Today we’d like to introduce you to Adriannea Smith.
Adriannea, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
As a frequent flyer, I wanted a way to share my travel stories and travel advice with other people. On Instagram, you can only share so much with a limit on captions. The experience can also be different and can appear to be unorganized if sharing a travel series of some sort. Instead of just sharing my travel stories and travel advice on Instagram, I decided to start my blog, which is called Standby With Adrie.
My name Standby With Adrie, came about because when I am flying, I fly standby, also known as non-revenue. With my dad working with the airlines for over 20 years and my mom being a flight attendant, it was only right that to include standby in my blog name. Standby With Adrie was launched in May of 2020 in the middle of the pandemic, even though I had already started to work on it in the previous year. I was discouraged a little to launch my blog because I knew travel was declining rapidly and who knew when the pandemic would be over. I still decided to launch my blog despite the pandemic because I know people are still looking forward to traveling in the future like I am or finding other ways to travel safely!
Blogging has definitely opened the door for me and allowed me to have other opportunities that wouldn’t have thought about, such as helping other brands and businesses manage their social media accounts. Blogging has allowed me to become a more creative person overall. Through my creative processes that blogging has helped me with, I was able to think of the idea of a themed dog subscription box called The Doggish Life. As a frequent flyer and a former veterinarian technician, it has been a blessing to be able to turn both of my passions, travel and animals, into a way to help others!
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Starting my blog was not a smooth road. I knew nothing about designing websites or even how to create a website. It was a long learning process, which is why it took months before I launched my blog. I knew originally I did not want blogging to not just be a hobby, but a business, so I definitely had to do a lot of research prior to launching my blog.
I also had doubts about whether or not I could stay committed to blogging as well because I knew from the start that it could get expensive. I got over those doubts when I thought about the long term goals for my blog, and knew none of those goals would get accomplished if I just gave up or did not even try. I am a firm believer that obstacles make you stronger.
Please tell us about Standby With Adrie and The Doggish Life.
Standby With Adrie is a travel and lifestyle blog. I discuss my travel experiences, travel guides/reviews, and tips on money-saving while traveling. I also offer helping others plan trips, such as creating itineraries. I also specialize in social media management and marketing. I am known for always being ready to catch a flight! I was able to visit four countries in 2019, as well as take a few domestic trips.
I am proud of being able to connect and develop relationships with my audience from all over the world. It is fun to talk about other people’s travel experiences or get recommendations on places that I should visit. It is a good feeling to know that I can meet up with people that I have connected with if I am visiting their city!
What sets me apart from other travel bloggers is that I have been a frequent flyer since I was a baby. With not one, but two parents working in their airline field, I have seen how the airlines and travel, in general, has changed over the past two decades. I am also able to hear about important travel information before it rolls out to the general public.
My other business is The Doggish Life. The Doggish Life is a dog subscription service that offers themed boxes full of fun toys, homemade treats, and handmade bandanas. The Doggish Life specializes in animal health and wellness. The Doggish Life is known for helping dogs live their best doggish lives. The Doggish Life launched in June and shortly after, I was able to help with the Pup Relief tour. The Pup Relief tour provided free grooming/pet services in 6 different cities, including Atlanta. I was excited to get invited to help with this tour because it helped dogs and pet owners who were experiencing hardships due to the pandemic.
My dog subscription company is the first black-owned themed subscription box of its kind. What sets The Doggish Life apart from other dog subscription companies is that I do not include prepackaged treats from other companies that contain harmful ingredients and preservatives. I offer simple ingredient peanut butter treats that I home make. Also, a portion from every purchase goes to help shelters and rescues.
If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
I would have simply started sharing my travel experiences sooner. But I am a believer that everything is on God’s timing! My experiences have definitely helped me grow and I am very thankful for that.
Pricing:
- Travel Itinineraries starting at $50
- Social Media Management starting at $125
- The Doggish Life subscription starting at $35.99
Contact Info:
- Website: www.standbywithadrie.com, http://the-doggish-life.cratejoy.com
- Email: standbywithadrie@gmail.com, thedoggishlife@gmail.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/standbywithadrie, instagram.com/thedoggishlife
- Facebook: facebook.com/standbywithadrie, facebook.com/thedoggishlife
- Twitter: twitter.com/thedoggishlife
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/user_details?userid=jRnxb0zJ1uaNyqi0f8CZQg&utm_source=ishare
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@standbywithadrie https://www.tiktok.com/@thedoggishlife
Image Credit:
KJ McRae (for my headshot)
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