Meet Kirstie Smith: Social Media Marketing Awards 2019 Winner

We’re always looking for an excuse to highlight incredible people in the industry, and when’s a better time than on the run up to the Social Media Marketing Awards, where we celebrate the very best of the best? This week, we’re interviewing Kirstie Smith, a much-loved member of the SocialDay community, regular SocialDay speaker and the winner of Freelance Social Media Marketer at the SMMAs in 2019. This blog is filled with endless expert tips for digital marketers, advice on writing a winning application and the milestones that got Kirstie to where she is today.

By the way, nominations and entries for the Social Media Marketing Awards 2021 are now open!

Hi Kirstie! Could you tell us a bit about yourself, your career and which award you won at the 2019 SMMAs?

“I’m the Marketing Director at Digital Cake, a holistic e-commerce agency based in Birmingham. We have a team of 14 people and deliver branding, websites, apps and all digital marketing services for fashion and lifestyle brands. I also run Social Circle, which is a community for social media and digital marketers to keep up with and discuss the latest news and trends. I guest lecture at Birmingham City University (BCU) on the Digital Marketing undergraduate course and Masters course talking about social media and content marketing, as well as running the Forward 2022 conference, where I use my industry connections to gather best-in-class speakers for BCU’s students.

I applied for Freelance Social Media Marketer of the Year in 2019, which was just at the end of my freelance career as I took a full-time role soon after. At the time, I was running Social Circle, guest lecturing and helping a range of Birmingham-based clients as a freelancer. I applied because I was doing a good job at juggling these 3 roles and delivering a great job for all of my clients.”

How did it feel to win Freelance Social Media Marketer of the Year? And how did it impact your network and your business?

“When I won the award, it gave confidence to clients I was working with, inspired students I was teaching and was a brilliant way of building trust with and ensuring future clients. It was one of the key things that I highlighted when I got my next role as Marketing Director. It’s quite difficult to blow your own trumpet, but to use Freelance Social Media Marketer of the Year on my profiles, auto-signatures, etc. gave me that extra boost of recognition and credibility - it’s a really nice way of doing a bit of your own PR.

After winning the award, I got asked to speak at SocialDay again. I also got asked to speak at the Marketing Meetup, and I’m really proud that mine was one of their most attended sessions. I also received Highly Commended for Digital Woman of the Year at the Digital Women Awards. It boosted my confidence and allowed me to secure more work.”

With so many amazing achievements to your name, which moment in your career would you say you are most proud of to date?

“I’m most proud of being asked to speak at SocialDay in 2018, as this was a career-changing moment for me. I had attended SocialDay in 2017, an event held in Birmingham at the time, and was so inspired by the talks, the community and everybody that I met that it spurred me on to quit my job in an agency and start up as a freelancer. When I used to live in London, one of the posters I’d see on the underground everyday said ‘If you don’t like your life, change it’ - when I went to SocialDay I realised I did have that power to change my life. The following year, I spoke at SocialDay and was absolutely overwhelmed at being asked and the reception my talk got.”

What do you think the biggest challenge has been for you professionally in 2020?

“I’m sure everyone will say it, but definitely the shift to working from home. As a natural extrovert, I feel energised working in groups and with a wider team - I just need that team around me - so adapting to that was the biggest challenge. Also just knowing when to stop - doing everything out of one room and getting that work-home balance was a challenge. And another big challenge was the ability to say no. It was also difficult to stick to the vision we had at Digital Cake and it would have been easy to steer off course in the face of these changes, but it was important to be able to say no to all of that and stick to the overall vision.”

What are your biggest top tactics for digital marketers to factor into their strategies in 2021?

“I have a few top tactics for digital marketers:

The first one is linked with the rise of dark social and social messaging apps. A lot of the conversations around brands are now happening where we can’t see it, so we should be trying to move into that conversational or one-to-one marketing, and move away from the one-to-many marketing. Brands need to join in on these conversations rather than trying to lead them.

Secondly, let’s not ignore audio. Last year, it was all about the podcasts, and this year they’re continuing, but they’re also evolving into new features like Twitter Spaces, Clubhouse and even audio tweets (which have gone a little bit under the radar). Brands need to be taking audio a bit more seriously.

Thirdly: subscriptions seem to be the next evolution for social media platforms. We can see that with Twitter looking at introducing Twitter Super Follows, where users pay to get access to gatekept content. That’s definitely something for brands that are building communities to keep an eye on.

Next, voice and visual search; it’s been spoken about for a few years now, but I wanted to bring this back to the forefront because I think it’s really important. Voice search is all around us and needs to be taken seriously, and visual search like Pinterest and Google Lens should be part of everyone’s SEO strategy.

And finally, stories - every single social network has a story format, so they’re definitely not something that should be ignored. Along with stories, there is an increasing demand for snackable, digestible video content that we’re less precious about, and if brands aren’t there producing it yet then they should be moving there quickly.”

And are there any broader trends that you think brands and marketers should be aware of this year?

“I do believe that this is the era of purpose-driven brands and these will be the brands that win in the long run. Brands that don’t just say they’re something, but live and breathe their values - especially if those values are around inclusivity, social conscience or sustainability - are the brands that people are really relating to. There’s a huge movement of people boycotting brands if they aren’t aligned with their personal values, and there’s nowhere to hide. Also, if you’re a brand owner then you are the main ambassador for that brand, so personal brand is key. I think we’ll also see a rise in brands wanting to be recognised as B-Corp brands: brands that meet the “highest standards of verified social and environmental performance, public transparency, and legal accountability to balance profit and purpose”.

Another trend which is worth keeping an eye on is the backlash to technology following 2020. Everyone is going to be really fed up with Zooms and this digital world we’ve been ushered into, so I think there’s going to be a move away from digital. Going forward, that means brands can’t be 100% reliant on just digital methods, and the in-person, human touch will become more important. Also, when you’re using digital, don’t put all your eggs in one basket and don’t rely on just one channel. Channels come and go and what you need to concentrate on is your purpose and audience on each channel. Be where your customers are, act like your audience in that channel, stay up to date and don’t be afraid to try new channels and trends.”

Do you have any top tips for social media marketers/teams thinking of entering the awards this year?

“I have 3: 

Firstly, from a practical point of view, always keep your entry super clear and succinct, with headers and bullets and underlining. Make it really clear so that you can get your points across.

From a campaign point of view, don’t worry about big budgets or your campaign not being big or shiny enough. Concentrate on the creative, the messaging, the customer interaction and the benefits of that campaign instead.

And from a personal point of view, don’t just talk about your job role and what you’ve achieved: talk about your impact on the wider community or wider team and how you’re involved in your community. Write about both the softer and harder skills - softer skills may be more difficult to write about, but they’re just as important.”

Thanks Kirstie! Well, if that interview has inspired you as much as it has us, head on over to the Social Media Marketing Awards website now. You’ve got until 30th April to get your entries in. Good luck!

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