Welcome to the end of February where most of us are thinking - IS SPRING GOING TO BE HERE SOON?! Well, that may just be those of us that still have some snow on the ground.
In Louisville, we’ve had one of the coldest and snowfest winters I’ve experienced during my time here. I know Phil said we were going to have six more weeks of winter, but I think we need to speed things up a bit for the warmer weather. Where is Bill Murray when you need him? :)
Thank you to all of the new and established subscribers to my newsletter. I am so grateful for your continued support and while this is still a relatively young newsletter, my goal is to continue growing!
If you all have any suggestions and comments moving forward, I’d love to hear them as I continue growing this newsletter and make it a great resource for students, educators, and professionals.
Okay, let’s have a KareFre Conversation!
KareFre Industry Trends & Insights
Key takeaways from my textbooks, research, and professional experiences.
📌 Army Creative Reserve Program. We have all seen various content creator programs with influencers and brand deals. However, what if I were to tell you that the US Army announced their new Army Creative Reserve Program?
I absolutely love this and how this aligns so much to the trends we are seeing in the creator/influencer space for brands in utilizing fans, but also their employees, to share their stories. This is what was shared in this article about the purpose, mission, and current strategies of the US Army program.
I am also proud because the professional who is leading this program for the US Army is someone I admire and respect - and have done so for over 40+ years. My older sister Col Kris Saling is the one who is doing this program and I couldn’t be prouder!
📌 Nike and Kim Kardashian with SKIMS partnership. One thing I will give Kim Kardashian is that she is a master of the brand collaborations and partnerships for her SKIMS brand. The news of this partnership really captured the brand marketing worlds, and I think it’s key to see that collaborations and co-branding campaigns are still front and center for many of the brands here today.
While I think having Nike on board is a good move, there are other brand collaborations that could be aligned here as well to reach different subcultures, cores, and others in the future.
📌 Maximum Effort and Dove for SNL 50. Maximum Effort is pretty much one of the best marketing and production agencies out there. Their stuff is not only tied to entertaining you, but also tapping into pop culture and relevancy. I feel like I always cite their campaigns and work in and out of my classes, and this one will be added here as well.
📌 WAGS building a powerhouse brand and social media influence. I am a big fan of what Matt Higgins and Blue Hour Media are doing with their research and expertise in social-creator lead initiatives, and their work is featured in this article about WAGs and how these ladies are building branding empires and influence on and off the field. I think these are good case studies to explore the importance of content creation with purpose, strategy, passion - and persistence!
📌 Alani Nu with Celsius. This news definitely was the talk with my students and in Louisville as Alani Nu was founded here (fun fact! We do consumer and drink brands well here in Kentucky!). There have been lots of perspectives and takes on this new brand purchase - some love it, some do not, and others are not sure what the future holds for the Alani Nu products.
Me? I am a coffee drinker myself, but I do think Alani Nu has a very strong brand presence and relationship with key audiences and communities on and offline, so I hope that they are able to capture and sustain these efforts.
📌 OpenAI bans Chinese companies in using ChatGPT to edit code for social media surveillance. The age of AI continues to evolve and grow each and every day (or hour) it seems like. With every great opportunity and feature being developed, so do the challenges and risks we see, such as this case.
📌 Where will TikTok users go? That’s the question in light of the brief ban we had last month and the uncertainty moving forward. Some say YouTube Shorts is the place to be, and others perhaps another platform or new one entirely. Time will have to tell us what happens next!
Resources
Strategies for students, young professionals, and seasoned experts looking to evolve.
📌 Sprout Social Media 2025 Trends Report. Always good to keep your hand on the pulse of what is happening in the industry with these reports for students, educators, and professionals.
📌Later Influencer Marketing Guide. Love guides and resources like this to share with students who are interested in key areas like influencer marketing!
📌 Hootsuite Experiments. I love blogs and resources to share with my classes and students, and I do share them with my students as part of their reading for the class. I do think Hootsuite has a great blog, but they have a new section here dedicated to experiments and seeing what works, and what doesn’t on social media. I think that this is great as it shows that sometimes - we have to try things out - to see if it works!
KareFre Endorsements and Recommendations: A Human Touch
Life beyond the classroom, balancing work and personal interests, and reflections on the evolving digital space.
In this section, I would love to share some items that I am inspired by or otherwise known as “life beyond the classroom and balancing work and personal interests.” Yes, professors are human beings too and we have life outside of our work (well, at least I try to!)
📌 Make Up and Skin Care:
I am the first to admit I did not have the best skincare or makeup routine growing up or competing in track and field. When I was a student-athlete in track and field, I thought dressing up was putting on jeans. This goes to show you can evolve and change over time.
Why is it important for your personal brand?
In a world where video calls, social media, and personal branding photos are non-negotiable, your face is often the first thing people see.
Your personal brand has a specific vibe. Whether it’s sophisticated and minimal, bold and edgy, or effortless and natural. The makeup you choose should align with this brand aesthetic!
First impressions matter. The way you present yourself visually plays a role in how others perceive you. It is an investment for you and your personal brand. I am not saying you have to break the bank for makeup, but having quality products that make you feel confident and ready to take on the world is priceless!
📌 Tutorials. You may be thinking also - Karen! How do I go about in doing my make up and skin care for the professional workplace?
Don’t worry - I got you!
Here are some accounts to follow that do provide some great tutorials:
Charlotte Tilbury (she does have some dedicated for Zoom calls)
Monika Blunder (make up ideas for corporate and leadership roles)
Or if you want to have a tutorial or session with hands on experience, Ulta Beauty, Sephora, and most make up stores provide these services. Fun fact - when I retired from track and field, my Dad was the one who took my sister and I to Saks Fifth Avenue to the Shu Uemura area for a make up tutorial. This was a game changer for me and I still use their practices to this day.
📌 Products recommended by KareFre
These are some of my favorite brands and products that appear effortlessly and professional.
Laura Mercier Translucent Powder. This has saved me for long meeting days and travel to conferences!
Fenty Beauty Gloss Bomb Stick. For me, lips are key as I speak and talk a lot for work, so this is perfect!
Dior Lip Oil. I am a full on Dior Beauty fan - if there was one brand I use pretty much religiously, it’s them (funny how I only use their make up).
Dior Foundation Stick. Some people love foundation powder and liquid foundation, but I love a good foundation stick!
Tom Ford Foundation Stick. This is always hard for me to find - but it is worth it - feels effortless on your skin and really shines on Zoom!
Dior Concealer. For the times where Mando decides to wake me up early in the morning from my beauty sleep, this comes in a quick pinch!
Dior Eyelash Primer Serum. I think that this is actual magic. I really do not wear a lot of make up (pretty much mascara) - but this makes you look like you really do have fake eyelashes! Put this on before your mascara and you are set.
Would love your feedback!
If you all have any feedback or suggestions for future newsletters, feel free to reach out to me with ideas, feature proposals, case studies, and more!
Thank you for reading and having a great KareFre conversation.