Who Am I and What Am I Doing?

You know, I had no idea how to open this blog. Not just this single post, but this entire blog series (Do people refer to their blogs as a series? What’s the proper term here?). I’ve been thinking; do I present myself like a pseudo-intellectual professor, infallible in their opinions just because they’ve been doing this for a very long time, and also have tenure? Should I take the cool teacher approach, try a little too hard to be liked while “keeping it real” and using a hip vocabulary that is slightly out of my age range? How about taking the passive substitute teacher approach, being ignored by everyone while they do everything but respect my thoughts?

Then it hit me: all of these approaches imply that I’m seeking to teach. As if I have knowledge to pass on to pupils that will influence their works going forward, and leave an impact that will alter the discourse of- yeah that is not what I’m trying to do here.

Don’t get me wrong, I have a lot to say on a lot of topics that I hope you will find interesting, and even helpful. I want you, dear reader, to continue reading on, find what I have to say worth your time in some way, and then come back next week to read another post that may have some new insights or information you may have not considered before. Heck, even if you just find some entertainment in my docile prose and unique point of view, I’m happy to keep on writing just so you have something to do while sipping your coffee in the morning.

So, if you’ve made it this far, thank you. I appreciate you giving me some of your valuable time, and I will do my best to make sure I use your time well. 

I’ve realized I have spent the last 300+ words saying a lot without actually saying anything about myself or about my own goals with this blog series (I’m sticking with this term, and I will trademark it as soon as I finish writing this post if available). So allow me to introduce myself.

Hi, My Name is Alex

As the heading says, my name is Alex. I’m the Owner/Operator/sole employee of Sage Coast Creative. I started Sage Coast in 2020 after I found myself in need of employment, but unable to find something in my field.

I graduated from East Carolina University with a Master’s of Arts in English, with a concentration in Creative Writing, and received a double major Bachelor’s of Arts in Sociology and English, also from East Carolina, prior to that accomplishment. I know what you’re thinking, ‘How can someone with degrees in such an essential field as Sociology and English not find a seven-figure salary?’ I completely agree, it’s ridiculous.

Joking aside, I understand that these fields may not be as prestigious as hard sciences, business or teaching, but allow me to explain why to spend the better part of a decade focusing on these areas of study, and hopefully convince you like I did my parents that these are actually useful.

Sociology is the study of how we as humans function and perceive within the world around us. Unlike psychology (the sexier inverse, and incredibly valuable, study), sociology is interested in the external factors that influence the human condition. Popular pillars of study within the sociological community include race, marriage and family, sexuality, and gender. You know, just the basic, light-hearted topics you bring up at the dinner table.

A key function of sociology that has always interested me, and bored plenty of my friends, is the statistical function of the field (no, wait, please don’t skip ahead! I’ll make this quick). Personally, I find coming up with a hypothesis, researching the possible factors, testing those factors to see how they affect the initial subject, and reviewing the results is always a thrill that this little nerd can’t get enough of! At the end of the day, sociology is a scientific field. But instead of studying environmental conditions, various animal species, or intricate geological formations, sociology hones in on everything around us, and seeks to explain why. That is what hooked me!

Alight, please unbuckle your seatbelt, the sociological thrill ride is over. Now let me explain why I opted to spend an extra year in college to add a second major to my degree, and talk about English.

English is the study of- look, if I have to explain English here, I don’t know what to say. I’m writing this blog in English, and I assume that you are also reading this in English (however, if you have translated this into a language that suits you better, I really appreciate you using the energy to do so!). We know what English is, it is one of the most common languages in the world.

I always thought of English like a jazz bass. You can easily pick it up, fiddle with it, and figure out the basics with some work. However, if you want to play like an improvisational master of the bass, or comprehend Shakespeare, it’s going to be difficult and time-consuming. What I’m trying to say is, if you’re an expert, be nice to those picking it up. I'm sure you’re not as clever as they are in their language, either.

I don’t know if you can tell, but my focus while studying English was creative writing (see my humble brag about having a Master’s above for some helpful foreshadowing). In my time at East Carolina, I wrote a handful of poems, multiple personal essays, about a dozen short stories, and three full-length scripts. I really like to write. Moreso, I like to create.

As I was preparing to graduate with a solid 1-2 double major punch, one of my professors reached out to me, and asked if I had considered applying to grad school. I told him I had not, but I’d be open to the idea. I’ll be honest with you, dear reader, I did not believe I had the grades to make the cut for grad school. That’s where the actual smart people go to learn harder, and I’m just a sweet lil doughboy happy to get what I earned.

However, after a good long talk, my professor convinced me that I had the skills to excel in a Master’s program, and applied to several grad schools soon after. About two years later, I was honored to have received my hood from that same professor.

After graduation, I knew I needed to find a creative outlet to have my writing seen by others. I no longer had the luxury of my classmates reading my work, and giving their insights of what worked and what could be improved to help me become a stronger writer than I could be on my own. I needed to find a new group of suckers.

Attempting to be an (Creative) Adult

That’s about the time I discovered a comedy troupe by the name of PSL Comedy. They had a need for new sketch writers, and while I had never written anything like that before, I knew enough from a lifetime watching Saturday Night Live to give it a shot. Since then, I have written nearly a hundred sketches (thankfully not all of them have seen the light of day), and even served as their head writer for some time. Thanks to them, I have had work staged at conventions and festivals in cities across the country, and even had a couple sketches filmed. Needless to say, the suckers I found have given me some cool opportunities.

In my time with PSL Comedy, which I’m still an active member of, I’ve seen how a creative-focused company can do so much without a massive budget. PSL Comedy has been a creative haven for a whole slew of talented people. Whether they are on stage/screen, or would rather work behind the scenes for punch ups and professional-looking presentations, PSL Comedy has been able to bring these talents together, and find an audience for sketch comedy, improv, social media posts, streaming, and dozens of unique stage shows.

But, as I mentioned, they don’t have a massive budget, and most of those talented people aren’t on salary with PSL Comedy. While it’s great to work with some awesome comedians, writers and other creatives to make cool things, cool things don’t buy groceries.

So I’ve had a bunch of different jobs to pay for my passion. Over the years, I’ve worked as a production assistant, logistics coordinator, customer service representative, and most relevant to my field, children’s book editor. Not exactly the most prestigious list of careers one could have, but I will say this: I’m glad I’ve worked each of these jobs. 

Did I love each of these jobs? Absolutely not. At the end of the day, these were things I did to ensure I could consistently pay rent, gas and groceries, while also allowing me to write and make things I was actually proud of. Things were going okay for a while. Then 2020 happened.

I’m sure you know someone who was either laid off or furloughed thanks to the pandemic. There’s a lot to unpack when it comes to that period of history, but for me, it hurt to have a position that was not deemed as ‘essential’. 

After wallowing for a while in lockdown, I decided that I only ever want to work in a creative space where the work I do would be seen as essential by my employer. Though the thought of working for a new employer, especially during that point in history, made me feel apprehensive about sending out my resume to another corporation that may not value me as highly as I value myself.

That’s when this idea popped into my head. I didn’t want to just get another job where I throw work into a void without feeling like I have accomplished something. I wanted to use my unique creative capabilities to not only pay my phone bill, but also get that same thrill from PSL Comedy, of seeing a thing I’ve made make an impression and people having a reaction to that thing. I wanted to pay for my passion with my passion.

I brought this up to my partner, who has been incredibly understanding and supportive throughout this entire process, and she brought up the idea of going into digital marketing. With my newfound time, I decided to research online programs for digital marketing, figure out what these programs entail, and most importantly, what digital marketing actually is.

I will be honest to you, dear reader, I was not familiar with this field prior to 2020. However, I pride myself on being an eager learner, and dove right on into the digital marketing rabbit hole. I enrolled into the digital marketing program through Duke University. Over the next year, I earned my certificate through Duke, and became quite familiar with SEO, social media marketing, PPC, web analytics, and multiple other fields in digital marketing.

While I’m far from being a digital marketing wizard, I have grown quite a bit as a marketer in a short time. I’m confident in my abilities and knowhow to have followed through on making myself essential. So essential, that I’m the sole employee of my own company.

You can’t get much more essential than this.

Welcome to Sage Coast Creative

Welcome to my company! How can I help you? Can I get you a coffee? (we only have decaf at the moment…)

But seriously, if you’ve read this long, thank you for your time. I hope my super boring origin story didn’t drive off too many folks. Since you’ve gotten this far, I suppose I should tell you a little about what we (I) do here.

Sage Coast Creative is a multifaceted creative services company, with an emphasis on cultivating unique voices of brands and individuals. We offer services in digital marketing such as social media management, advertising planning, website and branding consultations, and multiple other services you can find at the top of this page (wink wink hint hint).

The key focus of this company is each individual client. One of my core beliefs is that everyone has a unique perspective and voice, and we all deserve to be heard. I just spent a good chunk of this blog post talking about myself. Do you feel like you have a better understanding of who I am and where I come from? That’s exactly the point.

While we’re not at the point where we’ll get lunch every Tuesday, you now have a stronger understanding of me, Alex. (In case you forgot my name from 1500+ words ago). As a book editor, I love helping people find their voice, use their point of view, and get them to share it. Thanks to my experience in digital marketing, I want to do that for people who want their business to stand out.

Let’s be honest, there’s a TON of ads spread out across dozens of platforms. If you’ve posted anything, it’s tough to get likes on social media, or even be remembered for longer than a few moments. We’re bombarded with so much content, how can anyone stand out? Well, I’ll tell you (and you don’t even have to pay me for this!).

The best chance you have to be seen is to have your unique viewpoint out there. In the past year or so, how many times have you heard the phrase “In these difficult times”? About a million? Same here. Now let me ask you this: who first said that? 

While this phase may have good intentions, it has been worn out to such an extent that it almost has no meaning. Ever said a word over and over until it was gibberish? (Go ahead and try it with something like ‘elephant’) Hopping on the caravan of popular phrases may frame your business in a similar light as other businesses, but staying in that light will not help you stand out.

You are a thinking, breathing human with years of life experience. Why the heck did you start a business? Is it your passion? How do you want to share that with people?

I’ve seen plenty of restaurants run by people who pour their heart into making their place as good as they possibly can, only to have customers pass by in favor of a chain restaurant. I’m still crushed that my favorite local sandwich shop closed late last year, while there are a half dozen Subways within driving distance as I sit here.

I want to support those businesses who deserve a consistent flow of traffic. I used to call that sandwich shop that closed a ‘secret spot’, and I regret not sharing that secret. When I had the chance, I should have taken a megaphone and bellowed everywhere I could to champion those sandwiches! (can you tell I’m hungry while writing this?)

If you’ll allow me, I want to champion your business with you. But instead of megaphone and public disturbances, let’s work on a marketing plan and execute it to the best of our abilities!