Bethan McCoy
Writing The Playbook For Digital Creatives
Interview by Emma Roberts
Photographs by Christopher Owens
20 years ago, asking a classroom of children what they want to be when they grow up would have conjured up answers such as policeman, zookeeper or astronaut. Flash forward to today and a new dream job has entered the ambitions of young people - one that most of us could never have imagined when we were young. Surveying thousands of school children in the US, Lego recently found that almost a third dream of being a YouTuber, with astronauts sitting near the bottom of the list. Influencers have not only changed the way we consume content and make purchase decisions, ushering in a new era of marketing, but have also created a new career path for digitally savvy creatives. But when there’s no blueprint for building a career as a content creator, how easy is it for someone to make that dream a reality?
“When I was in college, my tutor told us that we would likely end up doing jobs that don’t exist today - and that’s exactly where I have ended up.”
Bethan McCoy has done exactly that, taking her personal brand to major heights, growing an audience of over 200,000 followers across Instagram and TikTok. Looking back to her own days in education, Bethan explains, “When I was in college, my tutor told us that we would likely end up doing jobs that don’t exist today - and that’s exactly where I have ended up.” Having recently left her role as Brand and Design Executive at North East Chamber of Commerce, Bethan is now creating fashion and lifestyle content full time, enjoying the freedom to express her creativity and integrating her work into her daily life.
Telling her story from the backdrop of one of her favourite shooting locations, Bethan is a picture of the modern fashionista, her eclectic style a point of admiration for the patrons of Laneway Co.
“It's something that just happened organically because I've been doing it for so long. I started out when I was young, back in the days of Tumblr. I've always been obsessed with all of the possibilities that the internet and social media offer creative people. Then Instagram arrived around the time I was in college and I enjoyed posting about my life like anyone would - selfies, food, travel photos, anything I was up to, just for the love of it.”
Most of us are casually sharing similarly themed content on our social media pages, but Bethan’s flair for photography and styling has captured the attention of first her friends, then strangers, and eventually, global fashion brands. Bethan recalls, “Brands started approaching me quite a few years into my content creation, after I left university. They would ask to send products for me to style and photograph. If I look back on my early photos now, it’s shocking how different the style was, but it’s all part of changing trends and learning what my most authentic personal brand is.”
The years of experimenting with content creation have accumulated into a fully fledged business for Bethan, one of the many businesses born out of pandemic confinement. “It was during lockdown when my audience began to grow dramatically, and I was creating more content than ever because I had so much time to spend on it. The momentum was picking up each day, and I thought to myself that it's time to really go for it, so I began working with my first management agency.”
With the support of an agent to manage her brand partnerships, Bethan saw her organic growth accelerate and, to make time for the side hustle, dropped some hours from her marketing role. “I had barely begun working three days a week instead of five, and then quickly decided to make the leap to full time. It wasn’t that I didn’t enjoy my job. I loved it, and they were so supportive of me as I transitioned, but I knew it had potential and wanted to see if I could make it work. I asked myself what was the worst that could happen? If I fall flat on my face, I could just go back to my 9-5, which is exactly where I was starting from anyway, so there’s nothing to lose. With the support of my management, this new job very quickly became as stable as being employed. Although I don’t earn the same figure each month, we have our targets and are working months ahead in terms of where brand partnerships are going to fall.”
“I've always been obsessed with all of the possibilities that the internet and social media offer creative people.”
Weighing up risk to reward paid off, and Bethan is now working with a small support network made up of her management agency Aquarius, who field her brand deals, and her fiancé Jordan, who supports with the street-style photography that Bethan is now recognised for within the North East and beyond. “My management are fantastic and they understand the types of brands that I like to work with and Jordan is brilliant at understanding my style of content. I’ve also worked with some amazing local photographers and there are so many more that I want to collaborate with in the future.”
Bethan has worked with some major brands, including Pretty Little Thing, Sisters and Seekers, JD Sports and Lounge Underwear, but like any thoughtful business leader, Bethan is selective about who she works with, making sure that her partners align with her own brand identity. “I don’t take every job that I’m offered, because my content has to match my own visual identity, so I only work with brands that I would wear if I wasn’t a content creator. It means I have great relationships with the brands I work with and they give me the freedom and trust to create content that works for my brand as well as theirs.”
“I find putting my brand into words difficult, and it’s something I constantly battle with because creators need to have a strong and recognisable personal brand. I’m trying not to put too much pressure on it, because style is something that changes with you as you grow as a person, and I have always dabbled in different styles, so I’m confident that even as I change over time, the people following me will still think that my look is still very ‘me’.”
“I find putting my brand into words difficult, and it’s something I constantly battle with because creators need to have a strong and recognisable personal brand.”
Having studied media and journalism at Northumbria, Bethan used to think of London as the city she would end up living and working in, but the North East’s growing creative scene has become a stylish backdrop for creators like Bethan to produce aspirational lifestyle content. “I’m Durham born and bred, so I love to work with local businesses and it’s exciting to see the region become as much of an artistic hub as the bigger cities. There’s so much happening here and it makes Newcastle an ideal home for creatives like me.” Recent months have seen iconic North East brands such as Fenwick and Greggs stage influencer events that rival the likes seen in London and Manchester, as businesses lean into the growth potential that comes with influencer marketing, and Bethan is now a firm fixture on the invite lists.
Despite the meteoric rise of influencers, the legitimacy of content creation as a career is still questioned by those who don’t understand its power within our economy. Before the internet, photographers, artists and writers had limited opportunities to make a career out of their craft, but today the playing field has levelled, and now artists have an accessible platform for sharing their work with the masses. “Sometimes I have to really explain what I do for work, and even then I think some people don’t fully understand, but that’s okay. I’m getting to express myself and share it with likeminded people and that’s the best kind of job satisfaction I could hope for.”
“My content isn’t just designed to look good, it has to be informative, inspiring and engaging too, because brands only want to work with creators whose content is driving results for them.”
A keen eye for styling and photography are just the basis of Bethan’s ability to take her content creation full time. “All the skills that I used in my marketing role are part of my job today, and there are so many layers to making quality content.” While many underestimate the workload that content creators carry, Bethan is single handedly delivering work that would typically be done by Trend Forecasters, Social Media Managers, Photographers, Videographers, and Marketing Managers. She explains, “Short form videos are my most successful type of content, and it takes a huge amount of time and effort to shoot and edit what turns out to be a one-minute video. Styling, shooting and editing is a big portion of my working week. Then I’m keeping a close eye on my analytics to see which content my audience most engages with, as well as trend watching to see what people are interested in. Trends move so much faster today than the days of magazines and waiting months for clothes to go from catwalk to stores, so keeping up with what’s current is a huge job. My content isn’t just designed to look good, it has to be informative, inspiring and engaging too, because brands only want to work with creators whose content is driving results for them.”
Already a driven entrepreneur, Bethan is constantly looking to the future, and so much lies ahead for her in this role that has no pre-made path. “Building a clear strategy is something I’m planning to look at soon, now that everything has gotten off the ground. I’m looking to work with more brands that I already love wearing, and experimenting with different types of content.”
“Influencers are only going to get bigger, becoming important to businesses in every industry, not just for consumer brands. It’s difficult to imagine being in my 50s and still creating content, but there are creators out there who are killing it at every age and it’s exciting to imagine the possibilities of where I can take my brand as I grow as a person.”
If there’s one lesson that aspiring influencers, and even business leaders, can take from Bethan’s journey, it’s one of bravery. Jumping headfirst into a career that so few have pursued takes a huge sense of independence, discipline and self belief, but Bethan has proved that it can be done. In doing so, Bethan is writing the roadmap for future generations who dream of a career that allows them to express themselves through creativity and imagination.