On ⁠World Storytelling Day, held annually on March 20, the American Influencer Council (AIC) held a lunch and learn⁠, at Pando Park Avenue, exploring career travel creators' unique business dynamics. This AIC Member-led event was hosted by ⁠Jessica Morrobel⁠, who moderated the conversation, and ⁠Gabby Beckford⁠, as well as Public Goodwill Committee Chair ⁠Nneya Richards⁠. Guests heard from our trio of Members and special brand guest ⁠Dupé Ajayi⁠, who has held impactful roles at ABC News, Airbnb.org, Bank of America, and MTV and had clients such as Mary J. Blige.

The conversation ignited insightful dialogues around travel storytelling and remote work and provided practical business advice for growing as new and seasoned storytellers in the creator economy. Per data released in ⁠December 2023 from Statista’s Research Department⁠, “[the] influx of visitors and a boost in U.S. travel spending, the travel and tourism industry contributed over two trillion U.S. dollars to the country’s GDP in 2022.”

Travel creator content is sought after by brands and tourism boards locally and globally. Such content entices tourists to book more leisure travel, and Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube act as extended search engines for discovery.

Watch the full replay on YouTube or listen to the conversation through our Creators with Influence Podcast. Listen whereever podcasts are available: Spotify, Apple, Google and more!

https://youtu.be/LhFmazBiYxQ

Engage with us

Instagram ⁠@creatorswithinfluence⁠

Instagram ⁠@americaninfluencercouncil⁠

YouTube ⁠@americaninfluencercouncil⁠

LinkedIn ⁠@aic_nyc

American Influencer Council Member Gabby Beckford is a GenZ global nomad on a quest to empower young women from all socio-economic backgrounds to cultivate a passion and the financial means to travel. She is the creator of the blog PacksLight.com where she shares her many adventures from over 45+ countries, COVID safe recommendations, affordable hacks, and information vetted by tourist board partners worldwide. Gabby was selected for all of the highly competitive social media platform creator programs: TikTok Creator Fund, Meta’s We the Culture Black Creator Program, LinkedIn Creator Accelerator Program, and Pinterest Creator Fund. She is an entrepreneurial career creator wunderkind. As a business-savvy GenZ, Gabby has taken control over her personal and professional growth by being self-employed and touting herself as a full-time digital nomad since January 2021. Her unique thought leadership on solo female travel and remote work has earned her awards from Lonely Planet's Best in Travel: Emerging Voice Award, Wanderful’s Bessie Awards: Trailblazer Award, Traverse’s 12-Month Achievement Award, and she was named a finalist for Newsweek’s Future of Travel Award. Creators with Influence hosts Qianna Smith Bruneteau, and Karston 'Skinny' Tannis speak to Gabby about succeeding from anywhere.

The American Influence Council (AIC) produces the Creators with Influence Podcast. Visit the AIC: https://www.americaninfluencercouncil.com

CONNECT WITH GABBY

Website: https://www.packslight.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gabriellebeckford

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@packslight

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/packslight

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/packslight

ENGAGE WITH #CreatorswithInfluence

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/Creatorswithinfluence

Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/Creatorswithinf

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@Creatorswithinfluence

Learn more: http://creatorswithinfluence.com

Hashtag #CreatorswithInfluence

The American Influencer Council (AIC) held its first in-person event of 2023 on the 20th anniversary of Safer Internet Day to kick off Black History Month (BHM). On Tuesday, February 7, a small intimate group gathered at Soho Works 10 Jay in Brooklyn to discuss the 'Creator Blind Spot, Navigating Algorithmic, and Moderation Biases.' The AIC is a Black-Founded 501(c)6 not-for-profit membership trade association that prioritizes diversity and inclusion 365 days a year. Federally recognized heritage months like BHM provide an excellent opportunity to bring people together from all backgrounds to embrace culture and share knowledge and drive awareness on topics impacting vulnerable communities. "This month, the AIC is driving awareness of the unintentional harms that come from automated decision-making," said AIC Founder Qianna Smith Bruneteau. "At the AIC, we believe awareness is the first step to finding solutions that will create positive change."

Quotes of Note from our Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs):

1. "Many people show up on the Internet for the metrics and the hype. They're not showing up to serve or to help someone. And you truly do see a difference in your reach when you are here to serve rather than to get the likes." —Asa Dugger, Moderator, AIC Member

2. “You have to remember whom you're creating for. I have so many people that say, I want to be an influencer. What do you want to influence? It's not the number of likes you get that will keep you going.” —Nneya Richards, Travel Creator and co-Chair of the AIC Public Goodwill Committee

3. "The algorithm of life is also about putting the phone down, going outside, and touching the grass. You know, that's the stuff that's going to rejuvenate you to create and be more productive." —Visuals by Pierre, AIC Founding Member

4. "Algorithms tend to be living, breathing things that evolve based on product priorities, company priorities, and company goals." —Simone Oliver, SVP of Digital Content, BET

5. “There's the algorithms on these platforms and there's the algorithm of life, too. What are you choosing to engage with? You change these stories, you change the culture and you change the world.” —Rumi Chunara, Ph.D., Associate Professor at NYU Center for Health Data Science

6. "If you are truly putting yourself out there and have a core vision of what you are doing in social media as an influencer. Your impact in the world will always come through." —Sidney Madison Prescott, Former Global Head of Intelligent Automation, Spotify

7. “So when publishing your content, think of what someone is looking for in the simplest terms. What are the keywords, and how can I be prioritized to the top?” —Brandon Smithwrick, Head of Content at Songfinch

Engage with us on Instagram @americaninfluencercouncil @creatorswithinfluence; TikTok @creatorswithinfluence. Watch on YouTube.