Introducing: Sylvie Esmundo of Sylvie in the Sky and @Life.By.Sylvie
Take one look at the @Life.By.Sylvie feed and you’ll want to be BFF with the ever-stylish, down-to-earth, sweet personality that is Sylvie Esmundo. As a lifestyle influencer, PR, marketing and fashion industry vet, mentor, wife and mother, Sylvie keeps her calendar booked and her content on point! Living in San Francisco with her growing family, Sylvie provides her followers with daily fashion, food and family inspiration, alongside a charming glimpse into life on the beautiful California coast. Her career background has given her a unique insight into influencer marketing and how to best position yourself and your blog to both build an engaged audience and create relationships with brands and partners. We’ve asked Sylvie to share a little wisdom from her life and learnings. Here’s what she had to say:
How did you get started as an influencer? What has been your biggest challenge so far?
I started blogging wayyyyyyy back….I think it was 2007. It started off as a chronicle of everything that I loved – fashion, films, art, books, music, travel. And slowly, I started building an audience of like-minded people and that interaction lit the fire that still burns today. Because of career and life, I dipped in and out of blog land, but it was the birth of my now 4 year old son that propelled me to make content regularly – as a new mom, I failed to find (mom) influencers that worked outside the home, had incredible, inspiring style, and were ethnically diverse. I wanted to show moms and women out there that this type of mom did exist, and that our lives were far from perfect, but had tips to live a stylish, magic-filled life as a mother and a modern woman.
Has your work background affected the way you view yourself as an influencer and brand collaborations? How?
I’ve spent my whole career in fashion and retail – PR, Merchandising for major brands, Digital Marketing for startups, Social/Content Strategy for major Fashion Tech brands, Editorial for one of the biggest media publishers, and Influencer Partnerships for hundreds of brands, big and small. All of them have helped me tremendously in my influencer career: PR taught me how to pitch myself, Merchandising taught me how to message and curate product ideas, Digital Marketing reinforced the importance and value of all marketing channels (email, SEO, social, events, affiliate), Editorial sharpened my storytelling skills, Social/Content fostered my love of creating stunning, cohesive, shoppable visual stories, and building and executing influencer campaigns for brands gave me the insight into what brands valued most from influencers, and the opportunity to learn from all campaigns, from bad to awesome.
You’ve participated in some opportunities to speak and mentor in the industry – tell us more!
Sharing my experience as an influencer to help brands work better with our community and inspire new influencers is one of the best parts of this job. I recently spoke at a influencer marketing summit with some major tech and retail brands and was amazed how many of them were just getting started with their Influencer marketing strategies. I’ve been mentoring a handful of influencers on content strategy, brand pitching, and brand building for the past year, and it’s been so inspiring to see many of them grow to be successful influencers today. My hope is to regularly share my story on panels and with new influencers…fingers crossed!
If you could give one piece of advice to influencers starting out, what would it be?
Always always share what you love, and your authenticity will draw people to you. Your favorite perfume, wine, toddler t-shirt, brunch spot, anything – if you tell the story as to why you love it, it creates an opportunity for people to connect with you.
Who are your favorite other influencers to follow for inspiration?
Incredible style, amazing mama, and very wonderful friend of mine, Disco Daydream (IG: @discodaydream). My go-to inspiration for modern motherhood: @mothermag, @bleubird (a co-founder of Mother) & @nataliealcala (founder of Fashion Mamas). The coolest girl/musician’s wife/new mama with the most drool worthy Nashville home: @gummergal
Learn more from Sylvie as she takes over our Influencer Facebook Group – The Inner Circle August 14-18. Not a member of the group? Apply here! To read more great content from LMS, visit our blog.
