29. Crafting Success with Sarah Nesheim: The Birth and Evolution of Crafted

What this episode covers

Sarah shares her personal story and entrepreneurial journey, from growing up in a multicultural household to studying media and communications at NYU. She talks about her initial idea for a social cooking recipe app and the challenges she faced in getting viewership. Sarah then explains how Crafted pivoted to become a UGC marketplace focused on food and beverage brands. She discusses the unique differentiation of Crafted, including its focus on quality cooking content and the ability to create user-generated video content with brick-and-mortar retail callouts. Sarah also highlights the white-glove service and transparent pricing that Crafted provides to brands. In this conversation, Sarah discusses various aspects of influencer marketing and the challenges faced in the industry. She explains the process of setting up a campaign, including the need for store lists and verification of store locations. Sarah also highlights the importance of creator briefs in ensuring brand messaging and authenticity. The challenges of proving attribution and obtaining data in influencer marketing are discussed, along with the measurement of performance through viewership and engagement. The life cycle of influencer posts is explored, with a focus on the organic reach and the potential for paid media amplification. Sarah shares insights into the trends in influencer marketing, emphasizing the shift towards higher volume and performance-based compensation. The importance of authenticity in content creation is emphasized, with a discussion on the balance between quality and relatability. Sarah also discusses the significance of building a community and understanding the target audience before investing in influencers. The conversation concludes with Sarah sharing a fun fact about her experience in door-to-door sales. Takeaways Crafted started as a social cooking recipe app but pivoted to become a UGC marketplace focused on food and beverage brands. Crafted's unique differentiation is its ability to create user-generated video content with brick-and-mortar retail callouts. Crafted provides a white-glove service and transparent pricing to brands, making it easy for them to access creators and implement campaigns. Crafted's workflow involves vetting creators based on the quality of their content, engagement, and viewership. Chapters 00:00 Sarah's Personal Story and Journey 03:02 Starting Crafted and the Initial Idea 09:14 Pivoting to a UGC Marketplace 13:12 Adapting and Learning from Feedback 16:21 Differentiation and Gap in the Market 21:31 Engagement with Brands and Typical Process 21:43 Setting up a Campaign 23:12 Creator Briefs 24:04 Challenges in Influencer Marketing 25:30 Measuring Performance 26:27 Life Cycle of Posts 27:36 Organic vs. Paid Media 28:39 Trends in Influencer Marketing 30:18 Authenticity in Content 33:08 Building a Community 35:25 Advice for Food Founders and Marketers 38:12 Fun Fact: Door-to-Door Sales Sarah's LinkedIn profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarah-nesheim/ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarah-nesheim/) Looking to elevate your e-commerce game with shoppable videos and social commerce? visit Vimmi at www.vimmi.net