often found myself grappling with how to support my passion for the long term. For a while, I was quite anxious about finding a solution. Then, when I least expected it, my solution fell into my lap! A solution that allows me to continue my passion for riding as well as working with other equestrians with the same dreams as mine! That’s what I’m excited to share with you today!

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

Here’s the revised passage with your additional content seamlessly integrated:

I began sharing my riding journey on social media in early 2020, starting with Instagram to document my progress. I never intended for content creation to become such a significant part of my life, but I’m grateful it has! For me, it was like a personal journal—a way to look back and see how much I was growing.

I quickly realized how much I could learn from other riders sharing their own journeys. It felt like being part of a large community of individuals who shared the same passions. Honestly, that sense of connection is even stronger now, just on a bigger scale.

In addition to my progression posts, I started creating content like memes, tapping into trends on platforms like TikTok and tailoring them for equestrians. That approach really helped my following explode! As my audience grew, so did the interaction. The comments I received—whether they were questions, encouragement, or even criticism—were incredibly inspiring and motivated me to produce even more content. I began posting daily, understanding that consistency promotes growth on any social media platform. If you’re looking to gain attention on social media, that should be your first step!

I’ve found that social media has given me the most opportunities out of every path I’ve explored. The more I share, the more partnerships and sponsorships I’ve received, which only motivates me to post more. Additionally, as more people learned who I am, I attracted more clients when starting my LLC. Because my name was already known in the Colorado equestrian community, gaining clientele became a smoother part of my business process. Getting the word out was easier, and I was able to handle all my own advertising! I credit much of my success to my social media presence.

Building a platform with a larger following is an incredible experience, but it’s essential not to take things personally. No matter who you are or what you post about, people will judge, criticize, bully, gossip, and make assumptions about you. You have to be confident in yourself and recognize that you’re doing your best, knowing you can’t please everyone. Learning this lesson allows you to truly blossom!

What else should we know about how you took your side hustle and scaled it up into what it is today?

As I began my social media journey, which naturally evolved into my videography and photography path during high school and now into college, I had never pursued any other career. Initially, I started college studying engineering, but I recently switched to business because those classes felt more valuable in light of my entrepreneurial aspirations.

Social media and videography were never just a side hustle for me; it was more of a natural progression that has now grown into a potential full-time career. Until recently, few people, including my parents, truly saw my vision. Starting my LLC was a leap of faith—one that only I could see the potential in.

One of the hardest challenges was convincing others to invest in me, especially without a backup plan, money, or concrete promises to offer. I was betting on my ideas, but fully committing to this path has brought more success than I could have imagined.

In just eight months since I embarked on this journey, I’ve made some significant (and sometimes expensive) mistakes, but I’ve also experienced more success than I ever anticipated, with endless room for growth ahead!

Contact Info:

• Instagram: ZoeybergEq and ZoeyBergLLC
• Youtube: ZoeyBerg
• Other: TikTok : @zoeyberg

Image Credits

ZoeybergLLC