Social influencer and digital marketer helps entrepreneurs create a brand legacy
Tierra Wilson is a Digital Marketing Consultant, self-proclaimed serial entrepreneur and the founder of Tierra Wilson & Co. Originally from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Tierra now calls Phoenix, Arizona home.
With more than a decade in the industry, Tierra is an expert in everything digital, from content strategy to social media management. She started her first blog in 2006 and launched her digital marketing and design agency in 2011.
Now, Tierra is working to expand her business. “I’m in what I like to call a pause, working on the beginning stages of my next venture as well as helping other women entrepreneurs build complex digital strategies to catapult their lives and their businesses into legacy mode,” she explains.
I recently caught up with Tierra to talk digital marketing and learn about her Legacy program.
“I help women entrepreneurs get a real strategy and plan in place, helping them focus on income-generating activities online that will help them grow their businesses month over month.”
What lead you down the path of entrepreneurship?
Both of my parents were entrepreneurs, so it’s definitely in my blood. My mom owned a local uniform store and my dad owns a leadership development firm. Both of them have Ph.D.’s and both own and operate a non-profit in our community. Still to this day, they continue to run that non-profit and are pillars in our community. Since I was old enough, I worked with them to help grow and launch businesses.
Describe what you do as a Digital Marketing Consultant and why women entrepreneurs need your services?
I help women build their legacies online and live in their purpose through strategic digital marketing consulting. I started consulting because I realized that today’s online hustle culture is broken. I’ve witnessed executives, professionals and entrepreneurs work hard every day only to look up 5 to 10 years later and realize they’ve been moving laterally with nothing to show for it but hours worked.
Working hard is great, but work ethic with a strategic legacy plan in place can do more than support us financially. It fills us with purpose and helps us transition from hustle mode (aka survival mode) to legacy mode. I help women entrepreneurs get a real strategy and plan in place, helping them focus on income-generating activities online that will help them grow their businesses month over month.
Describe what you do as an Advisor for Google and GoDaddy.
The Google Small Business Advisors are a select group of small business experts who represent a wide cross-section of professional knowledge but they all share one goal–to help small businesses succeed online and beyond. As a Google Small Business Advisor, I work directly with Google to provide advice to small business owners. I help them navigate the online world and skip the mistakes that I’ve made in my journey.
Similarly, as a member of the GoDaddy Pro Advisory Council, we help GoDaddy serve their small business customers. We average around two conference calls per month and are shown upcoming GoDaddy products, services and features. We are asked to give input. Everything is aligned with helping small businesses succeed online.
What challenges have you faced?
I made the huge mistake of trying to do sales, marketing and busy work early on in my business. Multitasking is something that women are amazing at, however, in business it isn’t effective. Now I price my products and services to be sure I can hire help. I can focus on sales and marketing, which keeps my lead pipeline full.
Sales and marketing are the most important two jobs for a business owner, and this is something that I will never put on a back burner or try to multitask. Being able to focus on this every day, versus when I have to, has changed my business and my financial security.
“As a woman of color, I’ve had to really not let that affect me, and go boldly forward and ask for what I want and need. I learned to create my own reality.”
Has being a woman of color offered additional challenges for you, if so how?
Being a woman of color in an online world with the “typical” looking women business owners and influencers was a struggle at first. Having more credentials and experience than others, it was still hard to get recognized and took years to establish myself as an expert. I’ve had to learn to be unapologetically black and embrace my culture in my business. The minute I stopped resisting who I was and embraced me, the game changed.
If you look at the landscape of online influencers, they all look the same. On Instagram feeds of successful brands, the same type of woman is represented, and the first pick for expertise at conferences, etc, the same type of woman is given those opportunities.
As a woman of color, I’ve had to really not let that affect me, and go boldly forward and ask for what I want and need. I learned to create my own reality. I’ve also made it my mission to reach down and pull other women up who look like me, as well as climb up and tap other women on the shoulder who look like me and ask for help.
What challenges do you believe most women entrepreneurs experience?
I touched on it earlier, but it is definitely the need to try to be all and do all in business. I can’t stress enough the importance of focusing on income-generating tasks first and letting that feed and fuel your business.
What should emerging entrepreneurs be aware of?
There is enough for everyone and your competition can be your best friend. It can be lonely being an entrepreneur, especially when you are just getting started. Your business takes first priority, and relationships tend to suffer. Your competition can be an unlikely source of encouragement and friendship?
Two years ago I co-founded a group with Kaitlin Fontenot of Love Kait Design Studios. We reached out to other creative agency owners and now we talk every day in Slack. We share resources, tips, tricks and even send each other referrals. Reach out to others in your industry. You’d be surprised at how your competitors can turn into your biggest cheerleaders.
Tell us about your book club.
The Ready Set Legacy Book is my book club for business owners. I started this book club for women with personal brands and entrepreneurs who want to dive deep into business books and work collectively to apply that knowledge in our careers, businesses and lives.
What’s next for you?
I’m working on my next business venture! I’m really excited about the potential of using my knowledge over the past 16 years working online to build something not related to my personal brand. I’ll be documenting my journey along the way and showing others that a strategy can build just about anything, if it’s aligned with your passion and purpose.
What is your favorite quote?
“I am going to make everything around me beautiful–that will be my life.” ― Elsie de Wolfe
Share 5 tips for women entrepreneurs.
- Focus on sales and marketing first, and everything else will fall into place.
- Invest in a business coach or consultant.
- Spend 20 percent of your business time experimenting on new platforms and testing, so you don’t get left behind.
- Be unapologetically YOU.
- Pause the hustle once a quarter and visualize your business 10 years into the future.
For more information about Tierra and her consulting business, visit www.tierrawilson.com.