Are you ready to thrive on social media? In today’s episode, I’m continuing my series all about branding, and diving into social media strategy with content creator Jera Bean. Jera shares her advice on creating a cohesive personal brand, connecting with aligned clients, plus developing a content strategy that will grow with you. 

On Quianna Marie Weekly, we’re chatting about business growing pains, finding genuine connections, and celebrating wins of all sizes through the lens of a photographer at heart. Sprinkled throughout stories and interviews with past clients, photographers and other business owners this podcast is designed to help you step into your purpose and to truly create a life you’re proud of, a life worth photographing and sharing.

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Today’s episode is brought to you by The Green House, my resource garden for photographers! Let me help you AMPLIFY your heart online and in real life to turn bridesmaids into future brides through templates, workshops, and freebies!

Review The Show Notes:

Making Social Media Fun (3:52)

Defining Your Brand Voice And Style (09:13)

Strategies To Boost Your Confidence (14:16)

Being Too Braggy Or Sales-y Online (22:13)

Intertwining Personal Life And Business Online (28:08)

Show Where You’re Headed (32:27)

Original Content Versus Trends (39:25)

Finding Inspiration And Creativity For Content (44:27)

Keeping Your Content Organized (48:59)

Key Tip From Jera (52:19)

Connect With Jera:

Instagram: instagram.com/jera.bean

TikTok: tiktok.com/@jera.bean

The Video Editing Rodeo: jerabean.com/thevideoeditingrodeo

Review the Transcript:

Quianna: Oh my goodness, gorgeous. Today I have the honor of introducing you to one of my favorite social media besties. And I say besties with so much love because even though I slid into her DMS to request her presence on the podcast, our first time meeting face to face was on zoom a couple of weeks ago. I’ve been fangirling over her for years and love learning social media tips, editing hacks, and laughing out loud over her posts, stories, and trends.

I’m honored to include this interview in the branding series to share how we can make social media more fun and intentional. Jarrah Bean is the queen of transitions, cool girl editing hacks, and tutorials, but she really got me on board with her lessons and encouragement when I noticed how she inspires you and your business to do things on your own terms.

She lives for teaching small businesses, creators, and brands how to optimize their TikTok and Reels strategies so they harness the power of their secret sauce and establish themselves as a go to expert in their industries. Her content strategies are not rinse and repeat or do this or post that because Instagram or TikTok is telling us to do it that way.

Jarrah is not afraid to let her freak flag fly and encourages all of us to share the messy middle and share our business journeys by taking action instead of overthinking. She’s truly an artist that encourages all of us to find our own voices, connect with our aligned clients through our content, while never feeling like a sellout or like we’re trying too hard.

I love a social media bestie that paves the way by trying new things, but also sticks to tried and true marketing strategies that stand the test of time no matter what social media platform or song is trending right this second. With over 1. 5 million followers on Tik Tok and growing over 180k on Instagram, this social media queen clearly knows some strategies.

As a speaker, educator, and content creator, today Jera will help us blend our many personalities, hobbies, and vibes into a cohesive personal brand. She’ll help us unlock our blocks from posting and tap into ways to boost our creativity. We even dive into content strategies that grow with you and your business without ever running out of ideas.

Whip out your notebooks and close out those tabs with a gazillion projects you’re working on. This is a juicy episode. You’re going to want to soak in and take action from Scottsdale, Arizona to Austin, Texas, with a big, bright and warm hug followed by a kitchen dance party. Please welcome the social media queen, Jarrah Bean.

Welcome to Quianna Marie Weekly. A podcast for creatives who love to celebrate wins, big or small, by dancing in the kitchen, photographers who are excited to serve their clients and friends who are ready to chase really, really big dreams. You can find all of the resources mentioned in this episode at kianamarie.

com slash podcast. Join me as I share weekly motivation, chat about growing pains, finding genuine connections, and celebrating your wins together. through the lens of a photographer at heart. Come join me for a dance party. Ready? Let’s go.

Hey, hey, hey. Welcome to the party, Jera. It is such an honor to have you here on the podcast. How’s it going, girlfriend?

Jera Bean: It’s so good. Welcome to the party. I love it. Let’s get it started.

Quianna: Yes. Well, I just have to mention and get this rolling on the right foot. Honestly, just give you some hype right now that your content is so fun.

It’s so, yes, it’s so vibrant. It’s genuine. It feels so authentic. And even for somebody who happens to stumble across your feeds and all of the content you’re creating, a lot of us instantly want to be your BFF, right? Like it’s just, it’s so fun. And I feel like for a lot of us, It doesn’t feel that way. It feels like social media can be a full time job.

How Can We Make Social Media More Fun?

So I would love for us to dive into your strategies and just your thoughts on making social media fun again.

Jera Bean: I have so many thoughts on this. I feel like we could do an entire podcast solely on this episode. So it’s going to be hard to condense this down. But a few things that come to mind when we want to approach social media.

In a bit of a more fun way. I think two things that are coming to me are like, what is our approach, what’s our mindset overall, and then how are we also considering our content? I feel like there’s two buckets we can split that up between when it comes to our approach. I have some, some strong opinions on this.

I feel like these days we are so caught up in. The hashtags, the right posting times, the trending audios. Like we should like let your stories run out after 24 hours so that you can get more views on the next stories. Like it, we’re so caught up in the tactics and I don’t blame anyone because I scroll through my reels tab, more so reels than, than Tik TOK.

And that is the advice out there. Like recently I saw this, this reel that said how to grow on Instagram, even if you’re lazy, Post a question in your stories once a week, batch your content, post a reel and a carousel. And I look at this stuff and I’m like, What are we posting about? What are you asking a question about?

What, what content are you batching? Anyways, all of this is to say that I think we get so wrapped up in the tactics, which make us feel like there is a right and a wrong way to do social media. And that is so far from the truth for every single person doing it one way. I am pretty positive. I can find someone else doing it.

Probably the exact opposite way, finding their own success. So I think if we, I’m not saying that tactics are bad and that we should never consider them. They have a time and a place. But if we can just untangle ourselves a bit from the tactics and, and having that as the only thing in front of us as we are creating and approaching and thinking of social media.

I think that’s going to allow us to let our social media hair down a little bit more and just like, ah, like just relax a little bit. So that’s one thing. It’s like detaching a bit from the tactics, detaching from the outcomes and the views and the follower count and just the numbers that I think dictate so much of our social media experience.

So that’s one bucket. I think then we can also switch to the content side of things. Don’t get me wrong. I love me some good strategy. I think that social media is a tool, a wonderful tool and catalyst to support our business, to support our goals. But there’s Absolutely room to have a little bit of fun with your content.

And I think in a way that is strategic sometimes as well, it’s not just about throwing fluffy stuff out there just for the fun of it. Sometimes it is, but sometimes it’s about connecting and relating and building relationships as well. I think that video content more so than when we are in our photo and caption days allows us to.

To embrace the fun side way more, there are trends we can hop on. Like I was actually thinking today, there’s this one trend. I’m like, I need to find time to hop on it because it’s just the funniest audio. I think it’s from like a American idol audition, but it’s like, what’s your name? Rachel, what do you do for a living?

Nothing right now. I’m lazy at the moment. Like I see people doing like the lift up and it just cracks me up. So like. You know, that’s one specific trend, but trends allow our silly sides to come out. I think stories just showing up in a casual way on stories allow our more silly, more fun side to come out, more lighthearted side to come out.

It doesn’t always have to be silly. So those are the two big things I think about with making social media more fun. It’s how can we adjust our approach and our mindset? And then how can we tap into the different formats in, in content to allow that to come out as well?

Quianna: Yes, I love that so much. And one of my favorite things to share, and I’m so happy that you mentioned this is that we can easily get caught up in the tactics, right?

We can easily get caught up in the strategies. There are so many gurus telling us what to do. And I literally just laugh because maybe this is the Sagittarius, the right I’m thinking of the projector. I’m thinking of all these different things that label me as a business owner. All right. I got into business to do things my way.

I don’t like listening to what other people say. I love that. Right? I love that. Yes. It’s like, I have my clients. I love serving them. I love, you know, considering what their needs are, but I don’t like anybody else telling me what to do. Yeah. I support that. A hundred percent. Oh my gosh. So please tell me, Jera, sometimes I feel, especially in this entrepreneur game, I feel like arena.

A lot of us are super multi passionate, right? We have, oh my gosh, all the different colors that we love. We have different vibes. Some days I wake up and I feel super polished. Some days I wake up and I feel like super tomboy and I’m just in my workout sweats. I may have not worked out that morning, but I’m wearing this clothes, right?

Yep. I’ve been there. I know exactly what you mean. And I, you know, some days I feel like I’m super Western, I have that cowgirl vibe. And then other days I like to be a little more modern and chic. And so, what advice do you give to someone that is just, you know, feeling like they’re kind of all over the place with their style and they’re trying to develop that brand voice or that brand image when we’re kind of all over the place.

Where do we get started with that?

Jera Bean: Yeah, I think we’re all so multifaceted in life and business and all the things. And I think there’s been this narrative for a while now that you have to niche down. You have to pick one thing, only talk about one thing. And I think it’s really Freaked people out. And once again, it’s like creating these rules, just like the trending audios and all that kind of stuff, where it feels like if we aren’t putting ourselves in that box that we’re doing it wrong.

And it’s simply not the case. Now, I don’t think it’s a total free for all, unless you’re just purely a personal account and you’re having fun and like, do whatever you want. But if you are a business, if you’re a personal brand, if you are using social media to Do something else to support something else, whether it’s get speaking events or getting on podcasts or selling your services or products, there does have to be a bit of strategy kind of holding it all in.

And I think oftentimes we can think that like, you know, Oh, I’m this one day. And I want to talk about this the next day. And it feels random, but it actually Isn’t so if you think of yourself kind of like a tree for example And you have all these branches coming out of you and then like leaves coming out of the the branches Like there’s all these different things But if you work backwards all the way down you get to the trunk and then you actually get to the roots And there’s something that is rooting you into the ground, creating this really solid foundation.

Now, if you don’t have this, then this is something that does need to be developed so that all of the quote unquote random different things do make sense. I like to think of the, the roots of this tree grounding you in creating this foundation as like, What is, I don’t necessarily want to say what is your why.

I think that can be a really challenging question to answer. It feels really big. But if you ask yourself, what is it that you want to be known for? What’s the impact you want to create? Like, what are you working towards? How is it that you want to help and serve people? Like, all of these are kind of, you know, a little bit different, but they all kind of circle back to the same thing.

That’s the root of it all. And if you start to zero in on some of those bigger foundational questions and you start to have those answers or you lock in on those answers, to me, that is the thread that weaves it all together. It’s like the lens through which everything else operates. So if you’re, you know, Western one day and minimal the next day, and you’re talking about mindset one day and, um, I don’t know, business tips the next day, whatever it may be.

Sure there’s differences within those things, but they’re all going to be connected through that foundational, if we’re running with the metaphor root system or these bigger questions of what do you wanna be known for? What’s the impact you wanna be have? Uh, what’s the point of really all of this for you?

So those are my thoughts on that.

Quianna: Yes, I love that and I love that you mentioned the tree. I feel like, especially with my resource garden here. All of this is an alignment for just, just getting back to those roots, right? I feel like, I feel like sometimes too, because we have our eyes on us and I feel like we think more people are watching us than they really are, right?

Like they’re judging us. They’re picking us apart. No, really, we are multifaceted and we have so much to offer and we’re really good at a lot of things. So having those roots in place and that kind of like that sturdy trunk of the tree, I love that metaphor.

Jera Bean: Yeah, yeah, I do too. A tree is just, it’s good.

The last thing I’ll say about that is it just sort of came to mind. It’s like some things are going to make sense and some things aren’t. So for example, if someone’s like, I want to sell my crochet Wall hangings. I don’t know where that came from. We’ll run with it. Crochet wall hangings. And I’m also a yoga teacher and like fitness instructor and like you’re wanting to put all of those things under one account and like one’s product, one’s service.

Like that’s when there’s like a misalignment, I think. But if everything is stemming kind of from the same Thing that you’re putting outward the same mission, the same service, or the same product. Uh, that’s when we can have those different facets all under that, that roof, I think. So yeah.

Quianna: Yes. I love this.

So once we do a little bit of inner work, once we just kind of brainstorm and jot down all of our thoughts, all of our ideas, really connect to those roots. I feel like the collective here, we are change makers, right? We are literally. We’re just growing. We are so brave. We are taking calculated risks in our business.

But then once that red blinking light starts blinking at us to record, we freeze. And we’re so fearful. Let’s say we are fast forwarding a little bit. We have a good game plan. We’re ready to make some content. We’re planning. Boosting up that confidence. Jarrah, what are some exercises or some strategies that you can share to help us boost that confidence to show up online?

Jera Bean: So many things come to mind. I kind of want to start in one thing and then I want to rewind back to something else. So the place I want to start here is because I’m thinking of that red light flashing and like you’re about to or you’ve already pressed record and you got to start talking or you’ve got to start doing something.

And I feel like. So many people feel cringy, uncomfortable, all the words associated with that. Cringy and uncomfortable, I think are the top two. And because they feel cringy and uncomfortable, they feel like they aren’t doing it right. They feel like everyone else has it figured out except for them. And I actually think that feeling a little cringy, uncomfortable, whatever it may be, is a really great sign because you’re doing something that is getting you outside of your comfort zone, you’re doing something new, you’re a beginner at something, you’re like progressing to the next level of whatever that level is.

I am constantly interested that when it comes to social media, I feel like we all expect ourselves, like we have these really high expectations of ourselves to be instantly good. Like everything should be comfortable. I should be able to edit. I should be able to talk to camera, like without any, like stumbling over my words or feeling weird about it.

But if you think about any other industry skill, There’s not that expectation. If I go to learn French, and I’ve been taking a class for a week or two, I don’t expect myself to be fluent. I don’t expect myself to understand everything that the teacher is saying back to me. If I went to a painting class, like, it applies to so many different skills and industries.

So we have to understand that with social media. It’s the It’s the same thing, like, we’re gonna have to trudge through the mud a little bit, we’re gonna have to be uncomfortable, and we learn by doing and also making mistakes along the way. So just because it feels hard, or just because it feels uncomfortable, doesn’t mean you’re doing it wrong.

It’s actually a great indicator that you’re doing something right. So that’s one thing. The thing I want to rewind back to is a little bit more of the strategy around what to do Authenticity and feeling yourself and, and being you as the camera is running. I think it actually stems from really understanding how authenticity translates to social media.

I have been doing what I’ve been doing since the very beginning of 2020. Originally, I was a content creator that started in 2015. I was a fitness influencer, a lifestyle influencer. Then at the end of 2019, early 2020, that’s when I developed my social media coaching and education business. And I will say that in the first Year, or year and a half or so, when I had my students and my clients, I would say things like, Yeah, you know, we gotta show up authentically.

Be authentic. Be genuine. And I still hear it to this day, of course, other people say it, and there’s nothing wrong with that. It’s well intentioned. The issue is, it’s incomplete advice. Because what happens is someone goes to their camera, they press record and it’s like, ah, how do I be me? What do I share?

How do I do this right now? And so it took me a little while of realizing that saying be authentic actually wasn’t helping my clients. And so from that, I started to develop. A framework for authenticity and it’s changed. You know, you start with one thing and then like you improve it and shifted over the years.

I think finally it’s actually in a really solid spot. My last change was probably about like a year or so ago, uh, to, to the framework and it stayed the same since then. And it’s called the four quadrants of secret sauce. Secret sauce is just my little phrase of basically equating to authenticity. And these four quadrants.

help to make this somewhat intangible concept of authenticity more tangible and therefore more actionable on social media. So I’ll, I’m happy to go into it further, but I’ll just briefly introduce what those quadrants are. The four are foundational, present, professional, and lighthearted. Foundational Secret Sauce focuses on the past, it’s the challenges, achievements, pivots, anything that’s been pivotal or major in your life that has made you who you are today.

Present Secret Sauce is you right here, right now. So it’s everything from Who are you outside of work, hanging out with your friends, hobbies, what are you doing on the weekends, your dogs, your family, but it’s also the challenging things as well. So it can be the fun and good and lighthearted things in the moment, in the present moment, but it can also be, if you’re going through something crappy or hard, that’s also present secret sauce as well.

Professional secret sauce is As it sounds, you as an entrepreneur, a business owner, whatever it is that you may be, and it’s less of what you are doing, and it’s more of how you see things in your field or industry. So, What are your philosophies, your values? Why is it that someone comes to you versus someone else who does the same exact thing as you do?

So it’s a little bit more of like, yeah, that, that, the values, how you see things. And, and what makes you unique in your niche or industry. And then lastly, lighthearted secret sauce that is the fun, the silly, the goofy. Also it doesn’t have to be funny, it can just be the, the mundane and sort of random parts of your day as well.

I always like, you know, some people they’re like, but Jarrah, I’m not really a funny person. That’s okay. Lighthearted can just be the routine stuff. In your day or in your life. So those are the four quadrants. And I think having a really solid understanding of that then fast forward to actually coming up with ideas and creating content.

Authenticity then becomes a much more graspable concept.

Quianna: Yes. Oh my gosh. I love your secret sauce in these quadrants. I am a big list taker. Like, I love visuals and I love seeing that. I feel like I can actually see that graph that’s like a four square game where battles fall back and forth. I love that.

I love that. I love it. Oh my gosh. Well, and I think too, when we are so confident in what we’re doing, right, whether like you mentioned, going back to that root system, going back to those strategies, when we know that what we have to say matters, there’s, there’s this, This gumption, there’s this need. It’s almost like I’m actually more fearful of not sharing this than sharing this, right?

Like when we can develop those, whether it is your products, whether it is your services, or whether it is just your voice that needs to be shared, when we’re confident in that, Followed by that framework that just creates those kickstarters and just creates that formula. We’re unstoppable. Like that’s just,

Jera Bean: yeah,

Quianna: it’s so easy to start creating fun

Jera Bean: content.

Yeah. Yeah. And I think what you said it to me, it stems from this trust within yourself. That you do have value to share. That you are different from other people in your field. That just because someone else is doing something doesn’t mean, doesn’t like take away from what you’re doing. And that you have value and, and help that you can give to other people and, and can benefit other people as well.

So that trust word really came up for me as you were describing that.

Quianna: Yes, absolutely. Oh my gosh. Well, I would love to like dig a little bit deeper into your formula and into your secret sauce. Because I just, I would love to kind of just open up the conversation to share how we can be just more strategic with blending our personal life and our business without feeling too salesy or too braggy or too much.

How can we Roll that out. What’s your advice on that?

Jera Bean: So immediately I kind of react to the too salesy or too braggy, because I think that 99 percent of people are never too salesy and never too braggy. And it’s actually like way in the other direction. And what I find is I think it’s like more so women than men.

If I’m going to make a, just mass generalization that. We’re kind of taught growing up societally and culturally, like, to not, you know, be too loud, to not be too much, to kind of like keep the peace and be small physically as well as, you know, with, with our, our voice as well. And I feel like that translates over to social media where it’s like, Oh, like, I don’t want to say too much.

I don’t want to brag too much. Where I think it’s the opposite. Like, we need to toot our own horn. Like, that is, I’m not going to say that’s the only thing that social media is for, but that is one thing that social media is for. Because we are not using social media just to, you know, just for fun. We’re using it To get closer as a catalyst to wherever it is that we want to go.

And in order to do that, we have to be our own biggest fans. We have to toot our own horn. So if you achieve something, big or small, share it. If someone says something nice about you, share it. If you feel good about something, share it. Like, I really don’t think that if you are a well intentioned human being rooted down in that metaphorical tree, I don’t think that there’s ever going to be a, a, a, a moment where it’s too braggy.

And let’s say someone does think it’s too braggy. That’s not your person. If someone, and funny enough, actually, this is very relevant. I once got a DM, uh, this is a couple of years ago of someone who thought that they were messaging their friend, but they actually messaged me and it said something to the effect of she’s trying too hard.

And I kind of equate that to like doing too much, that type of thing. And, uh, It’s just so, it’s just so interesting. Like there’s obviously something that kind of, I don’t know if it triggers or just makes someone feel insecure. Like there’s something that you are doing that. Isn’t making them feel good for whatever reason in their context.

And that’s not your responsibility. So I don’t ever want someone to dim their light or hold back because someone else might think or say something. And the thing is that someone else out there probably will, but you know, we can’t. We can’t constrict our lives based on someone else’s thought or what they say about us.

So that’s one thing about more of like the bragging and the toot your horn type of thing. Uh, full permission to toot, toot, toot your horn. Um, when it comes to sales, like slightly different, but kind of, you know, sister, sister, uh, concepts here. If you are a business and you aren’t selling on social media, or if you’re feeling very shy about it and you’re not doing it too much.

Well, then you have a hobby. You don’t have a business. Once again, we’re not just using social media for fun. It’s a tool to support our business. Um, there are people who I follow who sell in some shape or form. And, and I do think there’s quite a range. There’s hard selling where you are Being very clear and direct.

And there’s like a CTA to buy or hire or apply. And then we can go all the way to the other end of the spectrum, which is soft selling, where you’re more so, um, generating awareness around what you do, but not necessarily asking for a clear action. You could share the schedule in your day. You should, could share a press feature or client testimonial, or share your values around what it is that you do.

So there is a big range. However, there are people I follow who, who sell. almost every single day, either hard to soft sell. And I actually really admire it. It’s inspiring to me. I don’t sell every single day, but the people who I do see, I’m like, that is so inspiring for me. And it, um, Sometimes I think gives me permission to, to do it even more.

So once again, kind of similar to the, to the braggy point where if someone thinks you’re being too braggy, that’s not your person. Same thing. I think if someone thinks you’re being too salesy, well, that’s just not your person. And, and we can just, you know, move on. We don’t have to be for everyone. It’s cool.

Quianna: Yes, I love this so much. And you’re right. Like we need other people to know about us. Literally, that’s one of my favorite things to share is like, we need more people to know about you, period. So however you’re sharing that, however you’re showing up, I just, oh, I can go on and on about this for days. Yeah.

Yeah. Right there with you. Yes. Well, and I love to, I would love to share or kind of dig a little bit deeper. I’m like, we’re digging in deeper into the roots here about. Like sharing the mindset of this. So like, how can we bake sales into our everyday stuff, right? So, so for example, I’m thinking of you and your fiddle leaf, right?

Like I just, you’re posting about it. Like, it’s just so cute. Like these are so random little things that, you know, maybe someone is not interested at this moment to invest in your program, but they’re seeing your watering schedule. You’re asking about leaves and what the heck this means. And I just, I love that so much, but the message I wanted to share is, like, you can easily post something and say, Oh, I’m gonna, I’m watering my fiddle leaf here before I hop on this client call, right?

Like you’re, you’re baking these, these pieces and ways to work with you, but like kind of hidden behind like subliminally wink wink behind these things. So can you share some thoughts on that and maybe some strategies that we can kind of intertwine these things to actually. Make them make sense so we don’t feel like we’re just throwing our life online.

Jera Bean: Yeah, I think exactly what you described is the epitome of a soft sell, where you are generating awareness, but you’re not necessarily saying, buy my course, apply to work with me now. Like, buy this, which is that you can do that too. That’s okay.

That’s more of the hard sell. So, I think it’s just a, it’s like starting to build the muscle of talking about yourself and kind of like hint, I don’t want to say hinting because it can be a not, it can not be a hint, it can just be like a full on like telling people, but I do think that Soft selling is something that you can incorporate every single day, and it will feel quite aligned, compared to hard selling, you want to save it for, for the right time.

So those, that kind of hinting energy is something we can do every day. And exactly what you said, I think that’s a great example. Like, I’m watering my, my garden. Fiddle leaf fig and like, I think shaking it too. I think they like that. I haven’t really done that in a while, um, before I get on a client call.

Like that’s one example, because to me that shows a little slice of your life, but you’re also saying outwardly, just so you know, I take clients. I think I did something like that recently. And I got a message from someone and she’s like, you take one on one clients? I had no idea. And so we also think that we’re repeating ourselves a lot of the time and we’re broken records.

But oftentimes we are the biggest consumers of our content and we’re, we’re, we’re. Other people are just seeing it for a moment. So we do actually have to repeat ourselves a lot in order to get that message across. But aside in order to, um, really start weaving that in more, it can be, you know, like kind of committing at least once a day to.

incorporating that soft sell into your stories. I think that’s such an easy way to start practicing it. For example, right now, if I had my phone out and I was doing a time lapse of me talking and I could say, you know, I was just on a podcast talking about these things. Um, and then maybe tomorrow I am going through my slides for my upcoming presentation.

And it’s like a little behind the scenes moment of, Oh, I’m doing this presentation on how to create a powerful social media strategy to grow your personal brand. Oh, hint, hint. I, I speak. You can hire me to do that later this week. I’m going to do an in person session with my friend and help him film some content for social media.

I’m going to do, you know, a little, once again behind the scenes moment and not just show it, but also give detail into what exactly we’re doing. All right. Part one, we’re going to talk about, We scripted, then we timed the scripts to make sure that they’re all under 60 seconds. Then line by line, he’s going to record each one.

I’m going to direct him a little bit in between the shots, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. It’s like also insight into the process and giving a little bit of the details behind the what as well. So it really can be as simple as that. You’re sharing your life, but with that, like sprinkling of. I’m a business, I do this, you can work with me in this way, hire me in this way, and so on.

Quianna: Yes. Oh my gosh. I love this so much. And this is giving me so many ideas for future things. I know I am a huge advocate for B Roll. I am the behind the scenes queen. I love it. I, I truly believe documenting content is just the way to go because you’re already doing the hard work. I love to share that.

We’re already doing it. We’re already creating these transformations with clients. We’re showing up. We’re going above and beyond. Our heart is in it. We have these tips and tricks and hacks and things that we can share as they’re unfolding naturally. So with that in mind, I would love to kind of shift the conversation to share that after we feel confident just recording our daily life and recording our business and really using your framework and your secret sauce.

I feel like Jarrah, I feel like a lot of us are often on this struggle bus of manifesting for more, right? We, we love seeing ourselves on stages, just like you mentioned, like we’re dropping these hints here and there, and we’re taking these big risks and We’re really trying to scale, right? We’re trying to grow.

How can we, and I’m doing air quotes over here. How can we edit our energy on social media or become an authority to share where we’re headed instead of where we are currently

Jera Bean: is to see what I’m saying. I do. I do. It’s a really interesting question. I mean, first thing that comes to mind is that everyone.

Love the story. Everyone loves a journey. Um, I think back to my early early Instagram days, like 2015 2016 when it was like my be all and all goal to become a soul cycle instructor, which it took me a very long time. I. The first training had to go through it again. It was a whole thing. Um, but that story was something that I was very much actively sharing as it happened.

I shared about the audition. I shared about the second audition because I didn’t make it through the second time. I shared about the, um, 20 weeks of training I had to do and the first rides that I taught and really brought people along. And so I know that’s not quite fitting the bill because it still is in the present moment.

But I think the nuance there is that we’re letting people into what the goal is that we’re working towards. Um, we’re letting people into the process and we’re not just saying, this is me in the present moment and hiding what it is that we’re working towards or what it is that we want to be or achieve.

We’re really bringing people along for the journey so that they’re there in the present moment with us, but they know what that bigger vision is. And I think that gives so much more meaning to your. Personal brand. I think it builds deeper connections with your community. So that’s one thing that comes to mind, I think in another, and, and perhaps this answers this, this in somewhat like roundabout way, the word and the concept of, of thought leadership comes to mind when it comes to more value based content, more educational content.

I like to think, uh, I actually call it the expertise. pyramid, and I divide it up into three sections for different ways to share your expertise. None of them are like necessarily better or worse than the other, just three types. Um, at the bottom, we have more of those how to’s, tips, tutorials, resources. In the middle, I call it commentary and insights.

It’s more of what is happening in the world, in pop culture, industry news, that you can. Talk about, but then give your take, your insights, your opinion, your perspective on. And at the very top is thought leadership, which I think is so important, but it’s really the most challenging one to bring to life because how tos and tips, you know, okay, here’s how to do this step by step, commentary and insights.

Here’s this thing that’s happening. I can lean on that thing that’s happening as part of my idea and then just give my take on it versus thought leadership. This is entirely. up to you to develop what that idea is. And I do think that you have to have a couple years experience under your belt working with clients or whatever it is that, that you do to start to form those types of opinions and, and viewpoints.

And so what I’m getting to here is I think that even if we haven’t gotten to whatever that place is yet. We haven’t spoken on a stage yet. Maybe we don’t have our first podcast. Well, you still have the stage of social media where you can get on reels or stories or whatever it is and talk and use your voice and share those more thought leadership esque ideas and concepts.

So that one is a little bit more like, I guess, maybe intangible, but. That was the second thing that came to mind is like really putting that thought leadership forward to kind of give this outward perspective that you are really like heading in that whatever that direction is and developing these viewpoints and, and skills and, and really using your voice as well.

That’s the biggest part of it. I think.

Quianna: I’m so grateful that you broke down that pyramid. Cause once again, it’s like, I’m drawing this picture in my head. I can see I can see this value stack and right, like every experience adds onto the next and, and I even, I’d love to share personally too, just this weekend I hosted, um, it’s called lucky 13 and I host these quarterly content days.

There are photo shoots and just little fun, little behind the scene B roll days. And oh my gosh, Jara, I got to rent out my dream barn studio. So it was just like so beautiful, tons of natural light and. And the piece that I want to share with that is that it’s the embodiment. I mean, I didn’t, I dreamed to have that one day, one day we’re going to buy our dirt, right?

I already have my cowboy. We’re going to, we’re going to buy our dirt. We’re going to build our home one day. And it’s going to have like a studio on the property to rent out for small events, rent out for workshops and stuff. Just all the fun stuff. That’s the vision. And my audience is well aware of that.

Like they know that’s coming. That’s been a big dream for a long time, but being in that space, It, it, that’s the embodiment piece that I’m so excited to share is like, it’s, it’s, you know, whatever feels good, manifesting, praying, right? Talking to the universe, whatever is your guide. And like, even if it’s your heart telling you what’s next, it just felt so good to be there and to create that content in that space, knowing that it’s coming.

And even the girls that were, you know, that were attending, I’ve been photographing them for years. And they’re like, Oh, this is it. Whoa, this is it key. I can see it. Like they’re, they’re dreaming with me. And they’re And they’re sending contacts to me. Oh, have you talked to this commercial realtor? Have you talked to this person?

Oh, you need to talk to this right builder, all these things. Once we start sharing those pieces of our hearts to get them on board, you’ll be amazed how quickly the universe aligns to make it happen.

Jera Bean: Yes. Yes. And I love that word embodiment. I think that just like wraps it all up with a bow. But what you said, I think also really reflects like of just of sharing it and being open with it.

And, and these, you know, you could just have never shared that that’s a dream of yours. And then you’re shooting this weekend in, you know, in that space and you don’t see it. And then once you have it in a year or however long, like, and you share how excited you are about, and this was a dream, I mean, that, that’s great.

There’s nothing wrong with that, but I think there’s so much more depth when you sprinkle these little hints and, and explanations and dreams along the way that provides so much more depth once you actually get there. So I think that’s like the perfect example of that.

Quianna: Yes. Oh my gosh. Well, speaking of thought leadership, I would love to kind of bring it back.

I love how we’re kind of bouncing back between mindset and tactical. Yeah. Like all the mindset and strategies. I love this. So I love to dive a little bit deeper into the strategy. So let’s say we are confident. We have the experience. We’re well aware of our brand messaging. I would love to kind of chat about the difference between creating your own organic content, like that thought leader content versus trends.

I know we mentioned trends a little bit, but I would really love to share your opinion on what’s really working and how can we align ourselves as that expert just by using our own voice, just by hitting, recording our camera and creating our own content. Like, how does that. How do we make our own content?

Jera Bean: Yeah, and I think what you said is a great starting point because if we just really simplify two different types of content, we do have original content and we have trending content. Trending content is just a broad overview of are you using a trending sound? Is there a lip dub like that silly one I mentioned like a couple minutes ago?

Is it a transition? Is it like A certain type of edit, like there’s some something that everyone is repeating. That’s how we know that it’s a trend. And then we hop on it and put our own spin on it to make it relevant to us and our, and our brands and businesses versus original content. We’re not relying on a sound or transition or whatever it is.

It’s our own idea that we are bringing to the table. And I think there is a time and a place for both. I think if we are, I don’t like to be black and white, but I’ll be black and white for a moment and then provide some nuance that if I’m being super, super black and white and I had to like say one is one and one is the other trending content is more of our kind of growth content.

Whereas original content is more nurture content that isn’t true a hundred percent of the time. But like I said, I’m just going to be black and white for a moment. But trending content, if you, you know, hop on a trend in early stage, as that trend rises in popularity and more and more people are doing it, it’s not a guarantee, but it’s possible that your video is the one that starts to get pushed out or it’s, uh, Uh, at the top of the, the sound page.

And so trends are a great way to potentially get in front of more people versus original content. And this is more so for Instagram. Less, less for Tik TOK is going to generally have a little bit less of an opportunity to get in front of more people. Cause Instagram like is very trend heavy and sound heavy.

It drives me a little cuckoo, but that’s just how it is. But, if you think of people coming into your sphere, following you, being in your community, they need something of deeper value. They need something, whether it’s sharing your expertise or sharing more about your personal story, and that’s where the original content comes in.

I will say, and I want to be very clear, that there, like, I can think of a couple people right now who are only doing original content. All talking to camera on the longer side who are absolutely crushing it. And I actually have a client right now I’ve been working with for a couple months and it makes my heart so happy that we’ve been experimenting with different things.

And it’s her spoken content, talking to camera content. That does the best out of all of the things that she posts. And I just love when that happens because to me, original content is so important. That is how you are going to get your voice, like literally actually using your voice, but also your thought leadership, your perspective.

That’s going to be the most potent way to get that through. I think that that is the most important when someone is, you know, wanting to work with us. They like it, a sense of our energy vibe. If someone’s looking at your profile to potentially hire you to speak, whatever it may be, it’s that spoken original content.

That’s going to have the highest impact. But I will also say that sometimes it doesn’t perform that well. And that’s okay. I think oftentimes our, Least performing content are not so great. Performing content can also be our most impactful content because that is not for the masses. Usually it’s the stuff for the masses that go viral.

That’s that’s why they can pick up so much steam. Cause like everyone gets it. Everyone laughs. Everyone understands it versus something that is more thought leadership. More in the thought leadership direction or something that’s really speaking to your ideal person or ideal client that’s very, very specific for that person and therefore it might not perform quite as well.

And that’s okay. It’s not about constantly going viral, but more so thinking of your content in your account like an ecosystem with all these different elements that come together and live and breathe is one thing.

Quianna: Yes. I love that so much. And I’m so happy that you broke them up. I know. I don’t like living in black and white either.

I live, I call them watercolors because everything kind of blends together. I

Jera Bean: like

Quianna: that. Right. It’s like, sometimes it works for this. Sometimes it works for that. Um, I love your description of that. And I, I do, I really see the value in those talking head videos in those original content pieces. That’s just you, like you, your thoughts, your ideas, and it’s just so fun.

So I would love to know Jera. How do you find your inspiration? Where is your creativity sparked from? I know sometimes for trends, I will say we are, we have to scroll, we’re scrolling to find those trends. But if we’re looking to really tap into our own energy, into our own thought leading processes, how do we do that?

Like, where do you find your creativity?

Jera Bean: Oh, I love the question, but I feel like that’s so hard, but like, I, I, I also love it. It’s such an important question. I think the first thing that comes to mind is like actually giving yourself space and time to think. This is something that I have struggled with for a while.

I’ve had a really tough couple of years for a variety of reasons. One of which is just like, like working so much and just extreme burnout. And so reflecting on the last few years, I, I don’t think I’ve really, I don’t think I’ve Produce my best content because if we have all this other noise, whether it’s business related, personal related, how can we actually tune into that inner voice, that inner creative voice that needs like, I think, silence with all the other things in order to come out in order to be louder.

So I think giving yourself time and space to think, uh, I’m, I’m working with a kind of business mindset coach. Who’s. incredible. And her term for it is a visionary day. She gives herself, and I’m still not good at this. It’s on my list to get better at it, even like a visionary hour. But she gives herself, I think almost a whole day, uh, every week to just tap back into, Her values in business and what it is that she’s creating and who she wants to work with and the impact she wants to have and giving herself that time and space to quiet everything else and really tune in.

So I think that is a huge part of it. I also think that sometimes just like getting out of podcast or. Maybe there’s a self help book I’m reading or a mindset book that I’m reading and hearing different concepts in other industries make something click in your mind where you’re like, oh, wait a second, what a cool idea.

And I’m like filtering it through my business and my industry and this allows something else to come out. Um, I think that’s sort of the antithesis to, to scrolling and trying to find inspiration on Instagram. And the other thing that comes to mind, I’m just sort of like rambling as, as these different thoughts, because, um, it’s been a while since someone’s asking me that.

So I’m thinking on the fly here, but I think it’s also not scrolling on Instagram. We do need that for trends. And so there’s a time and a place to intentionally scroll to see what’s going on. What’s trending, what audios can I use if I do want to use them, but understanding that you have the power to come up with.

with your own ideas and it might just be a bit of a muscle that you have to gain some strength around, um, versus relying on scrolling through content. So, yeah, that’s what comes to mind for those creative, you know, Inspiration strikes.

Quianna: Yes. I love that. And sometimes, like you said, it’s just getting out of that environment.

It’s, it’s stop holding your phone, get outside, get away from your computer, go, you know, go hang out at a friend’s house, go do a walk in nature, walk your dog outside somewhere like just, you know, and I even noticed this too. I love traveling and I love every time I go into a restaurant, I have to go into the restroom, even if I don’t have to pee because I love seeing the decor.

I love seeing the tile they use, right? Like, these are all things that really have not much to do with photography or with my branding business, but Just creativity in general, looking at different fonts on menus, uh, right, like just being in other creative spaces is going to spark all these really fun ideas.

I love that.

Jera Bean: Speaking of restaurants, my husband makes fun of me, but in a, You know, supportive endearing way. Every single time I go to a restaurant, I like look at the glasses and I’m like, Ooh, I love those glasses. I just, I love glasses. I think I love lamps as well. And so, yeah, that just made me think of like how you go into the bathroom.

It’s the same thing. I’m always looking at the glasses and yeah, sometimes just looking at things in, in different ways, even if it’s something like a bathroom or a glass, it actually unstuck another part of your brain. I think that’s a really important part of it.

Quianna: So true. Oh my gosh. I could talk to you forever and ever.

I have two more questions for you. Yes, please. So one question that I love, I feel like this is like, I need to ask this right this second because we are generating a ton of creativity. We have your framework, we’re ready to roll. Jarrah, how do you keep all of this organized? What the heck? Like whether it’s your ideas, whether it’s your videos and all your B roll clips, like obviously once again.

Hint, hint, I know you have resources for this, but like, if you could just sum up or share a tool, like, how do you stay organized with all of this content you’re generating?

Jera Bean: I’m going to be so honest. I, I kind of hate answering this question because I feel like it’s, um, do as I say, not as I do. I am not an organization girly.

Like it’s just not me. I was recently on a panel with a gal named Amber, who’s been my Instagram friend for a while. And like, she’s, that’s her, like hearing her talk about organization and how she keeps things, you know, organized and like separated and labeled. I’m like, that is incredible. That’s just not how I am.

So, for me, you know, I have notes apps on my phone where I jot down ideas. I have Notion where sometimes I, you know, will write some of my scripts out for the week. But, I, for the most part, am not really writing. organizing. However, I don’t think that’s the best way to go about it. But what I will say is it just happens to work for me.

So that’s the thing about organization and planning and all this is that it’s such a personal thing as well. Like one person might be using monday. com. Someone else might only use the notes in their phone. Someone else might use a, a written document. And some, one person might batch all of their ideas for the month ahead.

Someone might just batch for the week ahead. I do think it is good to like, at least look at a few posts at a time just so that you’re being a little bit more of a high level versus only being inspired and just kind of creating during the day. But the bigger lesson here is finding what works for you.

Even if it’s not picture perfect, kind of like I’m being very honest about here. So, yeah, it’s what, what works for you and what is going to be the thing that you can like integrate into your daily life. Even if it’s as simple as, okay, I have a brainstorm notes app to at least capture ideas and thoughts and concepts as they come.

Quianna: Yes. Oh my gosh. Well, I am giving you the biggest hug right now and just the biggest breath of fresh air because girl, I’m not organized in like that aspect either. Thank you. I always feel like sheepish saying that,

Jera Bean: but

Quianna: like I

Jera Bean: just got to be

Quianna: honest. This is so normal, you know, and I’ll just share one of my favorite tips is actually just uploading them onto my Google.

It’s like a Google app. So it’s not a Google Drive. I’m not dropping them into Google Drive. It’s like the Google photo app. And I just have them backed up. So in case I ever have to search for something, I can search for a location. I can search for a face. Like, it’s insane. It’s actually kind of creepy to be honest, but it’s a resource for us, right?

But I love that. I love that you’re being so transparent and honest about that, that it’s okay. It’s absolutely okay to, to have a game plan and to just be so full of ideas that they’re flowing. So I love that you’re, you’re in a safe space. Okay.

Jera Bean: Thank you so much. I appreciate that. Yes.

Quianna: And so one question I love to ask every single guest, Jera, what is your key tip?

What is something that you wish you knew sooner or something you’d like to share with an entrepreneur today?

Jera Bean: I think I always come back to one of my favorite mantras, which is feel the fear and do it anyway. And I think it’s, that sentiment has come up in so many different ways over the last, I mean, for a long time.

But if I’m thinking about social media, it’s been almost a decade that I’ve been showing up on social media. And it’s been everything from trying out to be a soul cycle instructor with no fitness experience. I didn’t understand music. I had nothing that was really going for me besides my enthusiasm.

It’s about saying yes to speaking on a stage in front of 300 people despite having a awful fear of public speaking. It’s about putting yourself out there, even if you feel cringy. To me, feel the fear and do it anyway says that it’s okay to be scared. It’s not about being fearless, but can you really say, okay, I’ve got this, I’ve got this fear, I’ve got this worry, anxiety, whatever it may be, and can I still move forward?

Despite it. So that’s the, the phrase, the sentiment, the mantra that has been so important for me for close to 10 years now that I always like to share with other people as well.

Quianna: Yes. I love this so much. And I feel like that’s the perfect thread throughout this conversation, especially when we’re speaking of showing up authentically, hitting that red button, seeing that blinking light, feeling cringe, feeling awkward and doing it anyway.

The world needs to hear our voices. They, they need our products. They need our resources. They need the transformations that we’re creating. And it’s truly up to us to do that. Like we should, like I said before, we should be more fearful of not showing up than actually just hitting record.

Jera Bean: Yeah. Yeah. Mic drop.

I’m dropping it right here.

Quianna: Oh my gosh, Jera. Well, thank you so much for this conversation. How can we connect with you? How can we learn more and be your BFF online?

Jera Bean: Yeah, come, come everyone. It’s a party on Instagram, jara. bean on TikTok. Jara. bean, I’ve actually been on LinkedIn a little bit more recently.

So if you’re on LinkedIn, come find me. And currently, I am so proud. I just released my new album. self paced course back in the end of July. So not too long ago now it’s called the video editing rodeo. It’s a comprehensive self paced course that teaches you the essential skills of short form video content editing reels and TikTok so you can make better videos in less time.

I also have A lower ticket item called the authentic personal brand blueprint. So if you’re really wanting to work through some prompts and exercises to tune into so much of what we’ve been talking about today, that’s a really great resource. And other than that, send me a DM,

Quianna: say, hello, I’m here.

Incredible. Thank you so much for sharing your wisdom and I’m just so grateful for you. I told you I’ve been fangirling for this conversation for so long. And if you’re listening, you’re thinking, all right, I have a big question to ask, or I’m going to put myself out there, do it. Cause Jera said yes to this conversation.

So just do it, girlfriend.

Thanks so much for having me on. This was a blast. Thank you. Have a beautiful day.

Holy smokes!!! That was a good one. And I’m so thankful for Jarrah’s magic today. I hope you found these lessons and social media tips helpful. We are all just trying to figure things out as we go.

And it’s important to connect with business owners and friends that make you feel like sunshine. Make sure to check out the show notes to learn more about the video editing rodeo, grab the authentic personal brand blueprint and learn more editing tutorials by following along with Jarrah. at Jera dot bean.

That’s @jera.bean on Instagram and TikTok. It’s truly an honor to make this connection and to share these strategies with you. We’re literally your biggest fans and would love to continue supporting you and your wildest dreams. If you have just two seconds, we have a challenge for you. Please grab a pic or a quick B roll video of what you’re doing while you’re listening to this episode.

Share a quick takeaway or why you loved it. If you have a business bestie that has some social media anxiety and needs to get out of their own way, send this to them too. We all have voices, stories, offers, and products to share that can change the lives of our clients and customers. Let’s make social media fun again.

You are incredible. My love, you are ready to become that next version of yourself. Our world needs you and your magic. We’re supporting you every step of the way. Thanks so much for hopping into this branding series. Can’t wait to introduce you to another branding bestie, Rachael Leigh next week. Make sure to subscribe to stay connected.

Keep on dancing, baby. Okay. Love you. Bye. That’s a wrap on another episode of Quianna Marie Weekly!

Thank you so much for your listenership and support. You can find the resources and show notes for this episode and more at QuiannaMarie.com/podcast

I’d be honored if you’d show your support by leaving a review and rating on your favorite podcast app until next time, keep on dancing.

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