TOGETHER WE: organize actions
An interview with Nicole Harrison of SocialNicole
Dec 13, 2016

Words by Morgan Mercer | Photos by Sarah White

Pollen is celebrating the 14 businesses that have come together in support of Pollen’s mission to build better connected communities. Together, these businesses challenge Pollenites to raise $15,000 by December 31, which they will match dollar for dollar. Donate today and join them in their investment to power human connection. 

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Following six years as a high school teacher, a gig as a nonprofit marketing director, and an 18-month stint as a digital strategist for a successful gubernatorial campaign, Nicole Harrison asked herself, “What’s next?” She started consulting, but found her real answer in 2009 when one of her clients convinced her to start a business. She launched SocialNicole, a boutique digital marketing agency that helps clients create new opportunities for their business through social media. For Nicole, social media is a global connector that builds communities far beyond geographical bounds. But while she believes social media is the single most powerful form of communication today, she constantly reminds her clients to focus on digital strategies that value quality over quantity. The goal isn’t to use every platform that exists. The goal is to find the right fit that elevates a company’s work.

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Pollen: What are the core values of your business, and what’s the story behind how you arrived at those?

Nicole Harrison: Before SocialNicole became a business, it was simply the name of a Twitter account. Social media fascinated me as an extension of in-person networking and community building. I saw the power in that and began to blog about how people could leverage these tools to grow their businesses and brand. Eventually, my consultancy grew into a boutique agency. As I began to work with clients, I realized others often sold them services they didn’t need: poor website platforms, over-priced hosting, and bad social media advice. I recognized a need for expertise in the digital space and made that the core of my company—social media by real people who care. We consider our clients’ businesses and careers as sacred as our own.

 

Honesty and integrity are the essential building blocks of my business.

 

We deliver top quality services at a fair price and look for ways to save resources, that way we can pass those savings onto our client.

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Pollen: How do you intentionally build your community?

Nicole Harrison:

Community building comes naturally. It’s why I do the work I do. I seek out incredible people, organizations and events to connect with, and make sure to stay connected.

I consistently look to help other people whenever I can, and connect people who should know each other. I make sure I give more than I take, and I am conscious of being a good colleague and friend to those around me.

Pollen: What is your favorite part about living where you do?

Nicole Harrison: I love living in the city because I’m close to everything and can easily connect with people in person through a short drive or by jumping on an airplane. I also love living in a place where people value community and take care of one another. The Twin Cities is diverse and caring. The business environment is a friendly place where I’ve always felt comfortable and welcome. The philanthropic nature of our community is especially important to me. I am a person who wants to give back as much as possible.

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Pollen: We’ve told 38 feature stories in the past three years. Any favorites?

Nicole Harrison: I honestly enjoy every story Pollen creates because the stories are told from the heart and always show so much humanity. My favorite is of course my daughter’s story—Abigail Harrison (a.k.a. “Astronaut Abby”). Pollen featured her in the early days back in 2014. She was only 15 years old, and having the Pollen team recognize her as a leader has been a significant part of her story. Beyond that, my favorite piece by far is the one about Philando Castile. It speaks to my heart. Community is about coming together to empower one another, and Pollen did just that this with this story.

Pollen: What’s next? For you, for your work, and for how your work intersects with the community?

Nicole Harrison: I run a nonprofit with my daughter Abigail that grew out of her work as Astronaut Abby. The nonprofit, themarsgeneration.org, is volunteer driven and in its second year. In the first year, we reached over 10 million people in our online community. We are growing rapidly with support from people in Minnesota, including our first major donor, Aerospace Fabrication. Our board consists of astronauts, engineers, and local professionals who believed in Abby back when she was just a young girl with a dream and a Twitter account. My focus is to make this a sustainable nonprofit that will exist far into the future. The work we are doing to promote STEM education, space exploration, and to empower students is powerful.

As my company grows, our team continues to donate time and talent to causes we believe in. This typically includes strategy sessions or managing social media channels for organizations in a growth period or with an acute need.

It’s amazing when the success of my company allows me to give more to the community and create real change.

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Posted by Pollen on Dec 13, 2016
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