New Kelowna Chamber member Simplified Social is a digital communications agency dedicated to supporting business owners, marketing employees and executives to move their social media marketing efforts forward. This week we sat down with entrepreneur and owner Alexandra Carnio to chat about her journey to growing her business, recently moving it to Kelowna, and her advice for fellow entrepreneurs. 

 

What led you to start Simplified Social, and was there anything you wish you had known before you started the business?

I have always had a passion for social media - it was always a task I volunteered to take on in any role but even 5-10 years ago, social media was a pretty uncommon full-time job. I started Simplified Social in 2015 when I was working as a Facilitator for a non-profit organization that helped entrepreneurs create their business and marketing plans. During this time, I noticed a huge knowledge gap with many entrepreneurs when it came to social media for their business. Many felt overwhelmed so they were either ignoring it (and all of the benefits of being active on social media) or they were paying large agencies way too much money to run their accounts. I knew there had to be a better way to solve the market gap and that's when my business was born. I felt lucky to start a business while working in an entrepreneurial organization; however one thing I tell everyone is don't undervalue yourself! It's so common for entrepreneurs to do this in the beginning, so make sure you account for all of your time, your training and your skills when pricing your offerings. 

What do you find businesses struggle with most when it comes to their social media?

I find that most businesses struggle with consistency when it comes to social media. A lot of businesses will start out strong but fall off the bandwagon when things get busy or they get stuck in the content trap of what to post. The best thing you can do is pick one or two platforms and do them really well versus trying to spread yourself too thin. You don't need to be active on every platform, just the ones that will reach the right customers for your business. It's all about quality over quantity. 

What is the team at Simplified Social looking forward to or planning for the future?

We recently launched our online learning platform, SocialU, where employees and business owners can take a variety of online courses on social media for business. We are looking forward to continuing to scale our e-learning business and helping individuals and organizations from across the country learn more about social media. You can learn more at www.socialu.ca 

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