The Social Impact Heroes of Social Media: “Don’t be concerned with other people having ideas or platforms similar to yours, just like there are tons of hamburger restaurants; there are tons of people working to make a difference” with Ameerah Saine of Brunch and Slay
Don’t be concerned with other people having ideas or platforms similar to yours, just like there are tons of hamburger restaurants; there are tons of people working to make a difference. Your tribe will find you. Comparison will still your joy every time, I have made it a point to focus on my timeline and not look at what other female empowerment pages post, there are a number of great pages out there focused on connecting women, I find that to be a good thing but nothing will take the wind out of your sails like comparing your beginning to someone else’s middle.
As a part of my series about social media stars who are using their platform to make a significant social impact, I had the pleasure of interviewing Ameerah Saine. Ameerah is founder of Brunch and Slay a Lifestyle company creating a space for multi-cultural women to connect, through experiences, be inspired through content and showcase their business and products.
Thank you so much for doing this with us! Can you tell us a story about what brought you to this specific career path?
In my 20’s I began to relocate for work, and each time I moved to a new city I found it hard to find adult friends. I would relocate and have to make new girlfriends all over again. The fact that I traveled extensively for work did not make connecting with women any easier. I’d always complained about this to my husband and in 2016, I found myself a new mom with tons of time on my hands, something I was not entirely comfortable with. I was frustrated and needed to find women who were evolving and embracing new things in their lives. I was no longer the woman I’d been in my 20’s the things I wanted now were different. I needed to find and connect with my tribe. I talked about it with my husband, and he encouraged me to take my time off to create something that would meet my needs, and Brunch and Slay was born. I wanted to create a space that would encourage women to connect organically; I also wanted to promote a supportive environment. I tried to cultivate the perfect backdrop for us all to be free to be ourselves. The events were a hit and they soon evolved into a podcast and now an e-commerce store where you can find products and courses all curated by women who are a part of the BAS Tribe.
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began this career?
I had the pleasure of interviewing Ty Hunter (Beyonce’s former stylist), back when the podcast first started, as a matter of fact, I hadn’t recorded one episode when I met him and he agreed to be on the show. He was so kind and made me feel extremely comfortable. I listen to those first episodes and cringe now, but I’m forever thankful to people like Ty who supported me from the beginning.
Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?
After our first big brunch, I had my videographer create a recap video, with all the girl power songs that I loved, I was so proud of that video. I took out an ad on Facebook and began to market like crazy until Facebook shut it down. I had no clue at the time that I’d committed copywriting infringement. I can laugh about it now but at the time I was really bummed about it.
Ok super. Let’s now jump to the core focus of our interview. Can you describe to our readers how you are using your platform to make a significant social impact?
I’ve made Brunch and Slay a stage for multicultural women. It’s a place where women who typically are overlooked by mainstream media, can connect with their ideal audience to introduce and launch their products and services. From our events to our podcast, we focus on the positive, we even use our followers in our photoshoots. I want every woman to know that she has something to bring to the table.
Wow! Can you tell us a story about a particular individual who was impacted by this cause?
A day or so before our first event, a woman messaged me on Facebook, with her concerns about attending our brunch alone. I encouraged her to attend and told her I would save a spot for her at my table so that she would not be alone. We hit it off; she explained to me that she was at a crossroad in her life. She’d reached a point in which she needed more. She wanted to start her own company as an event planner but had no clue where to begin. I shared my knowledge of a few local groups and introduced her to a few women in the tribe. Those relationships helped her find her tribe; she now has a thriving event company in Houston. I share this because sometimes we need to be in the room with people who understand our journey. I used BAS as a resource for her, and with her drive and dedication, she has built a fantastic brand. I see her on TV often and her company has a cult following.
Was there a tipping point the made you decide to focus on this particular area? Can you share a story about that?
Event after event I would meet women who had businesses and products that ran circles around things I would see in magazines or on TV. I could not get over the fact that these women were thriving with virtually no support or funding from major banks or corporations. These women were PR, Marketing, Sales, and everything in between for their companies, and I wanted to help them. I wanted people to see that multicultural women are innovative, educated, and more than what you see in mainstream media. So I launched our podcast which I use as a spotlight. I like to think of BAS as a stage; my job is to provide the perfect setting for women to showcase their talents. We’ve now evolved and adding curated e-commerce store that our guest and tribe members can introduce, launch, and market their products and services.
Are there three things the community/society/politicians can do help you address the root of the problem you are trying to solve?
As a community, we can make an effort to support small business, to seek out women-owned businesses operating in excellence and not only support them by purchasing from them but by telling others about them. We can leave reviews about our experience with them, which helps with their digital footprint.
What specific strategies have you been using to promote and advance this cause? Can you recommend any good tips for people who want to follow your lead and use their social platform for a social good?
As an influencer, I am consistent, I post positive images, and spotlight new women weekly. People have come to know that our feed will be something they can rely on to bring good vibes and positivity to their timeline when you decide that you want to make a difference people will support you and your vision if you remain consistent.
What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started” and why? Please share a story or example for each.
1. Don’t get caught up or too focused on how many followers you have or some magic follower number. Instead focus on those folks who do follow you, and engage with them get to know them and why they support you.
When I first started I would beat myself up about not having any followers; I would repost images from Pinterest and try to pick pictures I thought people would like, it wasn’t until I started posting original content that people began to follow my pages.
2. Don’t be concerned with other people having ideas or platforms similar to yours, just like there are tons of hamburger restaurants; there are tons of people working to make a difference. Your tribe will find you. Comparison will still your joy every time, I have made it a point to focus on my timeline and not look at what other female empowerment pages post, there are a number of great pages out there focused on connecting women, I find that to be a good thing but nothing will take the wind out of your sails like comparing your beginning to someone else’s middle.
3. Drive traffic to your site, Instagram of Facebook can disappear tomorrow, and if you only connect with your audience on their platforms, you could be devastated if the algorithm changes or the systems crash. About a year ago IG changed their algorithm, and my page took a hit, I was devasted I went from have tons of likes per post to barely any. The new change meant that my followers no longer saw my post, I had no clue how to fix that at the time. I realized that I can only control my domain and that I should use social media as a tool to and not the in all be all.
4. Pick one or two social media platforms and give them all you’ve got, trying to master each platform will drive you crazy. I tried to post on every social media platform from Twitter to Snap Chat and it was a fulltime job. There was no way I would be able to truly grow on each platform, so I did some research and discovered that my audience and demographics were IG and Facebook lovers, which helped me curate content that they wanted to see.
5. Be authentic, people follow you for a reason. Since becoming an influencer I’ve been tempted to take on affiliate work and partnership that were not always on brand, and my audience quickly let me know that they were not happy about it. I had to learn that lesson quickly. As your audience grows it is very tempting to take on affiliate work, it’s a great way to monetize your platform, but I know now to be sure that those opportunities and partnerships are on brand.
You are a person of enormous influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. 🙂
I’d would make our hashtag #WeBuildWeWin a movement, because to me the answer to most of the problems that we as women face is collaboration. When we build together we tap into our community and use our resources; we can accomplish great things. We no longer see one another as the competition but as allies. I do believe that true healing begins there.
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?
“Nothing beats a failure but a try” It’s an old southern saying that my mom always told me when I was a kid, it means always to push yourself and try to accomplish your dreams. It’s a constant reminder to me to be comfortable with being uncomfortable.
Is there a person in the world, or in the US, whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this, especially if we tag them. 🙂
Oprah Winfrey, because she has helped raise the vibration of our society, she has brought cultures together and challenged our way of thinking. Her journey and path is one I relate to and respect. She never let how others viewed her hinder what God placed in her heart. I admire that after all of her success, she continues to work and focus on improving society. Her prayer “use me” is one I utter daily.
How can our readers follow you on social media?
@BrunchandSlay across all social media platforms
This was very meaningful, thank you so much!
The Social Impact Heroes of Social Media: “Don’t be concerned with other people having ideas or… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.