[MUSIC PLAYING]
JENNY GUY: Hello, and
welcome, everybody.
It is Thursday, October 17.
And I am so happy
to be back with you
guys for our first official
fall episode of "Teal Talk."
I can't believe
it's fall, y'all.
I am Jenny Guy.
I'm Mediavine's Marketing
Manager and your host today.
How is everyone doing?
It's been a while
since we talked.
And it is now Q4, which is
the quarter I feel like we all
talk about until it is here.
And then everything is so
insane during that time,
with all the personal
stuff, that business
is hard to come by.
So basically, it's already
2020, if anyone was wondering.
It's the end of the year.
It's a new decade.
But to get to the
matter at hand today,
I have got a super impressive
lineup of guests with me today.
As you can see, we're
doing three guests.
And they're all incredible.
They took a break from
being industry leaders
to talk about a topic that
is near, dear, and very
important to all of our hearts.
We are talking about diversity,
inclusion, and access
within the blogging
industry today.
I'm going to
introduce our guests.
But just to remind
you, first, thank you
for being here with us.
Second, if you've got
questions for us and the panel,
please feel free to just
post them in the comments.
And we will make sure
to get those asked.
So lots to cover today.
I want to introduce everyone.
First, I'm going to
start with Beth Santos.
She is the founder and CEO of
Wanderful, a global community
and lifestyle brand that
specializes in helping
all women travel the world.
Wanderful reaches a diverse
audience of over 100 million
each year through chapter
events in 50 cities,
an international home-sharing
network, which is super cool,
global summits, and
small group trips--
a thriving membership community
and dynamic online content
and forums.
She is the creator
and host of the Women
In Travel Summit-- which
I've been to twice,
it's amazing-- a leading event
for women, travel creators,
and industry, happening on
two continents each year,
and co-founder of hashtag At
The Table, a national dinner
series and community
for female founders.
She lives in Boston.
Hi, Beth.
Thank you so much
for joining us today.
BETH SANTOS: Hi, Jenny.
Thanks for having me.
JENNY GUY: Absolutely.
All right.
Our next wonderful
woman, TaKenya Hampton
is the blogger behind Kenya Rae,
an online food and DIY outlet
where good food
doesn't take all day.
And it sounds like some
food is ready now, maybe,
in someone's microwave.
I don't know.
Could be something delicious.
Dessert could be its own meal.
And dessert is also in
a war with breakfast
for the meal of the day.
She has been in the
blogging space since 2011
and watched it go
through many changes.
She also serves as a
resource to fellow bloggers
on the Mediavine
Publisher Support team.
Hi, Kenya.
Welcome.
TAKENYA HAMPTON: Hi.
JENNY GUY: All right.
And finally, Martinique Lewis
is a diversity and travel
consultant, content creator,
and influencer manager.
She's trusted among her
peers as a connector
and is always
connecting the dots
to ensure the travel industry
is mindful of diversity,
not just as a buzzword but an
action that produces results.
Working with numerous tourism
boards and travel brands,
she is constantly
strategizing ways
to ensure travel marketing
campaigns are inclusive
and all travelers
feel represented.
As an international speaker, her
goal has always been the same--
it's a simple one, really-- to
change the face of terrorism
forever.
No problem.
As the creative lead of
Nomadness Travel Tribe,
she produces content that
resonates with travelers
of color globally
and is proud to be
part of the team that
plans and executes
Audacity Fest, the first
travel festival for travelers
of color.
Welcome.
Hi, Marty.
MARTINIQUE LEWIS: Hi.
Thank you.
JENNY GUY: OK, ladies.
Well, thank you.
Thank you all, first, for
being here and taking time.
I know all of you have
crazy busy schedules.
But you guys know that this
is an important topic to us.
It's an important
topic to all of you.
So I definitely just want to
get the conversation started
right away.
And let's just start out
with the fact that all of you
have very diverse origin stories
within the blogging industry.
So I'd like to hear a
little bit from each of you
about how you got started
with digital content creation
and working with influencers.
And let's go ahead
and start with Marty.
MARTINIQUE LEWIS: So
I got started probably
about two years ago.
I was working for
a travel community.
And I just was
basically tired of not
seeing everybody represented.
Sorry, you guys.
I'm at work.
So if you see this flash, it's
because there's a photo shoot
going on next door.
But it's so hard for me
to try to find a place
to actually go and just
get time by myself.
So sorry for that distraction.
But yeah, I was just tired of
not seeing myself reflected.
But then once I
actually attended WITS,
I realized that
so many people who
fit into different
travel niches also didn't
see themselves reflected.
And that was a problem.
So I start advocating for
all types of travelers
and really started working
with tourism boards and travel
brands, in terms of placing
different influencers
in separate situations
to make sure
that their campaigns and
all of their marketing
was inclusive to everybody.
So that's how I got
started in this.
JENNY GUY: Awesome.
OK.
And same question to you, Kenya.
TAKENYA HAMPTON: For
me, I just started
blogging as a outlet
to continue writing
once I finished grad school.
It was just something
I was like, I ah,
I think I want to start a blog.
And I got online and
started writing, not
really realizing what all
could happen with blogging.
And then as I kind of emerged
more into the blogger space
and made connections with
different influencers
and things like
that, I just started
to see how big this
thing really was.
And that's pretty much
how I got started.
JENNY GUY: It's pretty crazy.
I'm always shocked by
all the different niches
and conferences and
different little,
like I said, yeah, niches,
sectors of the blogging
industry itself.
It's pretty incredible
and very diverse.
Beth, for you,
please, same question.
BETH SANTOS: Yeah.
And it's constantly growing,
which I think is just amazing.
So sometimes I feel
like a grandmother
in the blogging world,
because I started
my personal blog 13 years
ago and the what is Wanderful
today, 10 years ago.
I was doing a lot
of travel on my own.
And much like the
two of you, actually,
just blogging was the way for
me to share some of the feelings
that I was feeling and
some of the experiences
that I was having.
And I think now being
a business owner,
I realize that that was
kind of my way of solving
a problem that I had seen.
And in ways where other
people start businesses,
I kind of started a blog.
And I think even then,
so we grew in our content
and eventually launched the
Women in Travel Summit, which
Jenny was so kind to
mention and Marty's been to,
which initially started in 2014
as a "how to blog" conference.
And what we found
was that there were
a lot of women who, like
us, had created blogs
and were looking to share their
voices and voices that did not
receive enough
representation, especially
in the travel industry.
But I think what was
even interesting then
was that blogging,
as an industry,
was not really even as
mainstream as it is now.
And so it's just been so
incredible over the years
to watch it grow, where
women who are coming up
to us that very
first year are going,
I'm thinking of
starting a blog, now
have a million monthly
readers and are building
really incredible businesses.
And it's become a
whole new market
that we've all created together,
which is really so exciting.
JENNY GUY: It really
is such an incredible--
the blogging
industry, I think, has
undergone so many incarnations,
changes, adaptations
over the short lifespan that
it's had as a viable career
option for people.
So I think it's
incredible to watch.
It's never dull.
That's for sure--
never a dull moment.
So I wanted to also
then talk about, now
that we have a little
background from each of you
on how you got
started-- and Marty
talked a little bit about this
already-- but is there anything
about each of your
experiences, quote unquote,
"breaking into the industry"
that you felt was directly
impacted by your own personal
demographic, like race
or sex, orientation, or any
of those individual markers
that you felt impacted
your beginning?
And like I said, Marty
talked about it a little.
And I heard both Marty
and Beth talk about
travel being a specific
barrier in certain ways.
So I'd like to talk about
that, if you wouldn't mind.
And we'll start with Beth.
If you'll start this
time, that will be great.
BETH SANTOS: Yeah.
Well, speaking from the travel
perspective, the one fact
that I often tell is that
80% of travel decisions
are made by women.
Two out of every three
travelers are female.
But at the same
time, if you look
at senior leadership
in the travel industry,
you find a lot of
white men, frankly.
And the proportion of women
as decision-makers in travel
is not at all related to who the
decision-makers are at the top.
And I think we've
actually talked
a lot about that in
the blogging industry,
too, that you see a lot of
influencers who are women
but, at the same time, are not
given quite the same gravitas
as they build their businesses.
And so I don't think I could
ever separate any of the things
that I identify as from
the growth of my business
and the growth of my blog.
I think all of that is
related to whether it's
the way I'm perceived, the
way I talk about myself,
the way I've built things.
I think age is something
that has stood out
for me, especially in
blogging, as a positive and as
a negative, honestly.
I think as a blogger
who's a millennial,
it's kind of expected,
in a lot of ways.
But as a business owner
who's a millennial,
I find people who are kind
of looking over my shoulder
to find out who the boss is.
And so I think that's something
that I've definitely noticed.
But certainly, I
think that we'll
go into just a lot
of different layers
that have changed my
experience over the years
that I don't think I
could ever separate from.
JENNY GUY: I think,
yeah, you're definitely
right in that separating those
things out, and especially
for a content creator, because
with blogging so much--
because we experience it in
all levels of the professionals
sphere that when
you go in, you're
experiencing it differently,
based on who you are.
But with blogging,
you're sharing
your own personal story.
That's so intricate
to what the job is.
It's in the job description,
is that you're basing
everything on your
own experiences.
So that's intrinsic to what what
your experience is in that way.
So fantastic.
I don't know if that made sense.
It did in my mind.
BETH SANTOS: It did to me.
MARTINIQUE LEWIS: It
totally made sense.
[INTERPOSING VOICES]
JENNY GUY: I felt like I
spiraled there and then tried
to pull it on back in.
It always happens a little bit.
Corey Lee just made
a comment, said,
"As a blogger that focuses on
wheelchair-accessible travel,
I love that Mediavine
is doing this talk."
Awesome.
I love that we're having Corey.
We would love for you to share
your website in our comments
so we can share that out.
Kenya, to you,
please, talk about how
you experienced breaking in.
TAKENYA HAMPTON: For me,
when I started, like I said,
it was just a hobby.
So I really wasn't looking
to find a tribe or anything
like that, which is a
really big buzzword now--
"find your tribe."
Yeah, it's this big thing.
But when I got
started with blogging,
I was just looking
to have a space
to share my thoughts
on the internet
and really wasn't
even thinking about it
as being on the internet.
It was more so just
a writing outlet.
And then when I started
finding different blog groups
and things like
that, I just noticed
that people kind of
stuck with people
that looked or were like them.
And so joining certain groups,
I could go in and ask questions
or try and find out information
about different things
and not get responses.
And it was kind of
frustrating to feel
like the only place I did
get a response or did fit in
was in a group full of
people that looked like me.
And that's what happens,
then, in real life.
But I don't know why I
thought being on a blog
or being online that it
would be any different.
I think that it has gotten
better over the years,
because there are people
who really speak out
about those things.
But you always kind of
wonder what the consequences
are of speaking out about it,
too, on your own platform.
And I think that's
something that we probably
will go into a little bit
deeper in this conversation.
But that was kind of
my initial experience
in starting out as a blogger.
JENNY GUY: Awesome.
And yeah, I think
definitely talking about--
it's super important to
talk about the consequences
of addressing these
things head-on.
I think that that's
definitely something
I want to circle back to.
But first, let's hear Marty.
Same question to
you-- what barriers
might you have
experienced breaking in?
MARTINIQUE LEWIS:
Yeah, mine was actually
the complete opposite of hers.
I was just tired
of going to places,
and there was nothing about
the black history that
were in so many places.
And historically, we
know that so many people
were taken from
Africa and spread
out all across the world.
So it's like, why am
I going to Amsterdam,
or why am I going to
Paris, and there's
nothing about the
black history here,
even though I'm looking around
and I see the black people?
So it wasn't enough for
me for them to say, oh,
because they only came here
during the slave trade,
or they didn't get
here till the 1960s.
And I'm like, no, they've
been here since the 1700s.
Your portraits show it.
Your buildings show it.
And I was like, this
has got to stop.
And I was like, there's a reason
that this narrative is not
being shared.
But because I knew how much
specifically black travelers
spent, I was like, you're really
missing out on an opportunity
to get these people to
come to your destination,
whereas they might
not have known
there is this presence here.
But you are failing to show it.
So that was what sparked me
into this actually a lot more.
And then when I started
speaking about it over and over
again, then people--
the light started to
go off in their head.
And they're like, yeah,
actually, they're right.
And especially since travel
right now is so accessible--
there's so many
low-budget airlines.
There's so many gray OTAs that
give you so many good deals.
People are traveling.
But they do want to know
more about themselves when
they get to a destination.
So that's what it was for me.
JENNY GUY: I love hearing that
you found a way to express
the need for diversity and
inclusion in a way that
actually would have an impact
on the decision-makers,
which is the bottom line--
that you've got to
put it in that context
to affect real change.
And you did.
And I think that
that's so impactful.
MARTINIQUE LEWIS: Thank you.
JENNY GUY: Of course.
Yeah.
OK.
So we've got a lot of
buzzwords and a lot of somewhat
controversial words in the
title of this live, which
are "diversity,"
"inclusion," "access."
All of those are words that
get bandied about a whole lot
in not only the blogging
industry, but in the world
as a whole.
So can we talk about how you see
those words directly manifested
in the blogging industry, both
from your personal experience
and what you've seen through
observing other people
as you've gone
through your journey?
Obviously, Beth and Marty have
devoted a significant amount
of their career focus
to these topics.
So why are those so important?
And I'm actually going to
start with Kenya on this one.
I'd love to hear how
you've seen those.
Talk a little bit
more about that
in your experience as a
content creator for nine years.
TAKENYA HAMPTON:
Well, first of all,
I want to say that they're
extremely important, because it
is very important that all
people of all communities
are represented, especially
with blogging going more
towards a very common
form of advertising now.
Just like when little kids sit
and look at a commercial on TV,
they should see people
that look like themselves,
that they can connect
to, relate to, whatever.
It should be the same
thing in terms of blogging,
because, essentially,
blogging is becoming
a form of advertisement.
But I see it
transitioning a lot.
And I see it being
discussed a lot more, which
I think is important.
But I think that we have to keep
it constructive in how we talk
about it and also figure
out how to shift things
when we see a need for
a shift, as opposed
to just yelling out
into the internet,
which happens sometimes.
JENNY GUY: Stop.
Are you saying that just
randomly sharing memes
and yelling and making
comments in Facebook groups
doesn't affect change?
I'm shocked.
I would never have
guessed that--
[INTERPOSING VOICES]
JENNY GUY: I love it.
Can you talk about
a specific example,
just to redirect on that
before going to Beth and Marty,
about a way of keeping
it constructive?
Can you talk about that
in a little more detail.
TAKENYA HAMPTON: So yeah.
It's funny because probably
within the last year,
this was a discussion
in one of the groups
that I'm in-- the
Courage to Earn
group, where we talk
about earning as bloggers
and the different things
that are happening
within the blogging community.
And one of the
things that came up
was, when campaigns
happen and there's
a group filled with
people that all look alike
in these campaigns, and
there's no diversity in them.
And so the conversation
was started on, well,
how do you make change?
What do I do?
If I'm in a position
to be in this group,
how do I make change?
How do I make a difference?
And it's just as simple as,
if you notice that there isn't
diversity, pointing that out.
And you don't have to
do it in a rude way.
You don't have to
be a jerk about it.
But you can point
it out and say, hey,
I noticed that this isn't
a very diverse group.
If you don't know
where to start,
where to find some people,
I can pull together
a list, because I
know plenty of people
that create great content
that are out there.
Or saying, hey, next time
that there's something,
I can provide you with
a list-- or things
like that, just speaking up
about it to the decision-makers
to let them know
that it is something
that needs to be addressed.
JENNY GUY: Love that.
I also love the idea of so much
doing the work for somebody
makes it a lot easier.
Just saying, by the way,
if you were curious,
I have a list, just right
here, ready, just in case you--
you don't have to hunt.
I have it.
It's done.
All right.
Marty, same question to you.
MARTINIQUE LEWIS: Yeah, I
agree what she's saying 100%.
But I also do not want people
to think that they should just
be going around giving lists,
because this is people's jobs.
And they should be hiring
people as consultants
to create those lists.
You cannot have my resources
for free when I've done the work
when you have people on your
team who could do the work.
But additionally, if you have
nobody on your team internally,
it's going to reflect
that externally.
And that's another
reason that we've
seen influence their trips or
press trips or media, anything.
It looks very much
so like one person.
So I am very vocal, if you guys
haven't been able to tell yet.
And I do call tons
of people out.
But I do it in a respectful
way, like she said.
But also, I let them know.
Maybe on the post, I might
give you five people.
But then when they
inbox me, then I
let them know,
these are my rates,
because this is the
research that I've done.
It's been this
important to me, I've
sought out these
many different people
that come into this
many different groups.
And here's my consulting fee,
because it's not fair to you
to continuously give a
company all of your resources
when they can do the same work.
And it's actually
their market that they
should be doing, as well.
One thing that we've
heard plenty of times
is a lot of brands
say, I don't know how.
And that's fair.
And then you have things
like this that they
need to be tuning into.
You make sure that there's
places like WITS, where there's
that programming, or
it's people teaching you
how to connect with
inclusive markets.
But they have to do
better, just in general.
It should be top of mind.
It's 2019, almost
2020, like you said.
There's no reason that we should
look to the left and right
and we shouldn't see a
wide range of people.
You know what I mean?
Corey, my guy, he
shouldn't have to fight
so hard for
accessibility in travel.
You should already be
thinking about that.
That should be top of mind.
Is my destination, or
is my brand inclusive
to every single person who's
going to come around it?
It's a serious issue.
So now, since 2017 maybe,
we've been hearing diversity
inclusion so much more now.
But now it's time
to take action.
It's not just about
saying it anymore.
We've had enough
time to do that.
There's plenty of ways.
You've seen
campaigns that do it.
So now it's like, all
right, everybody else
get on the board.
It's not about rocking
the boat anymore
or if our brand does this, are
we going to lose travelers?
No.
People are looking
for places to go.
You're not going
to lose travelers.
You're going to gain more
people, because they're going
to see themselves reflected.
So it's no longer a thin line.
It's no longer a tippy-toe.
It's no longer
bloggers or people
in this space being afraid.
Speak up.
Definitely speak up,
because we're all advocates
for each other, also.
We've got to be
advocates for each other,
because if we
don't say anything,
nothing's going to change.
JENNY GUY: Yeah, you're
absolutely right.
And I found this more and
more in the blogging industry,
that attitude of abundance
and opening your mind
and not being afraid I'm
going to lose something
if I then share this
opportunity with other people.
I love seeing bloggers lifting
each other up and helping
other people, giving
them a leg up.
That's excellent.
You've got a lot of yeses--
yeses from many people.
I want Beth to answer.
And then I want to go to some
of the comments we're getting.
Beth, same question
to you, please.
BETH SANTOS: Yeah.
And so I have so many
ideas swarming in my head.
I'm like, I hope I can
answer these all in one go.
So when we're talking about
diversity, and particularly
inclusion and particularly
access in blogging,
there's two different angles
that I'm looking at here.
First, there is
inclusion and access
in the act of sharing your
voice, like sharing something
that you're thinking
in blogging.
And then there's also diversity
and inclusion and access
in blogging, as an
industry, as a business,
and as a marketplace.
And so to comment
on the first thing,
I think over the
years, one thing
that we've really
failed as a society is,
we tend to think
that blogging is very
democratic, that everyone
has a free play in blogging,
that voices are all equal, and
that the best voices are going
to rise to the top.
And unfortunately,
what I've seen
is that stereotypes
still play into who's
getting to these top ranks.
And in fact, there
is a-- so I went
to a conference a
couple weeks ago.
And they were talking about
travel and responsible travel.
And they specifically
said, in order
to travel more
responsibly, you have
to get past the
first page of Google.
And I think this is very much
the same thing in blogging,
too.
If you want to read
responsibly, you
have to get past the
first page of Google,
because those are the up-votes
of things that unfortunately
fit into a lot of stereotypes--
a lot of just what we expect
a traveler or a chef
or whatever-- anybody--
to look like or to be like.
And we really need to
make sure that we're
being thoughtful about, who
are the voices that we're
taking in, and who are the
voices that we're lifting up?
So then there's also inclusion
and access as an industry.
And I think the thing that I
want to keep in mind there--
and actually, I know, Jenny,
when you and I were first
talking about this, this
is one of the things that
really fueled me up-- is, I
think about my own identity
as a mother.
And I think about when I
was building my business
and had a two-month-old baby
at the same time, realizing
how little time I had and how
there are so many privileges
involved in time, in money,
in building a blogging career,
because those are
things that most of us
have to bootstrap for
a long, long time.
You don't usually
start with a big pot
of money and an investor and
all the time in the world.
You start just doing this as
something that you feel really
passionately about.
And because of that,
it takes a lot of time.
And you opt out
of a lot of money.
And there are a lot of people
who cannot afford to make those
decisions.
So I think just in
itself, blogging
as an industry is something
that it is a lot easier to do
if you have those privileges
than somebody who's
going in who's got other people
to take care of, jobs to work,
that can't just be
investing their time
and resources into this for
what's going to happen years
down the line.
So I think those
are things we really
need to be more thoughtful about
when we talk about blogging.
JENNY GUY: Very true.
It can have that reputation
of, anyone can do it.
It's easy to do from home.
You can start this career.
And I think it is
for a certain sector.
And it gave voice to a sector.
Marty, you're shaking your head.
Jump in.
MARTINIQUE LEWIS: No, I
just was thinking, like,
people, if they only knew.
It's not easy at all.
Gosh.
BETH SANTOS: And it
takes a lot of time.
MARTINIQUE LEWIS: Oh, my gosh.
So time-consuming.
Yeah.
Sorry.
That's all.
I was like, mm-mm.
JENNY GUY: No, but
you're so right.
It's this, anything can do it.
It's easy.
And we all know, from
the inside, it's not.
And I totally agree.
And we could have, like,
a 75-hour live where we
talk about how it's not easy.
But in addition,
I think that what
Beth was saying,
that it is easy--
it's much more accessible
for a certain percentage
of the population to do.
And that's what we're
working to talk about today.
OK.
I'm going to scroll back
through some of these comments.
Here we go.
There's a lot.
Patricia King said she would
love to see more 50-plus travel
bloggers represented.
Our perspective is relevant.
She's got a site
called Savvy Traveling.
I totally agree.
Beth, you mentioned age.
If you've got thoughts on
age, anyone on our panel
right now, please toss them
out while we're talking
about Patricia's comment.
MARTINIQUE LEWIS: Yeah,
ageism is totally real.
There are so many
niches within this,
but ageism is totally real.
And it's crazy, because
these people have more money
than anybody else.
They've worked.
They've saved up.
But also, multi-generational
family travel is big right now.
So why aren't you doing stuff
for grandparents with the kids?
Or women will
retire and just want
to go somewhere by
themselves for a while.
Kids are out of the house.
They're empty-nesters.
Or one of my favorite people
is a traveling black widow.
And her husband died.
And so she just decided
to travel the world.
And she's like, there's nothing
that looks like me out here,
but I'm out here
living my best life.
And I'm like, I know.
I'm like, yes, Miss Char.
We going to get you
what you deserve,
because it's true, though.
There's so many other
people out there like her.
My mom has been living her
best life since I probably
left for college.
And she travels at least six
to seven times a year on seven
to 14 international day trips.
She's like, I don't
ever see myself, either.
And Patricia is so
instrumental in this community.
And she shouldn't
even have to say this.
Patricia has been
around for years.
And she's completely right.
So yeah, there's so many
different niches to tap into.
JENNY GUY: Any other
thoughts on age
before I move to another amazing
comment from the audience?
BETH SANTOS: Yeah.
No, I was just going to agree--
agree up and down.
And one of the things,
actually, so Wanderful
has a creator collective.
It's called the Wanderful
Creator Collective,
surprise, surprise.
And it's a community
of content creators
who are committed to
changing the travel industry.
But also, we have a lot of
people from lifestyle, food,
as well.
And one of the coolest
things was that when we first
launched, by far, the first
users that we had-- and still,
actually, the majority
of our users--
are boomers.
And they joined us and found--
and seniors.
And I know some people don't
like being defined as boomers.
But I think one of
the things that I
noticed from that feedback
was just that they
feel like they
are overwhelmingly
the minority in
the content space.
And that's not true in
terms of the consumers.
So kind of thinking
about the consumer
side of the house versus
the decision-making side
of the house, again,
I think there is
a lot of under-representation.
And there's also a lot of bias.
I think a lot of
these women have
come across people
who just assume
they don't know how
to use technology,
or they're not going to
be able to be savvy enough
to do something when the user,
whether it's careers they're
building or just hobbies that
they've gotten really good at,
that's not the case at all.
So yeah, completely agree.
JENNY GUY: Lizzie
Calder said, quote,
"So they know more
about themselves
when they get to a destination."
She loves this, Marty.
Thank you.
She's working on a
new travel startup,
launching in Central
America, which focuses
on human-centered travel.
It's important to
think about who's
missing from the history
that is being narrated
and who is in control
of telling that story.
Totally agree, Lizzie.
Yes.
I wish we had little emojis
that we could just pop up.
Or just do it ourselves,
like, yeah, yeah, yeah.
Ironica Bell Cole said,
"Yes, yes, yes, Marty."
Julie [INAUDIBLE]-- "Yes Marty."
Danielle Johnson--
"Yes, exactly."
Corey Lee-- "Yes, 100% agree.
We have to speak up and
have each other's backs.
If you see no diversity,
say something."
Awesome.
Brandy Riley-- "Yes,
if your business
is influencer marketing, knowing
about diversity is your job."
BETH SANTOS: Amen.
JENNY GUY: "Quilt
it on a sampler."
Thank you, Brandy.
We've got "Preach it."
[INAUDIBLE]
If you're not a sewer, you could
probably get it screen-printed.
Relax.
Nobody is saying that
you have to be a stitcher
to be able to do [INAUDIBLE].
OK.
Adrienne Brown says,
"Thank you, Michelle."
Phil Bowen says, "Amen."
Adrienne Brown says, "Yes."
Ironica says, "This is
a great conversation."
Brandy-- OK, this is kind
of what I wanted to get to.
She sent in a bunch of comments.
Brandy said, "Unfortunately,
there is still
a backlash for speaking out.
Folks don't like
to be called out."
OK.
Let's talk about
that a little bit
and how we might combat that.
Kenya, do you have anything you
want to share on that topic?
TAKENYA HAMPTON: I think
that that is the thing.
And people think, well,
what if I say something?
Will this put me on a blacklist?
Will people not work
with me anymore?
Will it affect my income?
And some people, this
is their livelihood.
This is what they're
doing full-time.
There is no 9:00 to 5:00
and this is the side hobby.
This is their bread
and butter for how
they feed their families.
And so there is that
thought of, if I speak up,
will there be a problem?
Or will this affect my
family's ability to go on?
And I think that something
needs to be done to remove that
so that people can
speak about things
and so that the
conversation can continue
to be had so that changes
can continue to be made.
JENNY GUY: Love it.
Anyone else want
to share on that?
Marty, Beth, weigh in, please.
BETH SANTOS: Many
great minds have once
said that the more
haters you have,
the more that means you're
doing something right.
And I think we
all have to commit
to doing that, not letting
one person speak up
and then get shot down, but then
being that second person that
speaks up after them.
And I think we all have to
take that responsibility.
JENNY GUY: I think that's a
hugely important step there,
is that being that
second person,
the third person, the fourth
person-- one of the people
who makes it OK when someone
says something, as opposed
to, even though
you didn't say it
and even though it may not
be directly impacting you
at that moment, giving
people the space
to express their
opinions, even if they're
counter to something
that a brand wants
or that a brand is
currently doing.
So important.
Marty, anything
from you before we
go on to more of these great
comments we're getting?
MARTINIQUE LEWIS: No, I
think they summed it up.
So it's about the advocacy
and finding your allies.
I think right now all of
us are in a space where
we agree diversity and
inclusion is important.
And anytime there is a
issue, I feel like we
all band together a lot
now-- a lot more now.
And people are so
much more aware of it
that they do use their
voice in the correct way.
To the person who asked that
question, use your resources.
And use your community.
If you're a part of
Beth's Facebook page,
that's specifically
for the group.
Or if you're a part
of the media one,
post it in there first
and ask somebody.
And you could say, I don't
feel comfortable doing this,
but who else can?
And when you do it,
like Kenya was saying,
you do it in a respectful way.
And then you also kill
them with the stats.
Always kill people
with the stats.
This is how much the people
are spending in this community.
This is how many people are
affected in the world by it.
This is how many people travel
to your destination that
is not right now getting
any type of love from you.
What are you going
to do about it?
And when you make it
mess with their money,
they're more likely to do it.
But definitely use your voice.
And use the people's
voices around you.
JENNY GUY: You got a good
spot to go get those stats?
Or is it just the Googles?
Or do you have any
specific loving websites
that we can share for
people to grab those?
MARTINIQUE LEWIS: So I
tell people all the time,
Pandora music has a
Pandora for brands.
And they conduct
so much research.
Laura Fernandez, she came
to WITS with me this year.
And she sat on my panel.
And they have so many stats
about all different types
of travelers.
Mandala Research does the one
specifically for black travel.
But also, if you're a
part of a overall group,
ask them to conduct
research, as well.
Ask them to send out--
they have email lists.
We do it all the
time at Nomadness,
just trying to see
what people feel
or just trying to see
where people want to go
or how much they spend
on every single trip,
whether domestic
or international,
and come together
with your own results.
I know right now there's nothing
out for a plus-sized traveler.
I don't know if Jeff Jenkins
or anybody else from that group
is on the phone.
But I'm sure they'll come out
with some stats about that,
because nobody's done it.
Never be afraid to
be a pioneer in that,
and never be afraid to reach
out to somebody like a Beth
and ask, how can we partner
with the WITS community
to try to figure out
some of these numbers?
Because these are
people who have access
to all of those travelers.
JENNY GUY: I love that.
Go ahead, Beth.
BETH SANTOS: Can I
add something, too,
Jenny that you got
me thinking about?
It was to the point
of speaking up.
I think sometimes, especially in
the world that we're in, where
people have these beautifully
written-out opinions and really
strong voices--
and I think sometimes
for myself--
and speaking as a straight,
white, able-bodied woman,
sometimes I hesitate
to speak out,
because I know what I'm going
to say, I might say it wrong.
And if I accidentally
say it wrong,
then I'm going to get crucified.
And what's going to happen?
And I think, first of all,
we can't shy away from that.
I think the first
thing that I'll do
is ask somebody I trust.
And I'll say, here's
what I want to say.
I've written it out.
What do you think?
Tell me, from your perspective,
does this sound right?
Is this communicating how
I want to communicate it?
But I would also say that
there is something to be said--
and I hope that the people
listening and agree with this--
there is something
to be said for,
after being wrong, just standing
up and apologizing and saying,
I made a mistake.
My intention here is to
grow this and improve this.
And the way I said it
wasn't the way I meant it.
And I think we need
to start getting
into a habit of
encouraging that dialogue,
because if we're too
afraid that we're not
going to say it the right
way, then so many people
aren't going to say anything.
And then we're not going to get
to the root of these problems.
So I think there needs to be
a lot more where we're saying,
let's have the discussion.
I'll call you out
when you say it wrong.
And you apologize.
And we're going to keep
the conversation going.
And that's what
needs to happen more.
JENNY GUY: I think
that that is also--
yeah, I think that that's on
both sides of maybe sensitivity
and telling someone
that they didn't say it
the way that maybe you should--
again, not making
someone feel like you
need to go throw
yourself off of a bridge
right now, because we're trying.
And if it's not exactly
right, but just being open.
And maybe even saying that,
adding that into the comment.
I don't know if I'm
saying this right.
My intention is good.
I'm not sure.
But I want to try to
express something here.
Forgive me if it's not exactly
the way it needs to be said.
BETH SANTOS: Totally.
JENNY GUY: Karen--
I'm going to butcher
her last name.
Again, on apologizing
and saying it upfront,
I am doing it right now.
I'm probably going to F this up.
Karen "Me-ed-hard"-- "Marty is
such an amazing voice in this
space.
Seeing her stand
up in conferences
and ask the hard questions but,
at the same time, make everyone
think."
Love that.
Brandy Riley, again, said, "We
need diversity in leadership.
That's where it starts."
Very true.
Everyone's now, we got
our emoji hands here.
Patricia King-- "Wanderful is
a pioneer with age diversity."
BETH SANTOS: Aw.
MARTINIQUE LEWIS: For sure.
JENNY GUY: That's awesome.
BETH SANTOS: [INAUDIBLE]
JENNY GUY: Elle
M. said, "I think
people hire who
they know and are
comfortable with doing that.
So sometimes
under-representation
is a reflection of
decision-makers' comfort
zones."
MARTINIQUE LEWIS: For sure.
JENNY GUY: I agree.
Lisa Sharp-- OK, we're
getting to another question.
"Something that really
bothered me last week"--
is it this week?
I don't know. "--is all the
affiliate companies telling me
about Columbus Day sales."
That was last week, because
we have to start immediately.
We are marketing for things
that are 75 weeks in advance.
"I'm Choctaw, and I feel
uncomfortable promoting that.
Any thoughts on
addressing things
like that with businesses?"
Guys, what do we think?
It's a tough one.
BETH SANTOS: Marty's
got a thought.
TAKENYA HAMPTON:
--often [INAUDIBLE]..
If you're uncomfortable with
it, then figure out the way
to say that you're uncomfortable
with it, where it matters.
And maybe it's still
promoting the sale
but saying that this
could be better marketed
as, or whatever, and
starting that conversation
so those brands see
the conversation
and see that people want
that change to happen.
So when they go to do their
marketing for next year,
that's in their thoughts.
But if nobody ever opens
their mouth and says anything,
then they don't know that
they're doing anything wrong.
Or we can say they
don't know that they're
doing anything wrong.
But it's nothing that's
going to change it.
JENNY GUY: Yes.
Anyone else,
thoughts on that one?
OK.
Clarissa Lasky
said, "Yes, Marty.
Kill them with the stats.
Over here clapping
during this talk."
Courtney Lee-- this
is a great resource.
"The Open Doors Organization did
a survey for accessible travel.
People with disabilities spend
over $17 billion per year
on travel."
You can't argue with that.
You cannot argue
with that money.
That's money that
you're arguing with.
You can't.
Lisa Sharp said, "Yes, don't
justify when you were wrong.
Just apologize and learn."
That's all we can do, guys.
We're all on the journey.
We're all wrong.
And when we're wrong, I think--
BETH SANTOS: We're all wrong.
We're all wrong.
JENNY GUY: True.
And embracing it-- and I think
if you're genuinely trying
and you're coming
from a good place
and (QUIETLY) you
fuck up, it happens.
I'm sorry I said the F word.
But it's the truth.
We all do.
And we just got
to say I'm sorry.
That was wrong.
I'm wrong.
TAKENYA HAMPTON: I think
in addition to apologizing,
people have to be willing
to accept people's apology,
because if we're
being honest about it,
the internet just breeds
really mean people.
It can bring out
the worst in people.
And we all get behind the
perfection of our keyboards.
And so we have to also
be willing to accept
people's apology and realize
the imperfection in others,
in that same token.
JENNY GUY: Totally right.
Yeah.
Even if we're totally offended,
you've got to be willing to--
they are genuine.
They want to get better, on
both ends of the spectrum.
Totally agree on that.
OK.
What do you guys feel is
the biggest barrier when
it comes to those
words we're discussing
and our buzzwords, our topics--
diversity, inclusion, access
within the blogging industry.
What's the biggest barrier that
you guys are currently seeing?
Do you want to take
a second to think?
We can also say that
Lisa-- poor Lisa.
Her internet broke
while the question was
being talked about, said Lisa.
"I will have to watch the reply.
Stupid internets."
Man.
BETH SANTOS: Wah, wah.
JENNY GUY: Yeah.
Does anyone have anything on
that that they want to share?
What is the biggest barrier?
Anyone want to go first?
Raise your hand if you
would like to go first.
No one's hand is up.
Yes, Beth.
Go.
BETH SANTOS: I feel like
I've said mine already.
So I'll just talk while you
guys conjure your thoughts.
But I think in my
space, a lot of this
has to do with time
and with money.
I don't know if
it's the biggest.
But I think it's the one
that's most relevant to where
I am in my life right
now, and seeing some
of the women who are building
businesses right now,
is the fact that--
as you say, blogging
as an industry.
If we're talking about
blogging as an industry,
then I think there
is a lot of time
and a lot of money that
goes into building up a blog
and sustaining it while
no money is coming in.
And I think when we
talk about building
a blog, what people often
say is, grow, grow, grow
your community first
before you monetize.
But if you don't have
the time to do that
and you don't have the money to
do that, then how do you do it?
So I think we do want to be more
thoughtful about how much more
difficult it can
be for people who
don't have those resources
available at their disposal.
JENNY GUY: Totally.
Marty or Kenya?
TAKENYA HAMPTON: I think
that kind of sums it up.
Like she said, I don't
know if that's the biggest,
but I definitely think
that those two things play
a part in everything,
because everyone just
doesn't have that same
access to time and money.
JENNY GUY: So all we
need to do is give people
more time and money.
I'm kidding.
Sorry.
Yeah.
TAKENYA HAMPTON: It's nothing.
JENNY GUY: Yeah, I think that we
all talk about the biggest SEO
strategy we can give is
creating more content
and posting three times a
week and doing all the things
that it takes to build a blog.
And that is all true.
And we know it's true.
There's no magic button.
But beating the algorithm is
about creating more content.
And how do you do
that when you're
working two jobs
and 12 hours a day
and you don't have
time to create?
Yeah.
I don't have an
answer on that one.
Marty, anything
from you on that?
Oh, Beth had something.
MARTINIQUE LEWIS: I agree
with what they're saying.
Yeah.
We'll listen to them.
BETH SANTOS: I was
just going to say,
have you seen the article
circulating about all
of the prolific writers
of the 19th century,
like Henry David Thoreau?
And the reason why
Henry David Thoreau
was able to publish these
prolific pieces of writing
were because while
he was stowed away
in his solitary house in
Concord, Massachusetts,
writing, his mom was
doing his laundry.
And his wife was
cooking for him.
And so no offense
to any people who
have mothers cooking for
them and wives doing laundry
or whatever or to
the men here who
are listening in, because
I think right now I'm
talking about sex.
And I'm not talking about
other intersectionalities.
But I think that
there is something
to be said for the
quality of content
that you can produce
when your mind is
focused in many directions.
And if you have
children or if you
have people that you're caring
for or if you have other jobs
or if you have things that
are vying for your time,
your ability to sit down and
write a beautifully crafted
blog post is so much
harder, because you're not
able to have the
luxury of focus.
JENNY GUY: I worry all the
time, and not even just for--
talking about
everyone, that I'm not
doing anything really
great, because I'm
so busy doing 75 other
things at the same time.
And it's frustrating.
I don't know.
I don't know the answer to that,
other than doing less things.
But I don't know that
that's an option, again.
Marty, what about you?
MARTINIQUE LEWIS: No,
I think what you just
said was a legit point, too.
You always feel like there's
not enough time in the day.
But no, like I said, I agree
with what they're saying,
honestly.
JENNY GUY: Yeah.
OK.
This is an important question.
And I definitely want to get
this and have plenty of time
to discuss this and hopefully
have viewers weigh in
with their opinions, as well.
But how can other
influencers help
with advocacy and visibility,
even if they don't necessarily
feel that they're personally
impacted by these issues?
What is the best
thing someone can
do to be an effective advocate
and be an effective ally?
Marty, will you start?
MARTINIQUE LEWIS: Yeah.
I would say, write about
it or create content.
But I literally, right
before I got up here,
I posted something about
me and Sassy Wyatt.
For those of you who don't
know, she's a blind traveler.
And we just went on a trip.
We visit England
this past Saturday.
And I grew up with
a blind grandmother.
So I understand that my
grandmother has never
seen my face.
But I would have to describe
to her how my hair looked
and what type of dress I had on.
So if you can imagine,
you have Sassy,
traveling throughout
a destination.
And we're on a graffiti tour.
We're on a graffiti tour, where
we have to look at murals.
And we're on a graffiti
tour, where we actually
have to paint.
So for somebody who's
creating content,
how can you make that
destination come alive for her?
Because she can't
physically see it.
So of course, the tour
guide was awesome.
But he's like, and
right here to your right
is this mural done
by such-and-such.
But he's not talking
about the colors.
And he's not talking
about the claws
that are coming out of the hand,
the expression on the cat's
face.
And how is she supposed
to talk about any of that
if you don't describe it to her?
So I described it to her.
And I was telling them,
we have to also understand
that people with disabilities
are not incapable.
They can do exactly
everything we can do.
So that was another point that
I made sure to speak about.
But also, we can be
descriptive, as well.
You say how to do things
to a blind traveler
by using direction and motion.
So while she's
actually spraypainting,
it's like, all right, Sass,
hold out your arm maybe half
a person in front of you
and move left to right,
and that's where the paper is.
So she was still able to
fully function and stuff,
but only because I was
describing it to her.
So if she went there by herself,
how was she going to do this?
So it's just being
top of mind to people,
but also sharing
your experiences,
giving bullet points.
Give people a 1, 2,
3 on how to do it
so that when you
travel someplace
or when you see that
somebody else is going
through something, you
can offer up a solution,
and not to put anybody
down, but to make sure
that every traveler
feels appreciative,
that every destination
is for everybody.
And it's just
really speaking up.
Use the voice that you have.
And your niche follows
you, regardless
of what you're talking about.
So I've never talked about
blind traveler before.
But I guarantee you,
all of my followers
will now go to destinations
in mind, describing things
that much better, because I
talked about that one time.
So use your platform and use
your voice and offer solutions.
JENNY GUY: Love it.
Kenya, same question.
TAKENYA HAMPTON: I just
want to say that I think
what she said she did is huge.
She took and
stopped what she was
doing to help somebody else.
And that's kind of
what it boils down to.
She could have just went on
and experienced it for herself
and let the other girl figure
out how to experience it,
because that's her problem.
But she stopped to help.
And that's what
it boils down to.
And what we were
talking about before
is just everybody kind of
banding together and also
advocating for each other.
So the tour guide didn't
describe things for her.
She noticed that that
was an opportunity.
And that could
have been a barrier
to her being able
to experience fully,
so she stopped and described it
to her or gave her instructions
or whatever.
And I think that's huge.
It just boils down to
being a good person.
At the end of the day, I
think that's a big part
of what it boils down to.
So I think that that was
huge that she just shared.
JENNY GUY: Looking outside
yourself and your own problems,
which can feel
overwhelming so many times,
and actually seeing
that somebody else might
be struggling with something
fundamental that you can,
without doing too
much of a disservice
to yourself or without really
having to do that much, you
can help somebody,
just by looking outside
of our own circle of
misery or whatever we
want to say-- our own thoughts.
Beth, same question to you.
BETH SANTOS: Yeah.
So there's two other
things I would add.
And I think, Marty, that's
such a brilliant answer.
And Kenya, to add onto
that-- absolutely.
And I think so the first
being, if you're brought on
for a project or a press
trip or an activity,
I think one of your first
questions should always be,
tell me about who else
is participating in this,
and how can I make sure
that there is representation
across the board here?
How can I connect
with my network?
Because I think
it was a commenter
who mentioned that network
has so much to play into this.
And sometimes
people aren't being
intentionally discriminatory.
They're not trying to be like,
I only want it to look this way.
They're just kind
of thinking, OK,
who do I know,
for the most part.
Sometimes people are just awful.
But I think that if we're able
to really use our networks
and say, let me help you
with the people that I know,
and is there good
representation here,
because I don't want to
participate if there isn't--
I think we do need to stand
up for each other in that way.
And then the other thing I
would say is actually a piece
of advice that we got from one
of our keynotes at WITS this
past year-- the Women
In Travel Summit--
Deesha Dyer, who was a
former social secretary
for President Obama.
And she made a great
point and said,
if you have something to say
and it's about somebody else's
culture, then let them say it.
Even though we're building
these blogs on our voice,
sometimes we need to step aside
and give a different person
a voice so they can talk
about their experiences,
rather than you attempting
to talk about them.
And so I think it's
really important for us
to sometimes take a
step back and say,
what is the message
we're trying to convey?
And who is the right person to
actually speak that message?
And sometimes that
person might not be you.
JENNY GUY: Absolutely.
And I think that's great.
All of those were amazing.
And Deesha is our guest
on Teal Talk in two weeks.
MARTINIQUE LEWIS: Love her.
JENNY GUY: I acted like
a total douche-magouche
in [INAUDIBLE]
Portland, because I was
so excited about meeting her.
I acted like an idiot.
Anyway, OK.
But I think, yeah, and getting--
like you said, Beth, it doesn't
mean it can't be on your blog.
It just means that maybe
you go out and find
someone else to write it or ask
them to consult or interview
them, help facilitate
them to have that voice.
There's more ways to help.
But yeah, I think that there
are times when we all just have
to look honestly at ourselves
and say, that needs to be said.
I'm not the one that
needs to be saying it.
That's great.
OK.
We are running low on time,
which is very upsetting to me,
because I want to keep talking
about this all day long.
But I really like this question.
These two kind of
feed in together.
And it's talking about
content creation.
And how can bloggers
think about their content
in a different way that is
more thoughtful about some
of these issues?
And we were talking
about asking people in,
and that's a great way to do it.
And then when something
happens in the news
that content creators feel
a need to respond to or want
to respond to or
share, what is the best
way to do that sensitively?
And so let's everybody
think about that.
I'm going to read a
couple reader comments.
First, Lisa Sharp says,
"I'd love more resources
on how to make our
sites more accessible."
God, accessibility
is so important.
"I know I have
some blind readers.
And I do a good
job with alt text,
but not sure what
else I need to do."
We actually have a session
about that at MVCon Austin.
We're going to talk all
about accessibility there.
And we will then--
we know people can't all come.
We have a couple tickets left.
But we can share a
ticket link in there.
But if you can't come, we
will then edit that session
and put it on our
YouTube channel
so that resource is
available to everybody.
I think accessibility is huge.
Adrienne Brown says,
"I've been trying to build
a blog for a while now.
I'm a 57-year-old boomer,
homeschooling parent,
mom who has adopted
four young children,
starting over again, author, and
trying to break into blogging."
Holy crap, woman.
BETH SANTOS: You're busy.
JENNY GUY: Are you OK?
I feel like that's a lot.
"All of this is relevant to me."
Wow.
Great.
Well, first of all, thanks for
being a frickin' rock star.
That's amazing.
OK.
Thoughts on what I just said?
Anything on the
question, how we can
think about content
and share things
from the news sensitively
and with awareness?
Let's start.
Kenya, you have anything there?
TAKENYA HAMPTON: I
think, again, I'm
just going to go back to saying,
you need to be authentic.
But you also need
to remember that you
don't have to knock one thing
down to promote or build
something else up.
So there is a way
to address things
without saying, this is
wrong and this is right,
because that's what
can happen sometimes.
And that's what, I think, fuels
the arguments and things that
happen on the internet.
And sometimes it
doesn't have to be that.
You don't have to
knock something
else down to make
something else seem
to be right or better than.
JENNY GUY: That's awesome.
Both two people can be
right at the same time,
even though their
opinions may differ.
And I don't know that everyone--
the internet seems to somehow
breed that that is not a
thing that is possible--
that something is
either wrong or right.
And that's not true
a lot of the time.
OK.
Marty, to you.
MARTINIQUE LEWIS: Excuse me.
Yeah, I agree with her, also.
And when there's something
that you don't necessarily
agree with, I always say,
put your opinion in it,
but not your opinion
to a negative way.
Just talk about how
it made you feel
or how it made
somebody you knew feel
so that whoever is
reading it can now
put themselves in
that person's shoes
and understand it from
a different viewpoint,
because we all have
different perspectives.
A person's perspective-- gosh.
A person's perspective
right now who's
going to Israel that might
have absolutely no idea what's
going on right now, and
then people attack you
because you say you're in
Israel, and you love Israel.
And you don't even
know why they're
attacking you, because you
just are not up on the news.
You don't know about some
of the terrible things that
are going on there.
But should that make
you scared to even post
your content because you're
afraid of the backlash?
It's just, no.
But just talk about,
I went to Israel,
and this is what I
chose to experience.
And these are the
parts about Israel
that I chose to speak
about, because these
are the positive things
that are going on.
And make no mistake, it takes
no shying away from anything
negatively that's going on.
But understand that how a group
acts or how certain people act
is not a reflection
of the whole place.
And this is the
experience that I had.
And sometimes you
have to do that, too.
And like you said, everybody
is not going to agree with you.
And that's OK.
But stay firm in
what you want to say.
But do it in a way for people to
understand from your viewpoint.
And also, tell them,
and I understand
where you're coming from, too.
But this is just how I choose
to deal with the situation.
JENNY GUY: Fantastic advice.
Beth, same to you.
BETH SANTOS: I would also
advise content creators
to be thoughtful
about how they respond
to something on the
news, and specifically
just doing your research.
I think virality and
drama are cousins.
And a lot of times, it's so easy
for us to just see something,
and we're like, oh, my
gosh, that's so crazy.
And then you share it.
And then it's two
days later, you
realize it wasn't even real.
Or it was an Onion
article or whatever.
And so we just want to give
yourself that extra breath
to look into it, to
look at another source,
because you are a voice.
And if you're building a
content-focused company
or hobby or platform, then
people are listening to you.
So make sure when
you're saying something
that you're thoughtful
about it, that you've
kind of done your research, that
you're representing yourself
well.
And I think completely
everything else to what
Kenya and Marty said, too.
JENNY GUY: All right.
All of this is amazing advice.
And this has been
a really, really
incredible and
enlightening hour for me.
I hope that it has been
for our audience, too.
I knew you all were rock stars.
And I knew all of those things.
But I love it when it's just
reiterated over and over again.
Phil Bohn, who is
our Senior Vice
President of Sales
and Revenue, said,
"What a great, smart discussion.
Well done, everyone."
We appreciate it.
I'm going to make a couple of
announcements before we end.
As I already mentioned,
in two weeks,
which will be Halloween--
Thursday, October 31, the
amazingly incredible Deesha
Dyer will be on Teal Talk.
She turned her White
House internship at age 30
to becoming the Obama
administration's
social secretary-- no bigs--
and is currently the co-founder
and executive director
of Be Girl World,
a Philadelphia
organization that empowers
teen girls through global
education and travel.
We're going to talk career
pivoting, giving back,
and, obviously, we're going
to be talking about the Obamas
and bringing Hamilton
to the White House
for a private concert for local
teachers, because it's me.
And I'm going to talk
about Hamilton when I can.
All right.
Ladies, it has been incredible.
I have one more thing I want
to mention before we sign off.
And it's an
incredible partnership
that I'm very, very excited
about bringing to fruition.
We are teaming up
with the amazing team
at WITS and in a
new way for 2020.
Mediavine and WITS,
we're introducing
the Mediavine Scholarship
for WITS Kansas City.
Beth, do you want to talk
about it a little bit?
And I'll give the particulars.
I'm so excited about this.
BETH SANTOS: Yes, I know.
And I'm so glad to be announcing
this right here and now.
So in talking about
access and in talking
about time and in talking about
money, Jenny and I and so many
of the amazing people
on your team, Jenny,
are really talking
about, what can Mediavine
do to make it easier for
people to come and learn?
Because the reason why people
come to WITS is to build
potential partnerships, often
in the travel industry--
but again, we'll get others
from other industries, as well--
to grow their brand,
to build their content,
and make it stronger.
And from time to time,
we're able to offer
free ticket giveaways
and that kind of thing.
But that doesn't
include the fact
that it costs money
to get yourself there.
You have to fly there.
You have to get a hotel.
You have to get food.
And so we teamed
up with Mediavine.
And Mediavine is actually
sponsoring one person--
flight, hotel,
ticket, plus a food
stipend, so you
don't have to spend
a dime when you get there.
And I mentioned the
Wanderful Creator Collective.
You'll get lifetime access
to the Wanderful Creator
Collective, which is worth
thousands of dollars.
So it's an incredible
scholarship.
And we're opening it today.
MARTINIQUE LEWIS: Woo.
JENNY GUY: We just posted
the link in the comments.
So please, guys, share
this far and wide.
We would love it if you would.
We want as many people
to have the chance
to apply for this as possible.
And we're starting out.
And we want this to be
something that continues
and grows as we move forward.
We're so honored
to be partnering
with WITS and the work
that they're doing.
And we look forward to
seeing everybody there.
Ladies, thank you so much for
being here and taking time out
of what I know is
a busy schedule
and having such an insightful
and sensitive discussion.
I appreciate it.
You guys are amazing.
MARTINIQUE LEWIS: Thank you.
BETH SANTOS: [INAUDIBLE]
JENNY GUY: All right, guys.
Thank you, everyone.
Have a great day.
We'll see you in a
couple weeks with Deesha.
ALL: Bye.
