Landing Your First Brand Deal: An Influencer’s Guide to Success with Lena Hambrick
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Ever scroll through Instagram and see those seemingly effortless influencer posts, wishing you could tap into that industry for yourself?
Well, buckle up, because today we're diving into the world of influencer marketing with a real-life success story that will have you taking notes!
On this episode of "How I Made My First Dollar," I sat down with my good friend Lena Hambrick, finance professional turned content creator.
Lena’s story is a roadmap for anyone looking to leverage the power of influencer marketing.
We're talking about building a loyal audience from the ground up (and how her first brand deal was a whopping $100), forging long-term partnerships with brands that resonate with her values, and even navigating the transition from a niche focus to a broader lifestyle brand – all while keeping her audience engaged.
Sound interesting? Yeah, I thought so.
This episode is packed with actionable advice for aspiring influencers, but it's also a goldmine for small business owners who want to understand the influencer landscape and how to build impactful partnerships!
So, grab a coffee, settle in, and get ready to learn these influencer secrets.
Lena Hambrick: [00:00:00] But the first time that I did get paid, I did go back and look at my emails to see when this is in 2015 and I actually reached out to the brand. So I was like, okay, Lena in 2015 Lena, like you better go ahead and do that. Okay. And I got a whopping $100 for four Instagram posts. So I definitely thought I was doing it with that $100 because, but that was just the start of it.
Netta Dobbins: Welcome to How I Made My First Dollar, your go to podcast for entrepreneurial success stories and actionable marketing advice. I'm your host Netta Dobbins, and with over a decade of marketing experience and an interesting journey of successfully building my own business, I'll be your guide here, helping you create a revenue generating business everyone should know about.
If you're already 10 toes down in entrepreneurship or simply flirting with the idea of taking the leap, this This podcast will help you unlock actionable strategies to really shift your business to the next level. Let's get started.
Netta Dobbins: So before we hop into today's episode, I have a very special announcement for all of my business owners or soon to be business owners out there. I am launching a brand new course called The Email Advantage, which is all about how do you use email marketing in your business to grow your audience and grow your revenue?
We're going to start at the very beginning and I'm going to teach you things like how. How to build an email list, which email platforms work for you or what to even say in your emails. And they weren't going to go all the way to advanced techniques. Like. how do you automate your emails so that your email marketing is working for you and you're putting your business on autopilot.
So if you're interested, go to Netta Dobbins. Dot com forward slash email.
Now let's happen to the episode.
Netta Dobbins: Welcome everyone to how I made my first dollar. My name is Netta Dobbins, and I am your host for this podcast. And today I have another amazing guest. I say all my guests are amazing because they really are.
They're really out here doing it. But today's guest has a special place in my heart because she's one of my closest friends, a bridesmaid, and I felt like I have seen her influencer journey from day one. So welcome Lena Hambrick, the Lena Hambrick.
Lena Hambrick: You are so silly. Yes, thank you for having me Netta. I am really excited to be here.
Netta Dobbins: Yay. I love it. Tell, tell the audience a little bit about yourself. You don't have to go into details, but just give us, give us a little something, something for now.
Lena Hambrick: So a quick little bio on me is I am born and raised in Nashville and I married my high school sweetheart. We have two beautiful little kids. and as far as what I do, I am a content creator, but I do have a nine to five.
I am a finance professional, so I do work in the finance industry and it's what I went to school for, but I found my way into creating content and I love it and I love to do both. So yeah, that's me.
Netta Dobbins: [00:02:00] Let's hop into the first question. Okay. So, You went to school to be a finance professional. You can add, subtract, multiply, and divide, which I cannot. How, how did we end up in like this, this world of influencer creator things?
Lena Hambrick: Okay, yeah, so Went to MTSU graduated with the finance background. But really I started because I'm not sure if your listeners know, but we are sorority sisters as well.
So really, it started off with all of our line sisters. Asking what I do with my hair. How did I get this twist out? All of that. So I just started a separate Instagram page, where I just posted everything that I'm using, how I'm doing my hair, and then it just took off from that. So that was really like the starting point on why I started.
And it was, so they could start asking me questions and I could just send them to the Instagram page.
Netta Dobbins: [00:03:00] You started making content based off of what people were asking you, but how did you really create your content strategy, I guess?
What was your process behind that?
Lena Hambrick: So at the beginning, there was literally no strategy. It was just posting. That was the time of Instagram where people were posting what they ate for lunch. So it was, it was a very chill and relaxing environment. And so I would just post my hair and, and what I was using.
And that was also at the time where people. Like reposted pages. Like hair pages were a big thing back then. , I would get reposted a lot. And that's really where my following grew from. But now those pages really don't exist too much. So that's really how it grew.
So it wasn't really like a strategy. Like I went in there like thinking like this is what I'm going to do. And it was a trial and error. What is everyone else doing type of thing.
Netta Dobbins: And I think that's fine, right? It's fine to have enjoyment in your business and just do things to see what works, [00:04:00] what sticks, right?
I think a lot of times small business owners are like, and these business gurus out here. I may have been caught saying some of this, but it's like, have a content strategy. If you want to make money, you have to have a content strategy, but there's also a moment where you're still trying to figure it out and it's just not that serious until you find what works.
So. You said, you know, you were just doing stuff trying to see what your audience liked. And I want to spend some time talking about building a loyal audience . Because that involves creating content that they like over and over and over and over again. So walk us through the process of when you found out, Okay, this is the type of things that I enjoy making and that my audience enjoys and I'm going to create more of that. What was that process like?
Lena Hambrick: So I would say when I first started, that's when like the pictorial thing, because, Instagram didn't have videos at first. And it would be like the little four grid that you would post. So in one, one square, you'd have your products and then other, like you with your hair probably drenched [00:05:00] in in water or whatever and then you'd see the results and I would see that that really took off. So I would really just see what where I was getting the most likes the most comments and just post that Really so and also I do want to say that I didn't go into this with the intent of making money I didn't really know that I could make money until I was doing it.
And then I saw some people were like Oh yeah, I got paid for this. And I'm like, Hmm, that's interesting. I didn't know we could do that. So that's kind of how it started. I didn't go in with the intent to make money.
Netta Dobbins: And that's a good transition because how do you make money from posting content?
I think that the idea of influencers and creators still feels a little foreign to people who are in corporate America, right? Like I can post a 30 second reel and make X amount of money. How do I do that? How do brands find me or how do I find brands? So take us back to what was your very first brand partnership and how did that come to life?
Lena Hambrick: [00:06:00] Okay, so my first partnership, it was not paid. , it was like an ambassadorship. And it was with, I forget the name of the brand, but I didn't get paid from it. And she would just send me products and I would use it and I would just post my results. And then another ambassadorship that I had it was like natural hair apparel.
So like hats or shirts, things like that. but the first time that I did get paid, I did go back and look at my emails to see when, this is in 2015 and I actually reached out to the brand. So I was like, okay, Lena in 2015, Lena, like you better go ahead and do that. Okay. And I got a whopping $100 for four Instagram posts.
So I definitely thought I was doing it, with that $100 because, but that was just the start of it. So, um, yeah, So $100.
Netta Dobbins: So there were two things that you said and I want to go back to when we were talking about [00:07:00] figuring out what works for your audience because you were like, I was just looking at the content. I'm seeing how much engagement and how many likes and Another way to say that is I was looking at the data, right?
The data is going to tell you what your audience wants. And a lot of these platforms already have built in analytics. So it's not hard to see what's giving you the most views, the most comments, the most impressions, et cetera, et cetera. So look at your data is what I'm saying. Two, a whopping $100 for four Instagram photos and you thought you were killing it.
And I think that's fine. You have to start somewhere. You're not going to come out the gate selling thousand dollar brand partnerships and things like that. So be comfortable one, going to the brand that you want to work with and two finding something that's, Mutually beneficial. So $100 at that time, you was like, great.
I like it. Even if the other, even for the other brand, they were giving you products, you need products, you got to do your hair. So it doesn't always have to equate to thousands of dollars in the beginning. [00:08:00] You're just getting started. You're just trying to put your, your brand and your name out there.
So it's okay to start small.
So I want to talk about how you transitioned because we're all about natural hair and then we got married we got kids and we got a dog and now we're doing more lifestyle content. So talk to me about that transition and how that allowed you as an influencer, as a creator, to open yourself up to more brand deals.
Lena Hambrick: So really transitioning from natural hair, to lifestyle was really, because when you become a mom, the last thing you're worried about honestly, is doing your hair. And I just, I just didn't have time to, I have. Thick hair, like I just did not have time to be doing my hair all the time. So really that's what made me transition was having a child and not caring about doing my hair anymore.
And, really it has opened up a lot of doors. Because I will say, the natural hair. Like hair brands are kind [00:09:00] of known for Not necessarily paying as much. Well, you can get more money from other household name brands. So Really that was also another thing like okay Yeah, let's it's time to transition out of just doing hair still do hair and still get those brand deals but transition into other things like household products and, and stuff like that.
So that was definitely the main, main thing to transition.
Netta Dobbins: The main driver. I get that. Talk to us about, , influencer income, because we see a lot of things on social media where people are like, I made X amount. I made X amount. What, how do you even get a brand deal? That's thousands and thousands of dollars.
Like, how are you? Positioning yourself and approaching brands.
Lena Hambrick: So I would say you just, nowadays it used to be like how many followers you had. Brands were very like one track mind on your followers, your follower account, your follower account and whatnot. [00:10:00] But now it's more so your engagement rate and the quality of the content.
And sometimes it's not even your engagement rate. It can just be the quality of your content because then you can just produce the content and send it to the brand and they post it on their platforms or websites or emails or whatever. And you don't have to post it, but you have quality content and that's what they need.
So, really you position yourself by of course having quality content, engaging with your followers. If they're seeing that you are engaging with your followers and really facilitating that type of community on your page, that's what brands want to align themselves with. If you have a story, whatever your story is, whether you're a stay at home mom, you're a corporate girly that Has kids, you know, whatever your story is, if a brand sees that they align with you and that they can, have some type of campaign.
And that makes sense. then that's how you can truly present position yourself [00:11:00] to getting these, high, like four figure and up deals, with brands.
Netta Dobbins: And the one thing that I've noticed too, or I've seen on Threads is that a lot of the creators are working with the same brands over and over and over and your contracts get bigger, right?
So I think that something that people don't talk about is how do you establish a long term relationship with a brand? So talk to us about, I know there are a few that you do all the time, right? How did you establish that long term relationship or long term collaboration?
Lena Hambrick: Okay, well, you definitely want to over deliver, with brands just so, they get that sense of like trust from you.
Like, oh, let's, let's hit up Lena. We have this campaign coming up. We know that she's going to be on time with her deliverables. She's going to get everything in the, the quality of it is going to be good. You just want to make sure that you have all your T's crossed your [00:12:00] I's dotted and just really foster that relationship at the end of the year.
Like going back through all your partnerships that you had that year and sending out an email. It was great, you know, working with you this year. I hope that we can do it again for 2025. Whatever it is, you just want to be in communication with these brands. because a lot of times they know people in other companies as well.
And people talk, with industries like this. So, , They can also recommend you for a different campaign at a whole different, , company And that's even more money in your pocket.
Netta Dobbins: So, so the point of what you're saying is like, it's not a one time thing. You want to make sure that you are always talking to the brands that you're working with. And it doesn't always have to be about a sale or a deal or a partnership, like just checking in, letting them know, you know, you enjoy working with them, you appreciate the products, etc, etc.
I think that I think the key to business, whether you are an influencer or a creator or a small business owner, entrepreneur is [00:13:00] relationship driven, right? Are you providing value? Are you staying top of mind? And are you over delivering on everything that you are offering or servicing? So one of the last questions I want to ask is,
where do you see the future of influencer marketing for lifestyle content creators or just creators in general? And then what trends or changes are you most excited about?
Lena Hambrick: The future of influencer marketing and stuff, I think it's going to continue. This is not an industry that's just going to randomly die off.
Social media is here to stay, whether it's one platform, TikTok. If that goes away, you know, which it might, who knows, , it'll be another, another platform. It's always going to be social media out there. , influencer marketing is not going anywhere. If you want to get your start, just do it now.
Don't think , Oh, you know, it's saturated. And there's so many people , just do it because there's some money out there. These brands are paying [00:14:00] money and go get you some, girl. , but as far as what trends, you said trends, right?
Netta Dobbins: What trends or changes are you most excited about?
Lena Hambrick: I honestly, I'm not sure what trends I'm excited for.
But it is really exciting just to see new people come into the industry because you, you follow these people for so long. And sometimes, you know, you. It's just a good breath of fresh air to see what new people can bring to the industry where it's like their editing skills or just how their perspective on, , content creation.
, I really enjoy that a lot. Just Finding new faces and watching their content a lot. So
Netta Dobbins: I will say that Lena is helping me become a new face because I just got my very first influencer, , deal, which I'm super excited about. I was texting Lena real crazy. It took me four hours to create, create a 30 second reel.
And she was like, what are you doing? I don't, I was [00:15:00] overthinking it, but, , She's my OG, so thank you so much for helping. , what advice do you have for other people like me who are interested in getting into influencer and creator marketing?
Lena Hambrick: really just do it. , do some research, but don't think too hard on it.
, Because if a brand wants an edit, they're going to send you the edit regardless. So just have fun with it. Remember, that was really the start of all of this anyways, was people having fun creating content. It has become its own beast in itself, but just remember just to have fun with it and continue doing what you love to do.
Netta Dobbins: Awesome. Tell the audience where they can connect with you.
Lena Hambrick: You can find me on all social media platforms at the Lena Hambrick.
Netta Dobbins: Thank you so much for your time today. I really appreciate it.
, so follow Lena, if you want to stay connected with her. Or, want to learn more about influencer marketing.
I'm sure her DMs are always open.
Lena Hambrick: Yes, they
are.
Netta Dobbins: Maybe. [00:16:00] No, but thank you so much for joining me today and I'll talk to you later.
Lena Hambrick: Thank you for having me, Netta.
I’m Netta Dobbins
I accidentally started my first business on my tiny apartment couch in New York City. Several years later, I turned it into a multiple six-figure company. My personal mission is to teach other small business owners how to do the same thing. Learn more about me.
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