Rianna M. Hill has been running Facebook Ads and Social Media for Business since 2014, after starting her professional career selling and designing ads for a newspaper in 2013. She formally incorporated this work into Pancake Digital Solutions, Inc. in May of 2017 and is currently working on a Doctorate in Business Administration online (ABD May 2020) while moving around the country as a Navy wife with two mystery-mutt pups and a crafting habit. You may frequently see her knitting, crocheting, or sharing IG stories on her latest baking adventure.
In May of 2017, Rianna founded Pancake Digital Solutions as an S-Corp with the mission to help people get their business online. At the time, she had a great full-time job in Charleston, South Carolina, several freelance clients, and was almost finished with an MS in UX Design. Her husband came home from work one day with the news his job was to move us to New York for just a few months, with future living locations unknown.
The next day, Rianna was on an airplane to a bridal shower in Wyoming reading YOU are A BADASS by Jen Sincero, and she knew what she had to do. Rianna has been working in the business ever since, despite moving coast-to-coast 5 times, officially planning and having a wedding, working on a Doctoral degree in business, and maintaining part-time work for another agency, and occasionally working for local shops.
What inspired you to start working for yourself?
When I first starting looking for a job, it was early 2009. After several weeks going door to door with my resume, I hadn’t received a single phone call. After watching a manager immediately toss my resume into the trash at a chain fast food restaurant, I realized I was going to need to look for different options.
Fortunately, I had an entrepreneurial father who worked in the tech industry. He helped me get set up on some freelancer sites where I started submitting designs for logos and such. Despite going to school for other things, working other jobs and for other agencies, I’ve continued with this for years, eventually formally incorporating my freelance work into a full-time business in May of 2017.
Busy startup entrepreneurs have lots of demands on their time and are often pulled in lots of different directions, do you have any tips for effective time management and what to focus on first?
This question holds a lot of truth in it. I have found I tend to be more successful the more full my plate is- to an extent. When you only have an hour to do something, you get it done in an hour. When you have three hours… it takes three.
However, you are only as effective as your planning, discipline, and execution.
The advice I’ve heard over and over again, successfully implementing in my life, is the importance of having a morning routine. This looks different for everyone and may evolve over time for you, but a morning routine is critical for time management.
For my morning routine, for three or four years now, I start every day with a cup of coffee and a journal. In the journal, I plan my day and set my priorities. Then comes the important step, honor the calendar. Last-minute tasks will pop up, meetings will be rescheduled, and projects may take longer than originally planned. Roll with the changes, placing top priorities first, and setting others for later.
Bonus: Get to work an hour early and complete two or three top tasks on your list. The rest of the day will feel like a win when you’ve started with success.
What traits do you look for when building a team?
“Figure-out-ability” is the most important trait I look for when working with a contractor or hiring a new team member. The nature of the digital marketing industry is change, and with a small business, I rely on people who can figure things out. Pretty much everything else can be trained, but good communication, kindness, empathy, and figure-out-ability are key traits a person needs to have to succeed on my team.
You want the person who will come to you with a problem and three possible solutions, or take the initiative to add the extra step to improve a Standard Operating Procedure. If someone is sending five emails a day that could be answered by a Google search, they probably won’t last long on a digital team.
Any advice for entrepreneurs on moving beyond a failure?
It can really sting to process failure, but moving on is something you just gotta do. Take the failure as a learning moment, and use the disappointment as fuel to ensure operations are better next time. Additionally, always remember the big picture, take a step back to that proverbial 10,000-foot view. It can help provide a better perspective on the failure that helps you digest it better. Finally, remember that you are not alone; everyone goes through failure.
What tips do you have for those who want to renew their life as in a new job, moving, etc?
As someone who has moved a lot, changed jobs several times, and spends time with a lot of people who moved a lot, I’ve noticed a common thing: many people will make the change to improve something in their lives, often trying to leave something behind. The idea is that a new city or a new job will give them a fresh start. However, if the original issue is not resolved, those changes aren’t going to fix the problem and you’ll find yourself right back in the same situation you were unhappy with originally.
Before you make a big change, my advice is to get really clear on what it is that you want in your life. If you’re unhappy in your job, what specifically are you unhappy about, and how will this new job fix it? If you feel disconnected from your friend group and want to try a new city, how will you establish a new friend group where you feel connected?
It may feel like “ah I just got to get out of here so I can think clearly” and maybe you do need to get out of a bad situation. But be sure you are intentional about the steps you take. Always be cautious of thoughts where “XYZ just needs to happen, then I can be happy.” Take control of yourself and choose to be happy now!
If you had one piece of advice to someone just starting out, what would it be?
Love the process. A lot of what we see out there is the before and after picture, just like a weight-loss commercial. You know the type, one day this person was overweight and unhealthy, introduce product, then the person in a fitness model. Or, a successful entrepreneur sharing how broke they were and now they are making six figures a month and you can too just by downloading this template. In both of these examples, most of the story is missing. The day to day process of going to the gym even though you are tired, or setting up your third workshop even though the last two busted and you’re operating in the red for the Nth month in a row.
Loving the process means you enjoy what you do consistently every day. Whatever that looks like for you, if you can enjoy everything that is in between the before and after picture, that is how you will have a good life and be successful.
How do you think modern women can be more fulfilled in their lives?
Finding fulfillment for modern women can feel challenging. We are often expected to have amazing careers as well as being full-time homemakers and mothers… not to mention crushing it at every other role in your life.
To feel more fulfilled in our lives, we need to embrace our life as it is, where we are. It can be easy to focus on the one thing we did wrong, despite the 100 other things we did correct. Embrace this human experience and enjoy every moment. Don’t compare yourself to anything but who you want to be, for yourself. And remember that most judgments come from people who are criticizing themselves even more severely.
I think this can be summed up easily into one phrase: listen to all those quotes and take them to heart.
What have been some of your failures, and what have you learned from them?
Ah, that long list of failures, or learning moments. I’ll start with three, but there have been many many more.
- Spending 6 months to land a rock star client and losing them in just over 30 days.
Early in 2019, I was able to do some work for some clients who have some fairly well-known brands. These folks are extremely successful, and I was thrilled by the opportunity. However, I doubted myself and brought someone in to do the work for me. Additionally I think I unfairly expected him to tell me what to do. At the end of the day, the client and contractor needed me to be a leader, but I did not have the confidence to do so losing the client, contractor, and potentially ruining some relationships along the way.
What stung the most was that I knew what to do, I just didn’t do it because I didn’t believe in myself enough. However, I have not made that same mistake and have truly stepped up into the leadership role being a business owner requires. I’m still making mistakes but improving every day.
2. Utter failure at gymnastics.
As a child and teenager, I was a natural at everything I tried, usually surpassing my peers in a way that isolated me. (Does anyone one to be friends with the girl who sold more cookies than the rest of the troop combined, or the new girl that just joined the softball team and got the MVP award in all categories at her first tournament?). However, I was terrible at gymnastics- despite spending more years practicing it than anything else I have done in my life. No matter the hours and hours I practiced, I could never make it past the back walkover, and eventually aged out of classes altogether.
3. Quitting a Job I loved too soon because that’s what I thought was supposed to do.
Right before I started my agency, I started remotely working for another company based out of St. Louis, called Atomic Revenue. It was one of those phone calls that started with a mutual friend suggesting we chat and ended with a job offer. Some of my work for that company was the best I ever did, and the most fun and rewarding as well! But I believed that I was supposed to only work a job until the business was on its own. I thought people wouldn’t take me seriously if I was a business owner and an employee. After a few five-figure months in the business, I quit working for the company, and quickly regretted it.
The feast and famine of being a business owner, along with being solely responsible for everything at the end of the day is a lot of pressure. The added pressure of that business needing to support your family can be too much. This was the case for me, and in those four months, I couldn’t close a new client to save anything. After some painful layoffs and a humble email, the company has taken me back with open arms. Since then I have closed several new clients, enjoy my workdays much more, and am less stressed when looking at my bank accounts.
Being a business owner can look like anything you want it to. There is no “supposed to” although I recommend that your work supports your life, not the other way around.
Tell us about your proudest achievement?
What I am most proud of is not one singular achievement, but that I keep improving myself and my business from day today. I’ve got a Thanksgiving-dinner-grocery-receipt-long list of cringe-worthy failures and mistakes but I’m still here. There are some days it takes me a bit longer to get to my desk, but I’ve always brought myself here and ended each day with gratitude, a lesson learned, and improvement for tomorrow. That is a life I am proud of.
Read more of the digital solutions on https://pancakedigitalsolutions.com
![From Music to Perfume: How did your background as a music teacher influence your transition into perfumery, and how do you incorporate your musical sensibilities into creating fragrances? I’ve always thought in terms of metaphors, and music has many that can be related to perfumery! Beyond just thinking in terms of top, middle and base notes [soprano/alto/tenor in choir], I approach each fragrant idea as a composition. When documenting my ideas, song structures often come to mind. As the scent brief is visited, I meditate on what the fragrance should convey - do I want to create an accord or a “chord” of fragrance note combinations? Do I want an a capella soloist (a particular ingredient to stand out more than others?) Many of my thoughts regarding song composition transfers to my scent formulation process, with me treating each note as an intentional soliloquy at some point.
Brand Origin: What inspired you to start Pink MahogHany in 2005, and how has your vision for the brand evolved since its inception?
An avid lover of all things pleasantly scented (with slight modesty), looking back in retrospect, it’s no huge surprise that I’ve created an indie perfume house with just an idea to provide unique options for those who may be sensitive to unnecessary pungency. Initially, I just wanted to evaluate various blends to note their aroma profiles when “played” together…it wasn’t until I had friends and family asking if I knew of brands that catered to those who may be on the more olfactory sensitive side, that I really began to take my research more seriously. In the almost 20 years that Pink MahogHany has been in existence, our micro visions for the brand have evolved to larger territory. Where Pink MahogHany used to only be a personal brand, we are now also a bespoke formulation service provider to other indie brands seeking unique fragrance offerings for their products. These products range from (but are not limited to) perfumes, candles, body butters and lip balms. Ingredient Transparency: You emphasize transparency and the use of desirable ingredients in your products. How do you select your ingredients, and what challenges have you faced in maintaining this standard?
Being an indie brand often comes with a set of assumptions and misconceptions - one of them being more negative than positive as it relates to ingredients used. There is a lot of “fluff” in the industry with labeling falsification. Because fragrance formulas are a trade secret, not every molecular breakdown of a material has to be noted on the ingredient label (it would be incredibly long), but we at Pink MahogHany™️ adhere strongly to the IFRA [International Fragrance Regulatory Association] regulations that state for common and potential allergens to be listed on our ingredient label. We’ve taken this a step further to also include these ingredients listed on our website to promote further transparency, all while protecting our intellectual property. Unfortunately, we’ve had companies to unethically sell lesser expensive “dupes” of our artisan perfumes, so as a way to create a better authenticity stamp, we make it our duty to be honest about our claims. If our perfume says “Rose Bulgaria”, it is in fact just that and not a component of rose being passed off as the source material. Collaborations and Custom Scents: Can you share more about your work with private label clients? What excites you most about creating custom scent solutions for other indie brands? I could easily sum this up in one word and say “Funding.” True, there is money out there, but I’m always thinking outside the box. Having a program that has an “Each One Fund One” mentality doesn’t exist (that I’ve been made aware of). Bootstrapping can be quite the challenge, even when you’ve reached the 6-figure mark annually. Competition to be seen and set apart is extremely high, so having quality packaging and branding is a must. There are lots of factors to consider, though when desiring to make upgrades. If there were a unique, tier-geared funding operation available, it would help perfume brands offset packaging and bulk material costs in the beginning stages.
Industry Challenges: What are some of the biggest challenges you've faced as an independent fragrance house, and how have you overcome them to grow your brand? As the brand continues on the path of organic growth, I would like to expand our reach into schools, offering perfumery as an arts elective for middle and high school. I’d love to partner with botanists, farmers and horticulturists directly to grow and source raw materials for the students to work with in the creation of tinctures. My passion is getting back to nature as best as possible, as nature was my first “scent experience” as a child. We would also love to witness our fragrance creations being used to scent model homes, our focus diffuser blends being used in automobile dealerships as well as partner with Air Bnb and boutique hotels that specialize in highlighting minority, indie brands. Personal Journey: How has your personal experience, particularly as a divorced mother and someone who has experienced the loss of a child, shaped your approach to life and your work in perfumery?
Because I homeschool my twin sons, we are together a lot more than most, so one thing we all do is have moments of sharing where a neutral “floor” is laid to converse about anything. Though they are quite communicative by nature, I realize that sometimes I can be in work mode so much that it spills over into what should be our quality time. My sons see the authentic me and learn how to communicate through seeing authenticity. I’ve learned not to feel as if I have to be the epitome of perfection but allow them to see my imperfections vulnerably but with discernment. Having had two traumatic experiences pretty close together has taught me how to truly slow down and enjoy the simplicities of life - igniting a spiritual aspect that I’ve always carried but never fully explored…until Kenji’s sudden passing (2018.) Grief has a way of catapulting us into a quest for more meaningfulness in both life and business. After Kenji’s passing and my processing through the initial stages of grief, I was able to incorporate our spiritual bond into Pink MahogHany by way of essential oil diffuser blends for both focus and sleep and most recently aromatic perfume elixirs. It’s been quite the process channeling the void of his physical presence, but I also have peace knowing he can be honored in a great way through scent. I noticed once I began to be more open and receptive to spiritual signs, synchs and “winks”, more ideas began to flow. It’s been this way since his transition. Emotional Expression: Fragrance is often tied to memories and emotions. How does your personal life influence the fragrances you create, and do you have a particular scent that holds special meaning to you? My creative process is much more alchemic now, and I include Kenji by talking out loud to him, believe it or not. I’m a firm believer that when our loved ones transition from the physical plane, they are still present - just in another form. I choose to keep his memory alive by not pretending he never existed (even if for a brief period of time). I am working (slowly) on a book and accompanying fragrance, but I know it will require me to revisit some memories I’m not quite ready for, so until then, his big brothers will launch their debut fragrance, The Peaceful Tiger (they chose the name.) I’ve learned that even in what we consider “small things”, our transitioned loved ones want to be recognized and acknowledged. When the twins and I designed their fragrance label (with a designer out of the country that didn’t know anything about me personally), we had issues with the graphic - so much so that the designer asked if they could rework the design. When they sent the proof for approval, the Tiger was not only younger but sleeping, with an uncanny, angelic resemblance to baby Kenji! Becoming more aware and being more sensitive to my intention for launching a fragrance has definitely made room for more divine situations like these to occur. Healing Through Scent: In what ways has creating fragrances been a form of healing or expression for you, especially after the loss of your son, Kenji Mwamba? I know my sons may not necessarily want to be perfumers, but they definitely have an entrepreneurial heart. My desire is that whatever they decide to pursue (acting, script-writing, music or architecture), they know that anything is possible with the right amount of determination, grit, belief and immersion. One reason I chose to homeschool is so they could enjoy learning without restraint and have ample time to devote to their own separate passions and it still be fun. They know Pink MahogHany is theirs if they want it (many, many years from now - lol), and we are already discussing business structures for whatever they choose their role to be once I retire. Work-Life Balance: How do you find balance between your professional responsibilities and personal well-being, and what self-care practices do you prioritize? I’m not just a perfumer; I’m also a consumer, and self-care is huge for me. I often take salt baths to reset my energy and clear my mind after being around large groups of people or free a long day. I’m a habitual perfume sampler, and I have so many to choose from to wear as my “nightcap.” Even if just for 10-15 minutes, I cherish each moment I’m able to have some “me-time.” When time and co-parenting schedules permit, I’m definitely on a flight somewhere to indulge in some delicious food and mouth-watering mocktails!](https://www.womenontopp.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/IMG_3812-1200x720.jpeg)
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