Speaker 1: 0:11

What's up everyone? Welcome back to another episode of that's Delivered. You know me, I'm your guy Trucking Ray, and we're going to bring insights, conversations about the trucking world and beyond. Today we're stepping outside of the cab but we're still staying in our lane because we're going to be talking about something that's a game changer for a lot of us, and that's TikTok, and all of you may know that TikTok shares stories with the trucking community, also highlighting amazing guests.

Speaker 1: 0:36

But lately there's been some discussion about a potential ban with TikTok, and the app is definitely something that people use for entertainment, but also education, business and community. My guest is someone who knows about that firsthand. She goes by the name of Curls and Hoops on TikTok and YouTube, but you might also know her as Brandy Lynn. She's been teaching people how to navigate the app, grow their community, their platform and build their brand. But now there's some uncertainties. You know with TikTok, that people are kind of feeling a little uneasy about. You know it goes down and there's a ban. What's going to happen next? Right? So today we're going to talk about her journey and what she's learned, and also what she has to do, you know, for her community, helping them grow. So let's dive into this. How are you doing today, brandy?

Speaker 2: 1:32

I'm doing well. How are you? Thank you for having me.

Speaker 1: 1:36

Doing well too. Thank you, I'm glad to have you on the show. There's so much going on right now. There's a lot of buzz with TikTok. Many people are wondering what's going to happen.

Speaker 1: 1:45

You know, I think right now it's currently back up, so that's exciting news for a lot of people. So, when it comes to TikTok, what was your experience like? When did you realize that TikTok was something that will work for you in your life? When did you do that? So my, that would work for you in your life. When did you do that?

Speaker 2: 2:06

So my story is probably different than many TikTokers. I avoided the app for quite a long time. I'm actually pretty new to it. I've only been on TikTok for 18 weeks. I was preparing for a trip and was researching places to go that were off the beaten trail, places to eat. I was going to Puerto Rico and as I was searching, it kept pushing me towards TikTok content.

Speaker 2: 2:34

So when I came home and I was going through all of my photos and videos, I ended up posting some to TikTok, just you know, just because that's where I'd been, and it ended up taking off pretty rapidly and before I knew it I had permissions to go live.

Speaker 2: 2:50

I did not even understand what that meant at the time and started going live, and that took off as well. So very quickly I realized that TikTok was not your normal social media place and the community there grew rapidly for me and right away I started monetizing and progressed from there, figuring out what I would do next. I was fired from my job about seven weeks in and had TikTok there and it was slowly developing for me and I decided to give it all of my attention and see what could happen. So I ended up finding my niche. What ended up being teaching TikTok to viewers, to new people and also people that had already been using it and were not achieving the goals that they desired, that couldn't figure out why their content wasn't getting pushed out or why they weren't growing their following quickly enough. And beyond that, I got invited to join a group of teachers within TikTok, and that's where I landed.

Speaker 1: 3:56

Nice.

Speaker 2: 3:57

And you guys are doing a great job.

Speaker 1: 3:59

I mean, it's not just yourself, but you have a team of people that you work with right.

Speaker 2: 4:03

Yes, that's correct. So there's a team of teachers and then I have a management team around me and we just work hard on making sure we are on top of all things TikTok and that we have the information that as it rolls out. You know it's always changing, even when they do not update the guidelines, their policies, the red flag boards. Just there's all these tiny changes that are always coming down the pike, so we catch those and make sure we're sharing them with everyone.

Speaker 1: 4:34

That's awesome. I think you're a great resource and I think the people that follow you, they really love you. I mean they get up in the morning and start their day with you. That's awesome. They do they do. Yeah, what's your schedule like?

Speaker 2: 4:47

So I go live 830 to about 11, Monday through Friday. Saturdays I go live at five and then Sundays, 830 again. Originally I was going live around four in the morning because I had a full-time job at the time, so I would get up, do my TikTok, live and then go to work. So after I lost the job and then with the team that I joined, we try to space out when we're live so we're not overlapping each other and we're always there as a resource One of us is available. I moved to 830.

Speaker 1: 5:20

Wow, 830 time slot. That's amazing. We can always look forward to seeing you there with a smile. You're doing a great job with it. Thank you, I appreciate that All that I mean that's what a lot of people like about TikTok is the positive energy that people can bring. So, you know, with that potential band it's like that elephant in the room right, it's like what's going to happen.

Speaker 2: 5:42

Right, right.

Speaker 1: 5:44

It's devastating. Yeah, you've been vocal about it. Let's hear what are your thoughts about how it affects creators, small businesses alike and even people that just really want TikTok to be there so that they can learn. I know a lot of people have learned quite a bit about things that they had questions about and they just went to that community and got the answers so fast. What do you have to say for that?

Speaker 2: 6:05

Yeah, it's a resource for so many things. We've learned a lot there, as you said, that's how I stumbled into it, was trying to learn about Puerto Rico. We use it for so many things. But then the community aspect of it. I've had so many people that have reached out to me and expressed stories along the lines of they don't even know if they would still be here if they did not have places like my live room to come to and be seen. It has turned into community and family to so many people and I worry about them more than any anyone else.

Speaker 2: 6:41

But then the business aspect of it. You know I, fortunately, had already become involved in TikTok before I lost my job and while I'm still looking for a job, I have not found anything. Thankfully, tiktok has been there for me. But beyond that, when I did get fired and I came home and I went live, the community that showed up for me and has reached out and been there for me since is almost unbelievable. You know, they have really given me the support and the love and guidance direction that I haven't even found in my real life helping me look for employment, sending me job postings, asking for my resume and what have you, having only been involved with TikTok for 18 weeks, as impactful as it is for me if it goes away, I cannot imagine for the people that have spent years here building their community, building their business, building their livelihood, just to have that all gone. You know is is devastating. It's hard for me to wrap my brain around.

Speaker 1: 7:47

Yeah, absolutely Cause. Tiktok is available in other countries. The U S is has the band, but it's not just here. I don't know if people understand that. So it's like, well, why don't they just sell it? And I'm like, well, because it's working elsewhere. They're actually getting revenue from other countries, so it's not in their best interest really to sell it. I don't think. What do you say to those people?

Speaker 2: 8:16

Yeah, and I don't know if people understand that the um servers are here in america and tiktok usa has control of those and oracle actually takes care of our servers in the cloud. Tiktok has really tried to ensure that our data is safe, that it's here and that it's in American hands. So it's unfair, I feel like, to TikTok to keep framing this as it's a security threat, you know, and that China has control of all of this information. They have done what they could to give us a sense of safety and ensure that we have control over our data and the algorithm. The algorithm comes in, it's in Virginia, Our people go over it, they structure it and then it comes out and hits TikTok. So you know why would they be forced to sell it? It just doesn't make sense. At the end of the day, I do not think that is the true reason that they're trying to ban TikTok here.

Speaker 1: 9:18

So, man, that's, yeah, that's a miss. It seems like everything's just a big misunderstanding. I don't know if that's your take on it or not, but it's like you're trying to iron out what's what has been said or what's still being said, and it's hard to get the the answer or the real answer, the real truth about what's going on. What would you say to those individuals that feel like they have the answers already and that, um, you know moving forward, should they still look at it the same way?

Speaker 2: 9:52

yeah, so many, so many people that have not been on TikTok or spent enough time here really have this perception that it's similar to other social media platforms. They do not understand the value that it gives to all of us that have established a presence here. But also, we always hear the negative side of things. Right, if we're not invested, we only hear the negative pieces of it, and I do not think they followed this story closely. You know, when Donald Trump signed the original executive order that banned it, he also approved. He pushed for Oracle to be the company that took care of the cloud and the servers, and we got that.

Speaker 2: 10:37

We achieved that, and there were multiple congressmen in the beginning that were very vocal that the reason they were in support of the ban was they did not like the information we were getting access to. So that all of that together just kind of gives me a sense of why it was pursued, because originally it was framed as maybe a national security risk, but then they did give control over to Oracle. They did what they were asked of by Donald Trump. The Congress people discussed their issues with the information and then they never updated their narrative about the security risks and they haven't given any proof of any risk. You know they've refused to give us any proof. They did not even give the proof to TikTok whenever they were preparing their case, to TikTok whenever they were preparing their case. So you just have to take a deep dive and really pay attention to the, the entire timeline and everything that's taken place throughout it.

Speaker 1: 11:42

That's great and that sounds like you guys are doing your homework and as a journalist myself, you know you want to you kind of remain objective and you can't really always know that. You've concluded the answer, because are ever changing, so it's nice to find someone like yourself or the team that you work with that have that insider information as to what's going on, like you said, the algorithm, the servers. How did you get to know all that information? Maybe you could help other people with that too.

Speaker 2: 12:13

Well, most of that information is just my own studying. So if I'm going to take a strong stance on something, if it's really going to matter to me, I'm going to dig and try to make sure I have all of the facts. So I've been following the case and just soaking in as much information as I could. That is where the majority of the information about the actual case for me comes from.

Speaker 1: 12:37

Nice, nice. And you're not that far away, so you're located where. Where about?

Speaker 2: 12:43

I'm in North Carolina.

Speaker 1: 12:45

North Carolina. It's a beautiful state.

Speaker 2: 12:47

Where are you, oh, where are you? Which part.

Speaker 1: 12:52

Franklin County. Okay, yeah, so just North, yeah, so just where are you located at? Right now I'm in minnesota, so st paul okay okay, yeah, it's a lot of print that's right. Oh yeah, I love north carolina. Um, it's a beautiful place there, and virginia as well. Um, a lot of great people. Um, I know our hearts go out for everybody there in Asheville, north Carolina, as well.

Speaker 2: 13:20

Yeah, it's heartbreaking.

Speaker 1: 13:23

I used to live in South Florida too, so when I messaged you about who am I, rooting for the Rams. You know I said Santa Corita, so I live out there as well. I like to move. I was born and raised in. You know I said Santa Corita.

Speaker 2: 13:33

So I live out there as well.

Speaker 1: 13:33

I like to move.

Speaker 2: 13:34

I was born and raised in San Bernardino.

Speaker 1: 13:37

Oh nice. That's another place. Yeah, yeah, your heart's there, I'm sure.

Speaker 2: 13:43

Yeah, absolutely.

Speaker 1: 13:45

Yeah, so TikTok encompass a lot of communities, a lot of people, not just here in America but also globally, and you think about what they're able to accomplish with the way it's set up. It's something different about it. What would you say is different about TikTok and building the communities and the people that are on there? What would you say to individuals that aren't on there as to say, hey, let's maybe be a little open about TikTok and the community there, kind of see if you dig a little deeper, do your own research. What would you say to those individuals too?

Speaker 2: 14:19

TikTok somehow fosters this sense of community. It seems like other social platforms that we've been on. It's more about posting, getting likes, and was more focused on just getting the attention right getting likes and was more focused on just getting the attention right. The way the algorithm is set up, the way you grow, the way you build, is actually engaging. It's interacting. You have to be interacting and receiving interaction as well. So you post something and people are responding to you. People are following you because they feel a connection. People are tuning into your lives because they feel a sense of connection with you and as you're going live, you're communicating with them. They're seen, they're heard, they're more invested in you and you, as a creator, develop a sense of connection too to these people. So there's just a sense of community. You do not get on other platforms. You know, you learn to know the people that you are connecting with and somehow that builds just this strong sense of community that's lacking in other areas.

Speaker 1: 15:25

Crazy, yeah. Just even the fact that you're here on the podcast that speaks volumes as well. We met on TikTok and you've helped so many people. When I listen to the comments and the interaction on your platform, you really help pull people in and also feel like they have a chance to make it there, because it's almost like a video game. I mean, can you explain that to me, trying to learn all the things, what not to do and how to be successful. I mean that's some tricky things.

Speaker 2: 15:58

Yes, so it's an engagement platform. So it's about how you engage as well as how people engage with you. You have to do all of the things to truly be successful. Yeah, by doing those things, the algorithm is also watching you. So it's not just about being supportive of people for the sake of them seeing you do these things, but the algorithm is watching all the things you do and, as you are a solid supportive engager, you level up. There's badges and there's levels that you can keep leveling up to, so the algorithm pushes your content out more and it pushes people towards you more. So there's just different tricks and tips and and things you can learn to continue to level up throughout tiktok yeah, sometimes it reminds me of candy crush yeah

Speaker 2: 16:48

for that too I always use mario kart to explain it, and it's difficult for people that just come in they to treat it like Facebook or Instagram. They're just looking at the numbers and trying to get a bunch of people to follow them and think that's going to help them make it. But that's just one piece of the puzzle and if you are focusing on the quantity over the quality of people you're engaging with, it actually harms you here, which is much different than what they're used to with it actually harms you here, which is much different than what they're used to Nice.

Speaker 1: 17:22

What would you say about the bad things? People say oh, there's nothing. Ever good came from TikTok. What would you say about that?

Speaker 2: 17:29

I haven't had bad experiences, other than the trolls that come for you. And you know, once you get build that community, yes, you tend to spend more time on TikTok. I spend more time with TikTok than I ever did with any other social media platform, but one. I do go live on it often, but I stay engaged with these people because I have actual, real relationships with them. You know they're getting my resume, they're sending it back to me. I know that they had a surgery today and I'm checking in on them, or they are getting the courage to go live for the first time. So I'm going to make sure I show up and I watch and I support them.

Speaker 2: 18:05

So the only downfall I could see is it's more screen time. You end up almost involved with it more, but you're having the interactions with people that you may be missing in your real life. Right, we have. We've devolved to this place where we are not as connected with people and physically in real life as we used to be, and a lot of us find that in TikTok land, as I like to refer to it, yeah. So other than that, I haven't seen any. I I've seen the chatter on other platforms that I've had to go to in the past 24 hours and the things that they say their impressions of TikTok. They're just not accurate.

Speaker 1: 18:48

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Absolutely Isn't that crazy, that is crazy, isn't that crazy, that is crazy the gap that's between the platforms is so large that it's maybe we can fix that. You know, maybe this time around people give it a second chance. You know, we have a president that's going for another term. You know, people gave the president another chance. So, for whatever reason, whatever happened, right we want to spin that story.

Speaker 1: 19:21

Here we go again, right. So what do you think the future looks like for TikTok, the future beyond? What are your hopes or what are your predictions? What would you say?

Speaker 2: 19:31

I hope there's a way for it to stay permanently. I just don't know. You know, you hear so many stories. From what I understand, there were loopholes in the ban where, if everything is approached correctly, we can keep it permanently. So if this is just a 90-day extension to give them more time, I just can't see why they would sell it. I'm hopeful it stays, but through all of this it actually pushed everyone to step out of their comfort zone and explore other platforms. There are so many out there I was not aware of. So I think TikTokers are exploring. They have other ideas in mind, getting the courage to branch out a little bit but I hope it stays Nice.

Speaker 1: 20:24

Can you give me any secrets so far? Like, when you come into a TikTok room, it's different, right, when it's live. Can you share that one piece, how you got to say hi and welcome yourself to the room, maybe?

Speaker 2: 20:32

When people come into my room. Yeah, is that a certain?

Speaker 1: 20:35

way yeah.

Speaker 2: 20:40

Well, you come in and you connect, you follow the live host and there's a daily heart me button that you are, that you hit. You pick up your daily heart me. The daily heart me is similar to saying hello, you entered the room, all eyes are on you because your name comes across the screen with a big heart that says, hey, somebody just showed up here. It also triggers the algorithm to start paying attention to you and then you get in the chat and now you're triggering points that go towards that level up. But you're also getting your name and your profile picture seen to all the people that are in the room. So now you have their attention and they're paying attention to you, looking at your bio, figuring out if you're someone they want to connect with, and then there's more to it beyond that.

Speaker 1: 21:29

But that's how you should enter the room. I like that, yeah. When you taught me that, I was like oh, I didn't know that I had no, had no first of all, I was just intrigued as how many people are on live versus like facebook live and it's like man.

Speaker 1: 21:42

They're just, they're just being themselves. How cool is this? Is like it just. I mean the fact that people can be their authentic self and not be something else I think is uh, is beautiful thing. I mean. That's why I like podcasting. I could just be myself and especially if you own your own podcast, you don't have any influence from someone else.

Speaker 1: 22:05

You can control the narrative, you can develop the story, almost like writing your book in real life, in real time. So I think you would do well with that having your own podcast One day. There'll be a venture of yourself. Think you would do well with that having your own podcast One day. There'll be a venture of yourself that you'll do.

Speaker 2: 22:19

Yes, Speaking of stepping out from all of this, I am now trying to get my YouTube following up to where I can go live and I'm thinking about doing other things there. There's a lot of topics I would like to discuss in depth that you can't really discuss on TikTok because of all the rules. So it's a thought I I would like to discuss in depth that you can't really discuss on TikTok because of all the rules. So it's a thought I just wouldn't know how to start. But now I have a connection to come to and say, hey, how do I get this going?

Speaker 1: 22:44

I love that man, I love to see you doing your thing.

Speaker 1: 22:48

I thought about that. She would be good on YouTube even as a teacher, the way you explain things and make it simple. So I champion you, keep on all that great work you're doing over here at TikTok. Love to see you on there. I love to see the energy that you bring forth to people and they need it and I hope it keeps going. I hope TikTok keeps going. You know, I think as well, so I think a lot of good does come from it, even the ADHD community. A lot of things that people have learned and tried to understand. Just hearing it, reading it is one thing, but hearing it come from someone else's mouth and their experiences, I think it's huge. It helps bring that awareness to something that people didn't know before and gets rid of a lot of the stigmatisms that are out there and misconceptions. Right.

Speaker 2: 23:36

Okay.

Speaker 1: 23:37

Yeah, so maybe we'll do that with a lot more things coming forward in the future. I'm excited about it, I'm hopeful and I think a lot of good things are going to happen. I feel positive about it, so I want to spread that energy. You think good things, good things happen right.

Speaker 2: 23:50

Yeah, absolutely, absolutely.

Speaker 1: 23:53

Yeah, so any other tips you want to give to people, anything you'd like to say those that are trying to build their business or their social media platform or create that community or just grow as an individual, learning things?

Speaker 2: 24:16

What would you say to those individuals moving forward when it comes to TikTok or any other platform? Yeah, so one of the things that I've learned, and I also try to share with my viewers, my guests in my room, is to just start doing it. You know a lot of TikTok putting the content out, creating the videos, going live. It's stepping outside of a comfort zone and you cannot get comfortable in it until you start and there's space and room everywhere for everyone, whether it's your product, whether it's your personality, and that's one thing so many people found on TikTok. You know they come back and they're like, hey, you motivated me to try and I went live and it's doing this and it's going well, and I just didn't think anyone would be interested in what I had to say, or I didn't know people would want to come, hang out and spend time with me.

Speaker 2: 24:58

But you have to push yourself to find out. You know we all have a space here, whether it's in TikTok, whether it's in our communities, where we will find our people. We will find, you know where we're meant to be. So you have to actually start and then be consistent, believe in yourself and just keep going, even in TikTok. You know these followings, these live rooms, the goals that people are setting for themselves. It doesn't happen overnight, unless you're famous or you're just the post and you don't hit live and all of a sudden you have this grand following. It's consistency, it's work, it's paying attention to what worked for you and what didn't, and to continue going. If you build, they will come right.

Speaker 1: 25:47

Hey, that's what I'm doing. That's clever. I love it. That's great, great advice. Many people need that. They need to hear more positive energy right now and, brandy, thank you so much for doing that. I hope you continue to do what you're doing. I know you do it full time, so all your team there too. I want to give a big thank you and just hold on. We'll see what the future has to say here. I appreciate that.

Speaker 1: 26:16

Yeah, I really appreciate you sharing your knowledge and perspective with us. Before we wrap it up, where can people find you? I know you're on Discord. There's a certain way you get connected there.

Speaker 2: 26:27

What else can?

Speaker 1: 26:28

they use to find you and all the knowledge that you're able to share all the knowledge that you're able to share.

Speaker 2: 26:37

Yeah, I'm on discord, facebook, instagram, youtube and almost any platform. At this point, really in preparation for the possible ban, I have an account everywhere, but if I'm not under Brandy Lynn, I'm under curls and hoops. So nice. I plan on building YouTube next. So if anyone wants to look there and hit that subscribe button so I can go live, that would be great. That's great.

Speaker 1: 27:01

There we go so well. There you have it. Folks, whether you're in trucking, creating content, running a business, the one thing that stays the same is community, and getting that delivered to individuals is important. Tiktok does that. So does Brandy Lynn. It's not just about an app. It's about building connections. We make these stories, we share them, and the impact that it has on each other's lives is important. So let's take the time to consider TikTok again, or to see that, hopefully, maybe the future looks good and looks bright. We'll see what happens right. So we'll keep this conversation going, no matter where it ends up, even if we have to move to a different platform. I think those individuals will bring a lot of great energy to that platform moving forward. So if you enjoyed this episode, make sure to follow on the podcast, connect with Brandy and, of course, keep up with me on TikTok as well. And until next time, keep on trucking and keep building those communities. Uh, stay informed. Uh, we'll see you next time. All right, thank you.

Speaker 2: 28:01

Thank you.