From the minute you start chatting with Jamie Samples, one thing is clear: she is one-of-a-kind! Jamie truly stands out in a world that tells us all to be the same. She's a country girl at heart, an animal lover, and a firm believer that we'd all be better off if we did business like our grandpa's! 
Jamie has tons of wisdom to share on setting yourself apart with both the niche you choose and the way you choose to market. She has such a crystal clear understanding not just of what her target market needs from her, but how they need for her to reach them.
You won't want to miss hearing from this brilliant lady - she's full of wisdom, kindness, and wit!
On The Podcast
01:05 - Get To Know Jamie02:50 - Niche Down, Niche Down!05:27 - Understanding The Horsing Industry06:24 - Rebranding, Risk Taking, And Diving In09:22 - Failing Forward, Jamie’s Personal ‘Learning Opportunity’13:36 - Affiliate Marketing And Authenticity15:58 - Thinking Like A General Contractor18:39 - Facebook or Twitter? Depends On Your Goals21:08 - Send Out Cards, A Brilliant Tip!25:26 - Social Media Advice For Business Beginners26:52 - Jamie’s Little Cowboy
Press Play on the Podcast Player Below to Hear from Jamie Samples of Yellow Barn Media
Get To Know Jamie
Jamie lives in Michigan with her husband, Eddie, and son, Edison, whom they adopted through the foster care system. As you might expect, Jamie’s family also includes many four-legged friends: a horse, a miniature donkey, two dogs, and a handful of indoor cats!
In 2008 Jamie started her “little, bitty business”, unsure of where it would go. Today, Yellow Barn Media is a solid source of income and provides for her family.
Niche Down, Niche Down!
Jamie considers herself a bit of a social butterfly, which made the advent of Facebook and social media especially exciting for her. Having a background in network marketing, Jamie wondered how social media could enhance her work. She started playing around with Facebook, then began to strategically use Facebook in her business. Jamie casually coached others on how to use Facebook for business, and she did it for free.
Friends noticed that Jamie lit up when talking about social media marketing and suggested that she should start charging for her coaching sessions. She took their advice and formed a business.
For a while, Jamie worked a full time job and did social media coaching as a side gig. Another wise mentor told her that if she wanted to bring her passion to the next level, she should niche down. He asked her, “What could you see yourself doing for the rest of your life? What do you have a ton of knowledge about?”
For Jamie, it’s horses.
Jamie rebranded her business to Yellow Barn Media and ramped up to take the equestrian world by social media storm.
Understanding The Horsing Industry
You Brilliant Business Moms already know that businesses offer one of two things:

Products
Services

The equestrian industry is no different. In the equestrian world, you might see services like horse trainers or products like saddles. (Though Jamie notes in the horse industry, most businesses are product based and use e-commerce platforms.)  Once you’ve immersed yourself in a given industry, the number of products and services are endless. This is a great perspective to keep in mind when creating a niche business model!
Rebranding, Risk Taking, And Diving In
Focusing exclusively on the horse industry was scary for Jamie. But after much thought and prayer, she knew it was the right thing to do. She admits that changing anything in business is a risk. But what greatness comes from playing it safe?
Jamie had a great strategy for breaking into a new niche:

Get face-to-face. Knowing her marketing dollars were limited, Jamie focused exclusively on getting face-to-face with horse industry businesses.


Attend industry events. In the time before she became a mom, she traveled to horse expos in order to make a strong first impression. Dressed to impress, Jamie would visit the different