Meet Shannon Briggs | Founder and Head Trailblazer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Shannon Briggs and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Shannon, do you disagree with some advice that is more or less universally accepted?
“Fake it til you make it.”

I used to take this piece of advice. I would say yes to projects that I had no business saying yes to, as I was either unknowledgeable or unqualified. While I fully believe in stretching yourself, continually learning, and stepping outside of your comfort zone, you have to understand your own strengths and weaknesses, likes and dislikes. Committing to projects I didn’t know enough about most often lead to over-promising and underdelivering, one of my worst nightmares. Now, instead, I understand which projects I have just enough expertise in to dive in and learn the rest, and which other ones I should outsource to the experts. It’s a lot less stressful too!

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Campfire Collective is a Memphis-based boutique marketing agency that ignites creativity for community-focused organizations. Through our values of trust, communication, innovation, relationships, and quality, we create and implement social media, marketing, and public relations campaigns that shine a light on all the incredible work our clients do day in and day out to connect to their communities.

We believe that communities are built through their small businesses and non-profit organizations, so we focus on uplifting them so they can in-turn lift up their communities as a whole.

I am most proud of the relationships we have formed within our team, clients, and community. We have created a culture that thrives on authenticity and transparency, and I believe everyone benefits from it. Our clients trust us to do the best work for them, and our team trusts each other to support them in the best way possible.

Campfire Collective has been steadily growing and scaling since 2011. It was a side hustle for four years before I made it my full-time job in 2015. Since then, we have grown from a solopreneur to a team of 13! Was it easy? Absolutely not. The most rewarding parts of life are never easy. Yet, I am grateful for all the amazing and amazingly awful moments – each have learning opportunities behind them.

When you launch a business, typically you do so because you have the skills to perform work for clients. That was me – I excelled in marketing and social media. Yet, I had zero idea how to run a business or what is even involved. I learned the basics over time, thanks to many books and a lot of googling. As our team and client base continue to grow, a new set of business challenges present themselves, and I am learning along the way again. Through it all, I focus on authenticity and transparency. My team knows my challenges, and they trust me to handle it in the most Shannon and Campfire Collective-focused way possible. I value the relationship I have with my clients, as they often mentor me and help me grow in these areas too. There’s always something new to learn – that’s what make entrepreneurship so fun!

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Oh this is one of my most fun topics of conversation. I am known in my circle as the one with the Memphis knowledge when someone needs help planning an itinerary. Starting from scratch is hard, and I usually start by asking about preferred parts of town, age ranges for activities, and budgets. If we’re dreaming big, I’ll give a short list here as best I can:

Starting with food, because it’s one of the core priorities in a trip to Memphis to eat as much as you can. For breakfast, we’re headed to Brother Juniper’s, Sunrise, The Arcade, Hive, French Truck Coffee, Belltower Coffee, and Tamp and Tap. Lunch will be The Bar-B-Q Shop, Maciel’s, Memphis Pizza Cafe, Wiseacre Brewing HQ Downtown, India Palace, Global Cafe, and Pho Binh.

Dinner and cocktails includes Flight, McEwen’s on Monroe, Coastal Fish Company, Bari, Restaurant Iris, Bishop, Green Beetle, and Cocozza.

Late night haunts include Earnestine and Hazel’s, Young Avenue Deli, Lafayette’s Music Room, and of course Paula Raiford’s Disco.

As for activities, we’re catching live music at Overton Park Shell and check out Stax Museum of American Soul. We’ll board a Backbeat Tours for a musical history of the city and tour the National Civil Rights Museum. We’ll explore Overton Park, Shelby Farms Park, Big River Crossing, and Tom Lee Park.

We’ll bounce around the South Main Arts District, Cooper Young Historic District, Overton Square, and Broad Avenue Arts District.

Varying by season, we’ll also have to add local festivals, Tiger football, Tiger basketball, and Memphis Grizzlies basketball to the agenda as well!

My guests will leave tired but fulfilled and wanting to come back!

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I am fortunate to have an incredible support system around me. Friends, family, colleagues, and mentors have all helped me get to where I am today, and they continue to help me grow. When I first left my day job to pursue my dream full-time, there was a network of people who believed in me and helped me get my start. My former bosses were supportive in helping me grow, and they continue to find ways to do this today: Lauren Robinson, Ashley Robilio, and Samantha Dean. We also have a generous public relations community here in Memphis, and many leaders reached out to me when I started my business to offer their help, advice, and referrals. I am constantly thankful for the mentorship and support from Valerie Morris-Bearup, Brian Stephens, Dr. Mary McDonald, Beth Okeon, and many more. Colleagues like Elizabeth Berglund, Kim Marks Malone, Nathan and Laura Armstrong, Michael Newsome, Ellen Isaacman, and many others continue to refer business to Campfire Collective and ask us to collaborate on projects. Work is more fun with them around! Obviously there is my team, who none of this would be possible without. I could write an entire book of gratitude on the people who have supported me in my professional endeavors, but these are some of the highlights!

Website: https://www.buildacampfire.com

Instagram: @buildacampfire

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/buildacampfire

Twitter: @buildacampfire

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/buildacampfire

Image Credits
Image Credit: Campfire Collective, Emily Swan, Ziggy Mack