Today we’d like to introduce you to LaToya Shambo.
LaToya, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
Originally, I wanted to be an A&R, interned at Bad Boy, and quickly realized the music business was not for me so I made a pivot into Advertising. After graduating with a degree in Marketing and Advertising from The Fashion Institute of Technology in New York, I kicked off my career at Havas, a large advertising agency doing local traditional TV/Radio ad buys. I worked on accounts like Mcdonald’s and KMart, however, I knew that digital is where I wanted to be. After my first year on the traditional media side, I shifted gears to digital where I worked in pharma doing digital media planning and buying.
Fast forward a few years later, I worked with some iconic companies like Spike Lee’s Spike DDB and Conde Nast, etc., but the bulk of my experience was at Complex Media. While at Complex, my life changed and I discovered my purpose. After an unfortunate accident, I had the time to think about how I can merge my profession with my passion.
In 2011, only five days after giving birth, while crossing the street with my newborn in hand, we were hit by a car. We are blessed, God protected us with everything he could! While I walked away with a few broken bones, Alissa was totally unharmed, and I felt like I was woken up with a new outlook on life. I didn’t know immediately what was going to change, but I believed that God protected me for a reason and I had to get prepared to serve because that was the only way I could show gratitude. One day, five years later was the birth of Black Girl Digital.
Black Girl Digital is my contribution to the culture, Black community, and advertising industry. It is the perfect intersection of my purpose where my profession and passion meet. I am grateful every day to be able to broker brand partnerships for Black women and people of color. Black Girl Digital has brokered brand partnerships for over 300 Black creators in 2022, and as a boutique agency, it makes me proud to see our contribution close the wage gap and support a marginalized group.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
The road has not been smooth. It was tough because there were no mentors along the way. This is a new economy and I basically had to figure everything out myself as I went along. That was also the beauty in it as well. I love a good challenge. Some of the struggles include NET pay gaps. I cashed in my 401k to start the business to make sure I had funds to pay creators on time, regardless if a brand paid me or not. I would pay creators before paying myself. It is critical for a new business owner to build trust in the space. I take pride in knowing that we pay all of our creators on time, every time- but that took time.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Black Girl Digital is a premium multicultural influencer marketing agency. We broker brand partnerships between Fortune 500 brands and Black and diverse creators at scale. We specialize in the Black female audience. We also have a tech platform, iLINKR, where we manage all of our campaigns allowing our clients to see campaign and influencer metrics in real-time.
I am really excited to announce that this year we will be hosting our 2nd Annual Black Girl Digital Awards ceremony in Atlanta, GA on Nov 5th. Find out more at www.blackgirldigitalawards.com
Who else deserves credit in your story?
My team is a huge support system, without them none of this would be possible.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.latoya.shambo.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/latoyashambo
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/blackgirldigital
- Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/latoyashambo
- Other: www.blackgirldigital.com
Image Credits
Antionne Duane Jones @antoinneduanejones
