By Zsana Hoskins
Special to the AFRO
Hosts of the event Kiana Wood, founder and creative director of Kigenix Creative, and Siraaj Woods, founder of SWC Credit: Photo courtesy of Siraaj Woods
Siraaj Woods Creatives (SWC), a local social media agency, and Kigenix Creative, a photography brand that specializes in health and wellness visual content, recently hosted their fourth networking event for entrepreneurs and content creators in the DMV area.
The event, which focused on niche marketing, was held at The Link in Alexandria, Va., and included a panel that was recorded as a live podcast.
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The first event of this series was hosted by Kigenix Creative this past summer and had nearly 10 guests. SWC joined to host the second one and attendance has been doubling ever since with 40 people.
“The original goal behind this was to bring all the very talented entrepreneurs and content creators under one roof and have a space for them to be creative and connect with each other. We realize there are so many people who are on their own and don’t have community, and we wanted to bring that to the DMV,” said Siraaj Woods, CEO of SWC.
About 40 attendees networked at the fourth event in the Entrepreneurs and Content Creation series hosted by SWC and Kigenix Creatives. Panelists featured in the Live Podcast. Shown here, Kendall Cherry (left), Julia Shardae, Kiana Wood, Gigi Beason, Brittney Joelle, and Yonathan Shimelis. Credit: Photo courtesy of Siraaj Woods
According to a 2024 study from Lending Tree, Washington, D.C. is the city with the second most Black-owned businesses at 7.6 percent, and Richmond, Va. placed eighth with 5.6 percent.
Also, according to data from Zippia, only 7.2 percent of content creators are Black.
Woods and Wood highlighted the importance of an event like this, especially for Black entrepreneurs and content creators.
Woods explains, “This is really a need within our community to have somewhere where people like us that are, young aspiring entrepreneurs and content creators, come under one roof and kind of congregate and build that community and start to know each other,”
For the hosts, it was also important to provide resources for content creators and entrepreneurs to take their businesses to the next level. Founder and creative director of Kigenix Creative, Kiana Wood, said she wanted these events to help “bridge the gaps.”
“Entrepreneurs don’t really know how to create content all the time, it’s kind of a stressing force in their business. And then vice versa. A lot of content creators are trying to figure out how they can make money with it, which is then a business, and they don’t necessarily understand the business side,” she added.
Panelists for the live podcast included several business owners and content creators such as Kendall Cherry, owner of CHERRYPOP, an event and artist development company, and Julia Shardae, a brand marketing specialist for Redbull and founder of a marketing agency, Black Women In Marketing.
Panelists shared advice for the attendees to incorporate into their own content and elevate as creators.
One of the panelists of the event, Gigi Beason, a digital marketing consultant with her brand Diamonds N The Rough, spoke about focusing less on going viral and more on value.
“If you focus on the value, you will eventually gain the numbers, and you’ll become known for being someone who offers something that people really need,” Beason shared.
Another key insight from the panel was from Yonathan Shimelis, a photographer and creative, who reassured attendees to start with what they have and work their way up, which seemed to be embraced by the crowd.
“He talked about just being able to make it work with what you have. You don’t have to have expensive technology to get started. And I saw that, a lot of creators resonated with that because they were like, ‘Okay, that’s really good. I don’t need a thousand-dollar camera,’” Beason said about Shemelis’ advice.
After the panel discussion, a question and answer session was held where attendees could ask questions and speak to each panelist one-on-one.
The event also included raffles, a scavenger hunt and other interactive activities for participants.
Overall, Woods, Wood and Beason believe the event was successful based on the attendees’ reactions and the increased participation.
Wood expressed based on feedback she received from attendees. Beason felt that the energy from Woods and Wood as hosts also contributed to the “welcoming” atmosphere at the event.
“ really know how to set the tone for the audience in a way where it draws people in, and they’re able to come and get comfortable, and you find that it’s such a warm audience. You just feel the support the entire night,” said Beason.
Woods and Wood also believe the interactive environment of the event is what sets them apart from similar experiences.
“When you come to this event, you’re not leaving empty-handed. You’re leaving with at least a connection that you’re gonna partner with,” Wood shared.
As far as new initiatives and events, Woods says there are definitely “more events to come” in the future. The next event in the series will most likely be in May or June.
Throughout the year, SWC and Kigenix will be working on feeling the connections behind the events and creating more of a networking community.
“We’re gonna reach out to people and also kind of get feedback and kind of see what they want. People tend to struggle with, ‘Okay, I have a business or I wanna start a business, but how do I make content?’ We’re giving them the information to let them know how to best do that for themselves. So that’s where we’re headed,” Woods said.
To learn more about SWC, Kigenix Creative, and upcoming events, visit https://swcreatives.com or https://www.createwithki.com/.
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