Meet Samantha Van De Kamp

We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Samantha Van De Kamp. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Samantha below.

Samantha, so excited to have you with us today. So much we can chat about, but one of the questions we are most interested in is how you have managed to keep your creativity alive.

As a business owner, we’re constantly juggling multiple hats—plus everything outside of work like family, kids, and life in general. I’ve found that the best way to stay creative is to schedule time for it rather than waiting for inspiration to strike.

I choose a day when I know I’ll have energy, focus, and motivation—for me, that’s usually Mondays or Fridays—and I always tackle creative work earlier in the day. During these time blocks, I batch-create content for my own social media, making the most of my creative momentum. But if I’m really not feeling it when the time comes, I give myself permission to reschedule instead of forcing it.

Of course, creativity doesn’t always follow a schedule. If a great idea pops up at the wrong time and I can’t act on it immediately, I add it to my content inspiration list to revisit later. That way, I never lose ideas, and I always have something fresh to work with when it’s time to create.

Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?

I’m Samantha van de Kamp, the owner of VDK Digital and the creator of The Simplified Social, a training program designed to help local business owners take the guesswork out of social media. My focus is on making social media simple, strategic, and effective—without the overwhelm.

I started my career over a decade ago in print media, working in newspapers and magazines, which gave me a deep understanding of how marketing and media have evolved over the years. I’ve always worked with small businesses, and now as a business owner myself, I know firsthand how challenging it can be to juggle everything while also trying to maintain a strong online presence. That’s why I don’t focus on trendy, fleeting social media tactics—instead, I teach proven, long-term strategies that help businesses consistently attract real customers, not just likes.

Right now, I’m especially excited about my upcoming Social Media for Local Business Workshop on April 8 in Nashville. This hands-on workshop is designed for local business owners who want to stop spinning their wheels and finally create a clear, manageable social media strategy that gets results. Attendees will walk away with a custom content plan, ready-to-use templates, and a step-by-step system to make social media work for them—without spending hours online.

At the end of the day, my passion is helping small business owners feel confident and in control of their marketing. Whether it’s through my agency, my training program, or live workshops, my goal is to make sure business owners stop wasting time on social media and start using it as a tool to grow their business.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

Adaptability – The digital marketing landscape is constantly evolving, and what worked a year ago might not work today. Starting in print media and transitioning into social media marketing, I had to stay open to learning and pivoting my approach when needed. My advice? Stay curious. Read, test, and be willing to experiment. The people who succeed in this industry are the ones who keep up with change instead of resisting it.

Systems, Time Management & Knowing When to Outsource – As a business owner, you’re juggling a million different things—which means if you don’t have systems, you’re constantly playing catch-up. One of the biggest game-changers for me was learning how to batch-create content and streamline my workflow so that social media became manageable, not a time-suck.

But beyond systems, I also learned the importance of hiring experts and outsourcing certain tasks. You don’t have to do it all yourself—and in fact, trying to can hold your business back. Outsourcing things like marketing, admin work, or bookkeeping frees up your time, reduces stress, and allows you to focus on what actually grows your business. My advice for anyone early in their journey? Build repeatable systems early and be willing to delegate when needed. Whether it’s scheduling content, automating tasks, or hiring someone to take things off your plate, structure your workflow in a way that gives you time to focus on what truly matters—growing your business.

Understanding People (Not Just Marketing) – One of the biggest misconceptions about marketing is that it’s all about algorithms and trends. But in reality, the most impactful marketing strategies come from understanding people—how they think, what they need, and how they make buying decisions. My background in media gave me a strong foundation in messaging and storytelling, and that’s what truly moves people to take action. My advice? Focus on your audience first. If you understand your customers—their pain points, their motivations, what makes them trust a business—you’ll be ahead of 90% of businesses trying to “hack” the algorithm.

Tell us what your ideal client would be like?

We work with two types of business owners—those who want to learn how to manage their social media effectively and those who want to hand it off to an expert team so they can focus on running their business.

For our training programs, the ideal fit is a local business owner, service provider, or sales professional who knows social media is important but feels overwhelmed, stuck, or unsure what actually works. They don’t want to waste time posting without a plan—they want a clear, strategic approach that helps them attract real customers, not just likes. They’re ready to learn, simplify, and implement a system that makes social media manageable.

For our done-for-you services, the ideal client is someone who values expertise and wants to outsource their social media and digital marketing to a team that truly cares about their business. They don’t just want content thrown up on their pages—they want a thoughtful, strategic approach that reflects their brand, attracts the right audience, and actually supports their business growth. They’re looking for a local team that understands their market and provides the kind of hands-on, personalized support that big agencies can’t.

Whether someone is looking for training to improve their own social media skills or a trusted team to take it off their plate, we provide customized strategies that are designed for local businesses—not one-size-fits-all marketing.

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