Creator Voices: Monica Ravichandran
< 1 minute
This is “Creator Voices,” a series where we interview Creators to learn more about how they’ve grown, their approach to content, and the fun, helpful tips they’ve picked up along the way.
We spoke to Monica Ravichandran, an LA-based Creator whose “brown-girl makeup” tips have made her a viral TikTok sensation.
What’s your best piece of advice for Creators who are just getting started?
Don’t be afraid to try something new! Average consistency beats inconsistent perfection.
It’s so easy in this industry to get caught up in wanting everything to be perfect, when sometimes, it’s more helpful to give 80% of your effort for seven days a week instead of 100% only three days a week.
Not every video needs to be new and innovative. And if something’s not working, analyze it—why isn’t it working, and what has worked in the past? I’ll create a series based on videos that are working, and keep building off those series, so if I’m ever out of ideas, I’ll pick an idea from one of those series.
What’s one challenging aspect of being a Creator that you wish more people talked about?
Definitely creative burnout. There are times when I’m really productive and I’m able to churn out ideas, and then there are weeks when I’ll have writer’s block.
It’s normal and will go away eventually, you just need to be kind to yourself. If I’m going through creative burnout, I let myself have it and move on.
Also, people don’t understand how much work it is to be a Creator. Each video takes so long to create. I have a full production room and thousands of dollars of lights. The more you invest in your content, the more ROI you’re going to get from it.
How do you get yourself out of a creative rut?
I really just allow myself to take a break. I’ve worked on self-soothing a lot, and therapy has helped too. I have to reassure myself that this is normal, it’s a creative job, and the creativity will come back.
And if I need to, I’ll focus on other things for a bit—cleaning my makeup room, editing videos, writing—and then it will come back.
What is your biggest source of inspiration?
Solving a problem! I’m very solution oriented. I apply the same principles I used in my product management jobs to my video content.
Also, my audience inspires me. I very much believe in building a community, so I reply to every DM and try to reply to as many comments as I can.
Plus, the comments feed my inspiration as well! I’ll read through the comments, see what people are asking, and build videos around that.
In terms of other Creators or sources of inspiration, I really look up to @roseandbenbeauty—I’ve met her, she’s so kind, and she creates very educational content. It really inspires me how she’s built her community. She’s very patient and she’s been doing this for 10 years. I really resonate with her content, and I resonate with her as a person too.
What’s your favorite topic to post about and why?
My favorite topic to post about is anything relating to brown girl problems. I also love creative makeup; I use makeup as a way to express myself.
What continues to be exciting for me is that I can talk about the same problem 50 different ways, and it wouldn’t be boring, because that’s what marketing is. How can you convey the same message in different ways to reach different audiences?
I think a lot of Creators get worried about posting about the same thing they posted a few weeks ago—but change the way the video is made, add some extra nuance, and it’s totally different.
What are the products your followers see you talk about the most?
First, the CocoKind Barrier Repair Serum.
Also, the Saie Beauty Super Glowy Gel. I love this one. It’s super unique. Most radiance primers are super oily, but this one is a gel formula. They have three or four shades, and the deepest shade is actually deep enough for people of color!
Lastly, About Face Beauty Matte Fluid eye paints. I’m always using those!
What’s your favorite campaign to date and why?
My favorite campaigns to work on have been with Milk Makeup. I’ve probably done eight or so campaigns with them. My brand really resonates with their brand—they’ve done so much around inclusivity, and I even mentioned them at the SXSW panel I was on (with Collective Voice).
They crush their campaigns, they’re really fair to Creators, they allow you a lot of creative freedom, and they want you to have fun with it! They want you to incorporate your own style into the products you use. The product is good, it’s inclusive and fits with my values, so the content feels really authentic.
What does your dream collaboration look like? What kind of content would you create?
What I’m working towards now is to be on the Sephora Squad, which is a year long collaboration with Sephora.
They’ll fly you to Los Angeles and you get to work with brands at Sephora. They’ll introduce me to brands, brand owners, and help me build those networking connections.
Learn more about Monica Ravichandran by following @glow_bymonica.
