Meet Jessica Smidt of Dot Dot Dot Social

Today we’d like to introduce you to Jessica Smidt.

Hi Jessica, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I have worked in the Advertising Agency world for over 15 years. Most of my experience came from Saatchi & Saatchi in LA and then local agencies here in San Diego. My background is in Account and Project Management, Experiential Marketing, and Production.

I have always wanted to start something of my own, I just never quite pushed myself to do it…That is, until my second child was born the week that Covid began. Coming back from Maternity Leave, the 8 hour work days, endless Zoom calls, and managing an entire team from home- while also trying to navigate the new normal of a pandemic… I knew it was time to make a change.

A full time Agency job, no sleep, and caring for two kids while being in quarantine sounds like the perfect recipe to start a company right?! Well, it was because it finally pushed me to do it!

Why Dot Dot Dot Social? I wanted to create an Agency where I could use all of my expertise and really provide brands with more than managing their social channels, but also produce content for them, strategize, and create all-encompassing strategies for them. A one-stop-shop for your brand’s digital marketing needs. Most importantly- I wanted to make this affordable for brands, especially for small businesses that don’t have huge budgets.

Dot Dot Dot just celebrated our first year anniversary this month!! What started as something I was going to do at home on the side to bring extra money in for the family and have a more flexible schedule, spiraled into something bigger than I could have ever expected!! We are now a team of five with over 15 Clients! We also started as a company helping mostly San Diego Local Businesses be able to navigate and survive in the new Covid World (which we are still doing) but we have also recently landed some global brands which we are super proud of!

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?
In some ways yes in some ways no.

The endless nights of no sleep and transitioning into owning my own business have not been easy. What I thought was going to be working less, turned into me never knowing where to turn it off. It took time away from my family. Now I know why people say that once you are self-employed the work never stops. You have to put in the time at the beginning to build a strong foundation.

I am super thankful that the road to find Clients and partners has been smooth as we started with some family friends, former co-workers, and from there I started getting recommended by word-of-mouth which was amazing.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
Dot Dot Dot Social is a Social Media Agency that specializes in:

– Social Media Strategy
– Social Media Community Management
– Content Production
– Brand Partnerships
– Influencer Campaigns
– Brand Photoshoots

What sets up apart from other social agencies is that we have the small agency mentality. You are not just a number for us, we are involved in your day-to-day and really become part of your Brand’s team. You no longer need to hire a photographer, then a designer, then someone to manage your Instagram. We can do it all. This saves time, money, and creates consistency.

We are known for making your Instagram Page look perfect and making sure there is a strategy behind every single thing your brand posts. We also help grow and solidify your brand’s community.

We work with amazing people and Brands. Each brand we have on our roster is because we believe in the brand. One of our niches has been the food industry. We work with San Diego token restaurants like Porkyland Mexican Grill, San Diego Burger Company, Tuk Tuk Eatery and the newer Ceviche Craft. One of our favorite projects has been to help the team of Batch & Box, We have been with them since the beginning before the store even opened and we have loved the journey of helping them expand and grow their brand and community of Cookie Lovers. (plug: if you haven’t tried them yet they are the best cookies in San Diego!!).

We also love working with retail spaces like North City San Marcos, Urban Beach House in One Paseo and Leah Jessica Jewelry. If we had to pick one of the brands we are most proud of being a part of at the moment it would be Raw Elements. Not only are the products amazing, there’s an incredible team behind it, amazing purpose behind the brand, and making the content for it is extremely fun!!

We are also proud to be an all-female agency!

Are there any important lessons you’ve learned that you can share with us?
Trust your gut. Believe in yourself. When there is momentum and opportunities you need to take them and go for it!

Loving the team you build around you and the people you work for is just as important as the work you are doing.

Be patient. Growth comes with time.

Contact Info:

• Email: dotdotdotsocial@gmail.com
• Website: www.dotdotdotsocial.com
• Instagram: dotdotdotsocial

Image Credits
Charie Juaneza