Leading Ladies Series Vol.1

A Social & Staple spotlight on the women behind creative brands, what it means to be successful in the industry and insights into the world of female leadership.

Our Founder and Creative Director, Elke, was recently featured in the Australian Business Journal as one of “20 Social Media managers to work with in 2022”.

So, how did she get there? What has the Social & Staple journey looked like and what’s next for the team?
Here’s our chat.

What was the catalyst for starting Social & Staple?

I started Social & Staple in 2016 because I discovered a demand in the market for social media management. My primary focus and sole service was social media management; I was running a lot of small and local businesses’ Instagram pages, taking photos etc. It was that magical time when the algorithm and community engagement was high. My background was in corporate marketing for much larger firms and I found that being part of a large organisation had its perks and endowed me with so many skills. The other side of the coin is that you really are just a number in their game. I felt like a small fish in a big pond while I watched some of my friends start their own small businesses, so I thought about how to gain the kind of work lifestyle I was craving.

Initially, I specialised in helping small businesses on the Gold Coast who were typically overlooked by bigger agencies and found that really rewarding. Connecting with brands that I aligned with was my core objective and I feel like that close knit community was really where Social & Staple thrived.

I found a passion in helping small brands create big moves and loved working with these businesses because I felt like an extension to their existing team and was able to scale with them as they grew. Moving from primarily social media management to paid social media management and email marketing campaigns and now a full service agency has been a natural progression for Social & Staple. Today we find ourselves in a really nice pocket of the market as a boutique agency with the personal touches of a small business and the expertise of a bigger organisation.

Did you/Do you have a vision for the future of the brand?

When I first reinvested in SS, my vision for the brand was to work primarily by myself (with the potential to bring one more person on to help me grow the business). I didn’t envision that it would develop exponentially in such a short time and that our services would be in such high demand. I knew I would have to expand our offerings and team at this point.

It has been so rewarding to build my dream team and now work with some of our dream clients who share our mentality around nurturing long term relationships over transactionships. I think that is really where the future of Social & Staple lies: working on engaging clients who align with us as a purposeful brand for the long haul. At this point, our brand identity is strong: we know who we are and the great results we are capable of achieving. We are a team of creatives and expert marketers, so our focus is on delivering for our SS family clientele using a sustainable model that scales our services with their growth.

“Social & Staple’s MO has never been about making a quick buck and for that reason we are not driven by making money at any cost. I believe this is why we have been so successful in retaining clients who align with our vision for the future, by prioritising a great team culture, environment and education.”

I strongly believe that cultivating our team’s ecosystem enables us to do the best work possible for our SS family. I never want to look at other agencies for inspiration; I want to just do us and for people to look at us for inspiration as industry leaders. We don't follow trends, we want to create them.

Is an all-female team important to you?

Firstly, I didn’t set out with the intention of forming an all female team but it is a strength for us because we work with a lot of female based brands and it enables us to connect with their tone of voice and target audiences. An intrinsically feminine brand is always going to be best represented by its target demographic by default. 

It’s no secret that most high ranking executive positions in our industry are typically held by men, and while I’m sure they are deserving of their roles, it feels like the tide is changing on who gets to hold positions of power. There are certainly a lot of wonderful, creative women in marketing so it’s really exciting to see a culture shift that puts them in the driver’s seat as creative directors, brand managers and the like.

I feel fortunate to have a team of inspiring and creative women who are passionate and driven about what we do because I find it incredibly motivating and it has built the momentum Social & Staple is enjoying.

I'm so proud of my team and most importantly the culture within it because everyone works so well together.

We have a relatively flat business structure; there’s no corporate hierarchy here! You won’t find anyone with a superiority complex because we have so much respect for each other and take our wins as a collective.

What is the best part about connecting with brands that align with the SS values?

Undoubtedly the most rewarding thing about connecting with clients who align with our brand values is that we feel connected and engaged with telling their stories through content and marketing. It makes our job so much easier! When you vibe with a company’s content and tone of voice, you really do feel like an extension to their team instead of an agency that's come in and changed the way they look and feel.

What does the juggle look like day-to-day being a woman in leadership?

In a word? Chaotic! I must say that being a mum makes the juggle a lot harder! I'm so glad I don't work in a larger organisation these days because you really do have to put your career on hold when you're a mother.

When you’re able to lead a team and a business that aligns with you it doesn't feel like a job. Yes, it still has its challenges but the payoff is always worth it.

“As a woman in leadership there is often a push-pull when it comes to making business decisions and the motivating force behind those. While a woman’s care factor can often be our strength, it can also be a challenge when you’re faced with the prospect of letting someone down, not being able to give someone 100% or choosing to let go of business relationships that you’ve outgrown.”

I think it’s a deeply female thing to feel guilt over these issues and I suppose just another hurdle we face when taking on positions of authority.

Advice to your younger self about starting your own business.

Speaking frankly, I would tell myself to only get into business if I was passionate about the concept and really willing to work hard. I would say it’s very alluring to see a glorified version of business ownership on social media, but it is quite different in reality.

Running a business is no joke! It’s challenging in many ways and you have to take lessons from every mistake you make along the way.

On the other hand, you’ll grow as a person. You’ll learn just how much capacity you have to deal with a spectrum of issues that are way outside your comfort zone.

I would also say know your worth. This is something that as women and small business owners can be quite challenging. When you are trying to make connections and build a profile for yourself, it’s tempting to diminish your value for the sake of pleasing others but the reality is that your time is valuable and you need to back yourself if you want to succeed. Business is not a personal thing so you need to look at your situations objectively.

Lastly, I would say be humble and surround yourself with people who are good for you, your business and your personal growth.