Today we’d like to introduce you to Demetria McDonald.
Hi Demetria, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I started creating content long before it became a major thing on social media. I really started getting serious about it in 2018 and joined a group of black women creators. We all helped each other with different ideas, how to navigate the creator space, and gave feedback on each other’s content.
I originally started with the intent to show moms that they didn’t have to conform to the societal norm of what society thought moms should dress and act like. We are all different and unique. I started out trying to box myself into one niche when I’m reality, I had more than one. I was motherhood, marriage life, fashion, and lifestyle. And when I realized I didn’t have to conform to just one niche, I ran with it.
Recently I have made a shift by focusing mostly on fashion because styling brings me so much joy. And if I can help just one woman know that she can dress with style too, then I know I’ve done something right.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Quite honestly, it has not been the easiest journey. The content creator/influencer space is so saturated and it’s like all of a sudden everyone wanted to be a creator. It’s definitely been a journey in trying to land brand deals and monetize from creating content especially as a black woman. A lot of times we would be low-balled with what brands wanted to pay us. That was in the beginning, though when there were so many rules on working with brands. But as time has gone on, it’s become a lot easier to work with brands especially if you are just doing the work.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I am a content creator and I absolutely love fashion. I love to style outfits and put things together. I have such a huge wardrobe that it is hard for me to duplicate the same outfit twice. I love creating reels/Tik Tok videos to show women how to style certain outfits. So I guess you could say my specialty is styling. I just know that when I have on an outfit that I worked hard to put together, and it makes me feel confident that I have done my job. I feel like every woman loves to look good. We get our hair, nails, feet, and lashes done, so why not have an outfit to match that energy.
I would say I am known for by my sense of style. From my online presence and my friend group, I’m always the one that is going to have on a cute outfit. I am most proud of how far I’ve come. I had a period where I wanted to give up on content creation altogether but I just took a long break and reevaluated some things and got back to it. I think I took a break because the focus before was so much on the numbers and not us as creators having fun with creating the content. Once I put myself in the mind frame that I need to create what makes me happy, it put me back in a better headspace to start creating again.
I think what sets me apart from others is that in fashion and styling, I’m not afraid to take a risk and try something out. If I start styling something and put it out there for the world to see, but it doesn’t really work or I really don’t like it after the fact, at least I took a risk to try it and I can always revamp or start over if I need to.
Where do you see things going in the next 5-10 years?
This content creator industry has become huge over the past few years. I honestly wish I was more serious about it back when IG came on the scene.
But the industry is forever changing and I think you are going to see a lot more people embrace content creators more and not have the mindset that it’s just a hobby, but people are actually full-time creators who make more than they ever did at their corporate jobs.
I think brands are going to continue to grow in a sense of bringing on more creators to do the work so they don’t have to pay so much for advertisement.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @demechanei
Image Credits
Jazmin Lasha Photography- Jazmin Mullen
