A year in the making, this new book is your workout plan to get your brand in shape.
This step-by-step book will guide you from the idea phase to launch and beyond as you scale your business in the health and fitness industry.
Included in the book are details on how to how to overcome roadblocks, successfully brand your concept, finalize the business formation, develop your client profile, construct a marketing plan that works, use social media to grow your visibility, the art of selling and how to get the attention of the media.
It is not enough to just have a great idea, you must take action on it in order to succeed. Fit Business Guide will give you the information you need to move forward confidently as you turn your passion into a profitable profession.
So many ideas falter and entrepreneurs fail. But they don’t fail because the ideas were not great enough. They don’t fail because the entrepreneurs were not hard working enough. They fail because they were not LOUD enough and their message never got heard.
This year long mastermind is for entrepreneurs who are tired of being quiet and want to get loud! They want to get loud in their business and their brands.
Sounds amazing right?! But there is bad news. The bad news is that we are now over 50% sold out!
The 2019 mastermind includes:
· Strategy & Branding Review Session with both of us to set your 2019 goals and directions.
· TWO in-person high level mastermind weekend retreats featuring guest speakers, elite training sessions, group activities and special receptions for amplified business and entrepreneurial leaders.
· 1-on-1 Quarterly Check-in Calls with James or Kelly tailored to your brand.
· Monthly group coaching calls for accountability, further education and collaboration.
· Accountability partner to keep members on track.
· Photo shoot with James Patrick Photography.
· FITposium 2019 Full Conference Pass w/ VIP Access.
· Exclusive Session around FITposium 2019 (limited only to GET AMPED Mastermind Members)
· and much more!
With only a few spaces left, you do not want to miss out on your opportunity to level up your brand by being connected to a tribe who think and operate on a higher frequency. It is time to get loud!
Head over to GetAmpedMastermind.com to learn more and schedule your free consultation to see if you would be a good fit for this exclusive group!
Imagine where you will be a year. Imagine where your career, your brand, your passion will be in a year with the right tools, the right resources, the right connections all pushing you to success. I cannot wait to begin this process of helping our tribe GET LOUD!
Over a year in the making, FIT BUSINESS GUIDE, is all about how you can take your idea and turn it into a profitable brand in the health, fitness and wellness industry.
This step-by-step book will guide you from the idea phase to launch and beyond as you scale your business in the health and fitness industry.
Included in the book are details on how to how to overcome roadblocks, successfully brand your concept, finalize the business formation, develop your client profile, construct a marketing plan that works, use social media to grow your visibility, the art of selling and how to get the attention of the media.
It is not enough to just have a great idea, you must take action on it in order to succeed!
Fit Business Guide will give you the information you need to move forward confidently as you turn your passion into a profitable profession.
Get yours today either at FITposium 2018 or on Amazon!
Myself and the entire FITposium team are excited to announce that we have opened up MORE TICKETS for the event. We are no longer sold out. Get yours today at www.FITposium.com before they sell out again!
On October 20-21, 2017 we are bringing together more than 24 key presenters in the health and fitness industry to speak at FITposium 2017 in Phoenix, Arizona.
The two-day conference will educate attendees with everything they need to know to establish a brand, market a brand and profit from a brand in the health and fitness industry. It includes:
– Presentation Seminars
– Interactive Workshops
– Portfolio Reviews
– Networking Mixer
– Magazine & Commercial Client Casting Calls
– and much more!
As part of attending FITposium, all attendees of the conference will have the opportunity to audition for a variety of real world projects including, but not limited to:
– Cover and Interior Features with Max Sports & Fitness Magazine
– Interior Features with Women’s Health & Fitness Magazine
– Interior Features with Scottsdale Health Magazine
– Interior Features with Fitness Magazine (SA)
– Interior Feature with STRONG Fitness Magazine
– Interior Feature with D’FYNE Fitness Magazine
– Ad Campaign for Fine Swimwear
– Ad Campaign for Affitnity Apparel
– Ad Campaign for Rogiani Apparel
– Spokesperson for Muscle With A Motor
– Editor in Chief Position with FITposium U
Here are some of the topics that will be covered at FITposium 2017.
– How to market yourself as a model and actor
– How to blog for profit
– How to create great online content
– How to build a brand friendly social media
– How to start your own business as a fitness entrepreneur
– How to build a successful portfolio
– How to market to magazines and get published
– How to have success outside of competing
– How to start an online business
– How to build a brick and mortar business
– How to develop online lead generating tools
– How to build and scale a successful business
– How to transform your brand to changes in the industry
– How to stand out online
– How to negotiate contracts leveraging social media
and much more!
FITposium has become more than just an annual educational event filled with unparalleled information and opportunities, it has become a community, a tribe, a family of likeminded individuals who connect and reach new levels together.
On behalf of myself and the entire FITposium team – we truly hope you join our family this October. Registration is open now at www.FITposium.com
On October 20-21, 2017 we are bringing together more than 20 key presenters in the health and fitness industry to speak at FITposium 2017 in Phoenix, Arizona.
The two-day conference will educate attendees with everything they need to know to establish a brand, market a brand and profit from a brand in the health and fitness industry. It includes:
– Presentation Seminars
– Interactive Workshops
– Portfolio Reviews
– Networking Mixer
– Magazine & Commercial Client Casting Calls
– and much more!
Our speaker line up includes:
– Chris & Heidi Powell, Fitness Entrepreneurs
– Kim Dolan Leto, Cover Model & Entrepreneur
– Erin Stern, Cover Model & Entrepreneur
– Callie Bundy, Cover Model & Social Media Expert
– Karen Northington, Cover Model & Entrepreneur
– LaRue Gillespie, Editor, Max Sports & Fitness Magazine
– Gabby Richman, Editor, Scottsdale Health Magazine
– Katelyn Swallow, Editor, Women’s Health & Fitness Magazine
– Mike Arce, CEO, LoudRumor.com
– Tana Nelson, Online Marketing Expert
– Jon Boles, CEO, Modus Apparel
– Faith Hibbs Clark, CSA, Casting Director, Good Faith Casting
– Matt Englehart, Commercial & Print Director, Ford/Robert Black Agency
– Anthony Cox, Creative Director, Scottsdale Health Magazine
– Lindsey Schwartz, Best Selling Author
– Skip Wood, Fitness Talent & Entrepreneur
– Sidney Jarvis, Fitness Entrepreneur
– Felicia Romero, Cover Model & Entrepreneur
and more special guests to be announced!
As part of attending FITposium, all attendees of the conference will have the opportunity to audition for a variety of real world projects including, but not limited to:
– Cover and Interior Features with Max Sports & Fitness Magazine
– Interior Features with Women’s Health & Fitness Magazine
– Interior Features with Scottsdale Health Magazine
– Interior Features with Fitness Magazine (SA)
– Ad Campaign for Fine Swimwear
– Ad Campaign for Affitnity Apparel
– Spokesperson for Muscle With A Motor
This conference is already nearly 70% sold out and space is limited, so do not wait to get your ticket. Here are some of the topics that will be covered at FITposium 2017.
– How to market yourself as a model and actor
– How to blog for profit
– How to create great online content
– How to build a brand friendly social media
– How to start your own business as a fitness entrepreneur
– How to build a successful portfolio
– How to market to magazines and get published
– How to have success outside of competing
– How to start an online business
– How to build a brick and mortar business
– How to develop online lead generating tools
– How to build and scale a successful business
– How to transform your brand to changes in the industry
– How to stand out online
– How to negotiate contracts leveraging social media
and much more!
FITposium has become more than just an annual educational event filled with unparalleled information and opportunities, it has become a community, a tribe, a family of likeminded individuals who connect and reach new levels together.
On behalf of myself and the entire FITposium team – we truly hope you join our family this October. Registration is open now at www.FITposium.com
What started your journey into the health and fitness industry? I was living in the Cayman Islands working as an accountant and noticed a number of people at my gym training for some kind of fitness event. I ended up inquiring about the event and later that month attended the competition and decided to give it a go on my own. From there I fell in love with the industry. Later that year I moved back to Canada to finish my accounting designation, ended up putting it on the back burner and took all of my courses to become a trainer and sports nutritionist. I invested all of my time in the industry from educating myself, teaching others, competing and 3 years later, launching my online business and moving back to Cayman where I now live.
At what point do you believe you set the foundation for what your brand was to become or what you wanted it to be? I believe it was in the last year that I was able to do that. Over the years I have worked really hard to maintain the integrity in my brand, figure out exactly what I wanted to do and which avenues to pursue. Last year was when I noticed myself that it all came together. I knew getting into this industry was going to be tough and there was a lot of competition, so I understood that it would take time to build and I allowed that to happen.
How have you managed what your brand is and how it is viewed? I have managed my brand and how it’s viewed through my consistency in the industry. I have invested a lot of time in my company and stayed committed to what I believe in.
What important lessons have you learned about the best ways to manage your brand or mistakes you have learned from? It would be to stay true to who you are. I have seen a lot of people in this industry get sucked into avenues they may not have wanted to go or were not in line with who they are.
In a little over a year you appeared on four fitness magazine covers across the world. How have you marketed yourself to various publications and their editors? I work very hard at maintaining my relationships with different publications and editors. I learn about their magazines and what is the best approach to take, but also how I can align myself with their magazine. You constantly have to ask yourself, what can you contribute to their magazine that will engage readers.
What did the media features end up doing for the visibility of your brand? It really grew my brand globally. In one year I had features in 5 different countries, so there were many eyes on my brand, which then lead to people visiting my site. In the end you want to be able to tell people about your product and get to know you more and what you do, so this helped a lot.
How did you cultivate and manage your growing audience? Not going to lie, this was the toughest part. It is only me; so there were a lot of times I felt as though I was spinning my wheels trying to make sure I was managing my growing audience. I had a lot of advice from people that really helped me learn the proper techniques to manage it all. I think I did a fairly good job and have learned from it, which is only helping me more for the future.
What do you do to evaluate what your audience wants as well as experts to see from you? I think about my target market, my demographic and base it off of that. You see what gets the most interactions, leads and conversions. Yes you can have a post for instance, that can get numerous likes on it but then you can look into it more and see what the conversion is, did it lead to your site, did it lead to a sale, did it impact people the way you wanted it to. Everything I post (for the most part) has a reason behind it to target a certain audience.
How are you leveraging the media features you’ve received to turn your brand into a business? I’ve been able to use the features with numerous companies to pitch myself. My goal this year is to go more mainstream so I am wanting to reach out to certain companies that are in line with my demographic and the route I am wanting to take. By using the media features I am able to show what I can do, my writing style, my look and how it can work in line with their company
What are some of the various tactics you use to market yourself? I use different tactics depending on if it’s through social media, online or in the physical presence of others. When I am in the presence of others I am able to talk about my brand and how it relates to their product. Media kits are always great for this. Social media, I am able to show different sides of myself, whether it be my personal side, being a mother, a businesswoman etc. I market according to those that I want to inspire and can relate. Online, for instance, searching through Google, I look to position myself based on searches and get my website in front of them.
How do you determine who to work with as it pertains to the photographers you hire? Good question. A few key things I look for is who they work with, what my interaction is like with them whether it be through email or in person, do they shoot the style I like and that will work for my brand, and are we able to work together on a vision. Being on the same page is key. I also look to work with photographers that want to see you succeed, they work hard in their line of work and they produce quality images (turn over time is very important as well)
What mistakes have you made or have you seen other talents make in the management of their brands? Not truly defining what their brand is. I think that once you can define your brand you are able to make proper decisions based from there. There are so many that maybe have yet to define their brand or are not too sure so they reach for whatever they can get which might end up putting themselves in a position of their brand not aligning with who they are portraying themselves to be. Its a tough industry and its very easy to get sucked into the ‘likes’ and the ‘followers’, the companies that approach you to promote their product which you may not believe in or shooting with a photographer that might not be good for your brand. So many things have to be fully thought out before making a decision that in the end could hurt you in the long run.
What is something talents could do today to better the position of their brand? Stay consistent. Evaluate your audience, who are you wanting to inspire, what are you trying to achieve from your brand? These are all questions you need to ask yourself. Also work on all channels, not just Instagram or Facebook. Find ways to reach out to your audience.
What is your background prior to starting Boost? My background is purely lingerie. I am a qualified and trained lingerie designer. I worked in the manufacturing industry as well as in the retail lingerie buying industry for many years. I dealt with the world’s biggest lingerie retailers. Lingerie is an industry where you have to learn from the bottom, you have to experience it. The “on the job” training was priceless.
What inspired you to start Boost? At the time when I noticed a gap in the fitness world, I was traveling for work on a weekly basis. I was based in London for 10 days every month but traveled all over the world selling lingerie. Coming from a lingerie background. Fitness was always a passion for me but I could never find fitness apparel that fitted like I wanted it to. I knew there was a gap in the market. On my travels I kept an eye out for fitness apparel and knew that one day that “specialized space” could be mind.
What separates your brand from other fit apparel companies? The Boost Gymwear brand is a highly fashionable brand that actually follows outerwear trends and not fitness trends. We are a unique designer brand that offers fashion products fast, but most importantly, we are able to custom fit for any size online. I don’t think there is another fitness brand worldwide that is catering for this marketing, especially online.
With lingerie as my background, this was an easy and natural transition. Furthermore, we custom color also – this means that a client can choose any style and order it in any color and in their own fit too! Customer service is very, very important to us – we always want our customers to feel like they are getting personalized service.
Your work has appeared on a lot of publication covers. How have you created this opportunity? The magazines are great, the photographers are talented, the athletes and cover girls are hot; but at the end of the day if the product is great too, the cover looks great! It’s a combination of all four and in the past, the clothing often used to get ignored. I think the magazines have realized that a great cover increases sales, and that is what it’s all about!
Fit apparel is going through a huge explosion right now. What trends have you noticed in the fitness apparel industry? Right now it’s all about using sheer fabrics. The fashion has changed a lot over the past few years since everyone wore bootlegs and short fitted tops. Now it is about comfort and easy wear-ability. Fitness has become fashion, which is just perfect for Boost Gymwear.
When it comes to booking talents to appear in your marketing materials, what do you look for? Over so many years we have been highly selective, but at the end of the day it’s all about commerciality. I personally look at smile first. It has to be natural and approachable. We look for a girl that is in between a model and a fitness athlete. Just a normal toned girl that appeals to everyone.
What are red flags you have seen when trying to book talents that others should avoid? People that believe they are bigger than the brands and industries are a no go for us. We want to be associated with the best people not just the best looking people!
What do you believe are things talents can do to better their marketability to Boost or better partner with you? I’m a big believer in loyalty. I think that is what shows professionalism.
We are truly excited to announce that Lori Harder will be presenting at FITposium on October 17 in Arizona. Register now at FITposium.com
LoriHarder is a leading expert in the field of fitness, transformational work, mindfulness, and self-love. As a self-made millionaire, successful entrepreneur, network marketing professional, author, cover model, and three-time fitness world champion, she offers a carefully curated set of practical tools to promote sustainable health, spiritual well-being, and financial freedom. Through her books, unique coaching methods, and programs, she has helped countless people connect with their soul, transform their bodies, empower their minds, gain financial independence, and fall in love with themselves and their lives.
Throughout her career, Lori has regularly appeared on the covers of and published articles for Oxygen Magazine, STRONG Fitness Magazine, Health & Fitness Magazine and Prosper Magazine. She has also been featured on NBC, Fox, and TLC networks.
Lori has also helped dozens of people reach six figure or more salaries through her network marketing business (Isagenix), and she has helped hundreds of others to start their own home-based business. Most recently, Lori has taken her passion for human potential and created The Bliss Project and Bliss Habit, a women’s empowerment retreat and online course that has thousands of women per year taking this breakthrough curriculum.
I’ve had the opportunity to know and work with Samantha Kozuch for the better part of a decade. During that time I’ve witnessed her transform and reignite her brand in multiple avenues. What follows is our recent interview together.
James Patrick: You’ve been on camera almost as long as I’ve been behind the camera. Over the nearly 10 years we have worked together your brand has evolved several times over. How have you managed your brand and growth over time? Samantha Kozuch: Yes, wow! Time does fly when you’re having fun doesn’t it?! Basically, at the beginning of each year I reevaluate where I’m at in my career, what are my goals for each month and the year and then I realign my day-to-day activities to achieve those goals. I make a vision board and check back with it monthly to gage where I’m at as well. Over the years my goals have changed drastically, I’ve gone from glamour bikini model to fitness and commercial talent and yes as you mentioned, have changed my brand over multiple times, and that’s the beauty of this business. I finally feel like I’m at a place in my career where I feel happy, proud and successful! I’m checking off goals that I’ve had on my list for a very long time! It gets really exciting when you keep pushing yourself and don’t give up – you can accomplish so much!
JP: When did you find yourself gravitating towards the fitness industry? SK: I’ve been an athlete since I could remember! My parents had me in sports since I could walk, but actually becoming a health & fitness advocate didn’t start until after I graduated college. When I was in college I had gravitated towards glamour modeling, then when I started noticing the girls in the fitness industry I realized that I could too bring my two passions together – health & fitness and modeling & acting. I had then realized that I was really dieting and excising the wrong way, and damaging my body to look thin more then I was nurturing it and after lots of reading and research I came to find healthy ways to achieve a fit body and wanted to share my experiences with other women. This led me to start my first fitness blog www.GetFitBeSexy.com and then from there I grew a following on my social media channels. I enjoy being able to share my passion and educate others, it’s the most rewarding thing about my career! Getting emails and messages saying how I’ve inspired someone, or because of my tips a person has lost 10lbs is the greatest feeling! Having great looking images and being published is fantastic, but if all that work doesn’t help to inspire anyone then it doesn’t really fulfill me. I want to look back at my career and say I helped make a difference in a world with a high running obesity rate.
JP: You’ve developed multiple income streams as a model from doing freelance commercial and editorial work, to having a commercial agent, to promotions. What led to each of these avenues and how have each continued to build your brand? SK: It all started my freshman year in college, growing up I heard over and over, ‘you’re so tall, you should be a model’, but I was an athlete my whole pre-college life playing basketball and running track year round so I was focused on sports and school. When I got to college I decided to leave my sports teams behind and turned down athletic scholarships in order to have a “normal” college experience without having the obligations of being an athlete. I was worn out from that lifestyle! When first semester of college hit, there was a HUGE void in my life that I had not prepared for, what the heck could I do outside of the classroom? In high school it was always training or games to go to and now I had absolutely nothing but homework! It was depressing, I never knew I would feel this way! I needed a hobby, so I decided to get into modeling. I had seen some ads in The Daily Wildcat for models and I started there. James, you and I, had actually worked on my first published piece of work, the Tucson 12 swimsuit calendar and that really kicked off my modeling career because it gave me that boost of confidence knowing that I could do this! I had gone to a casting, booked the job and got published – viola! So from that I had my own month in that calendar, and I was also in an ad for a local bar within that calendar. The bar I had been advertised for then had asked me to bartend at their place, which I took up instantly because it was so hard to find a good paying job around the university! It was there that I saw promotional girls come into the bar and from there I was just constantly asking questions, how did you get into this, how can I apply? and so on!
This industry is ALL networking and putting your self out there and most importantly, being professional. So that’s how I got started in promotional modeling, then I got into working as a spokes-model for tradeshows, and from there everything just started coming together. I got booked for more work, more events, more photoshoots, etc. whether it was through an agency, or someone had referred me or a repeat client it just kept happening over and over and once I graduated college I did this full time for 5 years. It’s almost a blur now, but basically I hustled! Ha ha! There is no simple answer to explain how I got to each of these. One opportunity led to another and it all just started steam rolling together. My moto is, if it makes sense, makes me money and is aligned with my brand and goals then I’ll probably do it!
JP: Eventually you had an idea for a company you wanted to launch. Talk about the need you saw in the market and how you positioned yourself and your new company. SK: Well it was two things that got me going with my video production business, www.WhiteScreenVideos.com was initially created because I needed a long term plan for my financial needs – who knows how long I’ll be able to model, act, travel, etc. I’ll eventually have a family and there’s no way I’d be happy going into the corporate world after being an entrepreneur my whole life. In the past, and still today, I’ve been the hired talent for many production companies, where I’d go into their studios and read lines while they filmed me. It was after some brainstorming with a friend that I should set up a production company and do it all myself, instead of just being paid a minimum as an actress. I also saw that many video production companies charge thousands and thousands of dollars, many startups can’t afford such costs; especially if they need multiple videos, so I created a turn-key solution that is more affordable. That’s when White Screen Videos was born, we create professional marketing videos for you! Every business should have videos on their website! They help build rapport, get you more traffic, increase conversion rates, clarify your products and boost your sales! For most businesses, the process of creating a video is overwhelming or impossible, so we do all the hard work for them and create a professional marketing video that they can share on their website with potential clients and turn them into customers, all over the world!
JP: How has what you’ve learned and the growth of your brand helped you in this new venture? SK: Well I’ve been very driven to succeed since day one, that’s just my personality type, and not only does my lively hood rely on the income from the businesses I run, but I really hope that I never ever have to enter the corporate world, unless I’m the CEO of course! I’ve learned I have to be professional, consistent and reliable. I hold myself to the same standards no matter where I’m working. When I tell people that I have my own company and work from home, many think I “have the life”, but it doesn’t mean I can just chill on the couch all day, eating bon bons and expect money to roll in… I have to say the hustle is very real and I work around the clock to build and keep my companies thriving. Heck it’s 11:15pm right now and here I am doing this interview… it never stops and I absolutely LOVE it and that’s how I know that I’m doing the right thing with my life.
JP: What made you decide to not rely solely on modeling work for revenue? SK: I’ve been very fortunate in the modeling world thus far, but you never know what’s going to happen in life. Early in my entrepreneurship days I was told to never rely on once source of income, and modeling was my one source. You never know when that will be taken away, god forbid; I could break my leg next week and be out of work for a month! And looks fade, things can change in an instant and when you rely on you’re looks you really do need to have another means of income – it’s just the smart thing to do! So whether it’s selling products, offering other services, etc. having an additional source was always the goal. For me it’s great to have a mix, one week I’m working at home with my video business clients and the next I’m travelling for a modeling gig… it keeps it fun and exciting and I think that’s another reason I’m just so passionate about it all!
JP: Talk about the importance of paying professionals for services such as photo shoots versus getting free work. SK: When you pay for a professional service such as photos, in my experience, you can bet that you’re going to have some outstanding results! Whenever I’ve paid for a photo shoot it’s always been top-notch and an amazing experience because everyone on set is looking to further their business or career so the whole shoot is taken seriously! I’ve always been able to use those shoots to my advantage to get more publishing’s or book higher paying jobs because the images are of great quality!
But I do have to include that it also depends who you are working with when it comes to free work! I’ve been fortunate to work with top photographers and production companies for free and have received incredible work for my portfolio; however, this is not always the case for everyone. Free work is great to learn your skill, such as practice modeling, being in front of the camera, maybe even network with people in the industry – I still do free shoots to this day, but I know what to look for in a photographer prior to shooting and whether they’re worth the time to work with and if I can make those shoots pay off for me in the long run!
JP: Where do you see our personal brand as a talent and your company going from here? SK: I have so many visions and dreams, many I haven’t even started on yet! I’ve barely scraped the top of the fitness industry of where I want to be and I have big goals for fulfill this year. I’ll finally be getting my healthy lifestyle plans and workout videos out to my fans, they really have been asking me to do this for years! Also with WhiteScreenVideos.com I’m at a point where I do need to expand and hire other professional talent, video editors, and get an actual studio outside of my house – so that’s going to be another big and exciting leap. Basically, I’m going to stick to everything that I am doing and expand my brands to be better!
JP: What are the biggest lessons you’ve learned in your journey and advice you could give to others? SK: Before starting any modeling, acting or entrepreneurial career I’d write out a plan of what you want your brand to be – and stick to it or just evolve to be better from it! What do you want to be known for? How do you want to be remembered? What brands do you want to possibly work with? Is your current work going to turn them off from working with you?
My goals and vision has changed DRAMATICALLY in the past 10 years – and that’s normal of course! We all change during our twenties so I’m not surprised to look back, because at that point in time it’s what I wanted .
When I first started in this industry, I was young, in college and 18 so my primary goal was for people to recognize me as a sexy glamour model and I didn’t want to be the “jock” that I was growing up. I was in a new city with new people it was the perfect time that I could re-brand myself without even realizing that this is what I was actually doing. It worked out great for a while, but then I grew out of that “sexy picture” stage pretty quickly and I wanted to make a serious living with modeling and acting. So I started attending modeling and business seminars and was able to network with other people in the industry to learn how to brand yourself and make a living doing so. I asked experienced models questions whenever I could… I was just yearning to learn how to become as successful as them. Since then, I’ve been able to completely rebrand myself, now I’m “The Fit Girl”. These days my work ranges from fitness to commercial to semi-glamour, people know me to be humble, easy to work with and professional. I’m constantly getting rebooked by companies and getting referred all the time, I’m really blessed. So by making a plan, educating yourself and aligning yourself with other people who can help push your career in the right direction is my advice to anyone looking to start or accelerate their career.
Special thanks to Samantha Kozuch for being a part of this interview feature!
Erica Willick – Co Founder of Gorgo Magazine – Photo used with permission from Erica Willick
Excite to share with you my recent interview with Erica Willick, the co-founder of Gorgo Magazine about the formation of the magazine, their unique approach to publishing and what they look for in modeling talents.
James Patrick: What was your background prior to the launching of Gorgo Magazine?
Erica Willick: (Laughing) Corporate finance for 10 years. Fire ignited by fitness.
JP: What inspired the launch of the magazine? EW: Gorgo co-founder Val Solomon and I created Gorgo out of our own dissatisfaction with the fitness magazine content and imagery.
We craved more than hoola-hoop workouts and surface level content.
The images also didn’t fit us as we strived to embrace our everyday fit that is not stage lean or airbrushed.
JP: Discuss your multi-phase strategy for Gorgo from going to online only to eventually printed issues.
EW: The print industry is in major flux. Head out to any airport or coffee shop and you’ll be hard pressed to find anyone holding a print magazine. Everyone’s faces and attention are on their devices. Print is certainly not dead but it’s not the only option now for distributing content and powerful images in magazine format.
So in the first phase of Gorgo, we started exclusively online to establish our brand and evolve our offering based on what our community craved. Now just one year into its existence Gorgo has developed a character, more powerful than our first vision of her. Many of our subscribers are using Gorgo as a verb, noun and adjective. “That’s so Gorgo!” or “Be Gorgo” or “I am a Gorgo Girl” is used by women now.
The next phase of Gorgo is fully underway and we can’t wait to reveal where we’re going to take health & fitness content next. I expect our Gorgo Girls will be thrilled when we roll out this phase in the late spring.
Gorgo Magazine Photographed by James Patrick
JP: Gorgo has a unique approach to publishing without advertising. What was the decision behind this and how do you make this possible?
EW: Print cost is prohibitive unless you are funded by advertisers and we wanted to create something that didn’t need to cater to a funding source because we created Gorgo for one purpose – to give everyday fit women a voice and to inspire her to find her true strength.
Now with the traction of the subscriber funded online magazine we are able to put out a print edition this spring. The content in the print edition is better than anything out there because we cater to no one but our subscribers. The images are powerful and raw and real because we don’t have to sell (out) to pop culture.
JP: Could you share with us what you look for in modeling talents for the magazine?
EW: You’re “Gorgo” in what you do. You support other women in their fitness journey, you have depth to your actions which means not endlessly posting selfies of you, your abs, your ass, and you have a balance and love for real health and fitness.
JP: You no doubt receive a lot of pitches from models wanting to work with the publication, how do you handle and sort through these?
EW: We’re really busy so the pitch needs to stand out to be taken seriously. One glance at photos or words that don’t fit our magazine’s brand and mission & we’ve hit the delete button. Well… we typically acknowledge because we’re respectful, but we don’t pursue.
JP: What do you find works in a model’s pitch and what do you find does not work?
EW: The strongest pitches from models come when they have something more to offer than some photos. Don’t pitch me random photos. Pitch me solutions. Ideas are shit. Everyone’s got them. The question is, can you execute? It doesn’t just have to be articles, though we always use photos of the writer if they have them. Where is this industry’s creativity? Think out of the box. I’m surprised no model has sent us images of herself with some inspirational Gorgo-esque words on them to be shared on our social medias – with the Gorgo logo on them. Or a video blog that rocks and is Gorgo editorial. Or…or…or…
JP: Are there any specific no no’s models should know about before pitching to a fitness magazine such as yours?
I figure if you’ve done your research by reading our articles and looked at our covers you’d know not to submit in photos of yourself in sexy poses or outfits. Too many clearly don’t understand that or couldn’t be bothered to take 15 minutes to check us out in depth before submitting. So in return I don’t take more than 10 seconds to hit delete.
JP: What, to you, represents the ideal cover model?
EW: Her everyday fit. Strength and personality emulating from her body. Bringing others along through genuine help. Authentic.
JP: Lastly, what are the plans for Gorgo in the coming year?
EW: Next level in more ways then one.
Special thanks to Erica for joining me in this interview. Be sure to check out the Gorgo Magazine website as well as Facebook page. You can also follow them on Instagram @gorgomag
I am thrilled to announce the release of my new printed book, FIT BUSINESS GUIDE: The Workout Plan for Your Brand!
So many ideas falter and entrepreneurs fail. But they don’t fail because the ideas were not great enough. They don’t fail because the entrepreneurs were not hard working enough. They fail because they were not LOUD enough and their message never got heard.
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What started your journey into the health and fitness industry?
In a little over a year you appeared on four fitness magazine covers across the world. How have you marketed yourself to various publications and their editors?
