Meet Your Hosts

Kathi (00:00)
Hey friends, welcome to writing at the Red House podcast where we gather at the table to break bread and tell tales with some of our favorite writers and creators who share their wisdom to help us all share our story. And guys, I’m very excited about this guest. She has not been on the podcast before. In fact, this is her only her second time of ever doing a podcast. Her first time was about 20 minutes ago for the Clutterfree Academy podcast.

Her name is Lauren Horst. And I found her on TikTok. She was doing a closet cleanout challenge. I’m like, oh, she’s so fun. I watched her for a little bit. And then I got really brave and I asked her, hey, would you be willing to come on my podcast? And I originally asked her for clutter free. And she goes, I listen to your podcast. No way. It’s Kismet, you guys. But.

The reason I wanted to invite Lauren today is so many of us are looking for ways to get our message out on different kinds of social media platforms. And we haven’t talked a lot about TikTok. And I know that there are all sorts of things coming down the pipe with TikTok. But I still think it’s a very valuable way of engaging with readers, engaging with followers.

Let’s just admit it to have a lot of fun. And so, Lauren, welcome to the podcast.

Lauren (01:30)
Thank you so much for having me, this is so fun.

Kathi (01:33)
Yeah, so we’ve had other TikTokers on here before, and let’s be clear, like, some of them have a million followers. That is not your category, am I correct?

Lauren (01:43)
No, not even close.

Kathi (01:45)
Okay, so do you know approximately how many followers you have?

Lauren (01:49)
You know, I think it ebbs and flows a little bit, but I think I have about 5,000.

Kathi (01:53)
which is very healthy and very exciting. I think so. I have dabbled, but I have not been consistent. And can I just say, I bet one of the reasons that you were in my For You page is because of your consistency. Do you TikTok every single day? I feel like I see you every single day.

Lauren (02:17)
You know, it’s probably not every single day but pretty darn close. Like I would say at least probably five days a week. And honestly, if I’ve missed a day, it’s probably just because I was really busy. I was traveling something was going on, but I’ve been pretty consistent.

Kathi (02:21)
Yeah.

Okay, and so tell us a little bit about your content.

Lauren (02:37)
So my content is surrounding decluttering specifically your wardrobe, your closet. And so every day I choose my outfit for the day. And basically my goal is to wear every single item of clothing in my closet to determine whether or not I want to keep it or whether or not I’m ready to give it away.

Kathi (02:58)
And has that been your content the entire time?

Lauren (03:05)
I, you know, every once in a while, I’ll post some very random travel video or just some thoughts in my head, but I would say it’s probably 95% of my videos.

Kathi (03:11)
Mm-hmm, yeah.

Okay, okay, very, very cool. And why are you doing this? I think that’s a question. You’re not promoting a book. You have a day job that is not really connected to wardrobe. So what caused you to wanna do this?

Lauren (03:32)
You know, I think I love watching videos of other people cleaning out their closets and, you know, the mindset of how do you decide whether or not you want to keep an item? Because a lot of people, you know, I’m getting rid of this 10 shirts. Well, that doesn’t really help me a lot because I don’t know what made you get rid of those 10 shirts. And so the people that I’ve watched and been inspired by who have talked about what makes them want to keep or get rid of a clothing item.

Kathi (03:51)
Right?

Lauren (03:59)
I thought, you know, I can expand on that and really go the slow and steady wins the race method. And you know, when people comment and say things like this totally inspired me, I’m starting this and you know, they’re not necessarily posting videos or anything, but just the idea that is so fun to know that there’s other people who, you know, I’ve helped in a very small way. But there’s so many benefits to just

having a clutter free lifestyle and a closet is just one aspect of that.

Kathi (04:31)
So how do you feel like you attracted your initial followers? Were, did you, did you have any kind of strategy or were you just posting and saying, Lord willing?

Lauren (04:42)
Yeah, absolutely no strategy. I mean, I think the types of videos that I was watching a lot of similar types of videos. And so I just thought, well, mate, you know, I’ll use some different hashtags, and either this video will find the people it’s meant to or it won’t. And regardless, I’m going to keep posting because it’s a fun creative outlet for me. It honestly doesn’t take much time in my day. And it provides a level of accountability where, you know,

now that I’m doing this challenge, I can’t just randomly stop. People are gonna be like, what are you doing? And so I have to see it all the way through and that’s been accountability for myself.

Kathi (05:11)
Right.

So you said hashtags, so there’s a little strategy that’s going into it. How did you determine which hashtags? Were you looking at other creators? What were you doing?

Lauren (05:29)
Yeah, basically every hashtag that I like to search is the hashtags that I used. So I did like hashtag closet clean out closet declutter, you know, OOTD or outfit of the day, sometimes occasionally workwear or colorful outfit, the types of things that I like to search. Those are the hashtags I used.

Kathi (05:49)
Okay, very cool. Now, let me get down to some brass tacks. How do you record them? Are you holding your phone? Are you, do you have a stand? What are you doing?

Lauren (06:02)
Yeah, I’m just holding my phone. I record directly into TikTok, which I’m not sure that other people would necessarily recommend. Because sometimes a clip gets deleted or something like that. And I’m like, well, oh, well, I’m not going back and refilming. And so I just do that. And so basically, then I don’t have to do any editing. And then I just add a voiceover at the end, pick some background music and then call it a day.

Kathi (06:15)
Yeah.

Mm-hmm.

So when you say adding a voiceover at the end and you’re recording into the TikTok app, you’re stopping and starting your phone as you’re doing different angles and things like that. Because you’re not getting dressed on camera or off camera or anything like that. You’re stopping and starting because that would be a very different kind of channel. And that’s not what we’re talking about here, friends. So does TikTok make it pretty easy for you to record your voiceover?

the what you’ve recorded.

Lauren (06:58)
TikTok makes it so easy. I think that TikTok is just it’s crazy user friendly. You know, on occasion, I’ve recorded outside of TikTok, and I’ve had to edit a video and upload things and import them and I’m like that takes triple the amount of time and that is just not time that I want to spend during my day editing. And so I feel like TikTok makes it really easy. Occasionally, I’ll re record

a voiceover like if it’s just going terribly. But more often than not, I just record the voiceover and if I stumble over a word or say something silly, I’m like, well, this is real life. You know, this is this is some very casual and authentic content. And I just hope that I’m finding the people who are looking for that type of content on

Kathi (07:42)
So, curious, I mean, what you’re doing doesn’t feel very controversial, but I know even the least controversial content can get weird pushback and people have their different ideas. How has it been for you? I mean, I look at your comments sometimes and everything seems lovely, but is that always the case?

Lauren (08:05)
You know, I would say, because of the nature of my job and because of the people following me, you know, I’m posting PG rated content. I feel like I’m very not controversial, but even still, I feel like there’s people who, and it depends on how many views a video gets. So the more views that you get, you definitely have people coming out of the woodworks with some weird comments.

Kathi (08:17)
Yeah.

Sure.

Lauren (08:33)
But for example, I had somebody who used to, they used to rate my outfit every day and it would be out of 10. So they would say like, you know, pants, two out of 10, shirt, five out of 10, shoes, zero. And I’m like, okay, that’s not really helpful feedback that, you know, that’s, that that’s different than being like, hey, I think you may want to try this type of shirt with this type of pants, you know, something isn’t working, which I’m totally open to that kind of feedback. But just a number rating. I’m like, that doesn’t really help me at all.

Kathi (08:54)
Yes!

Right?

That was gross.

Lauren (09:03)
You know, some people I think have verbiage about specific things. I’ve gotten a little bit of flack in the past for using the word kimono. And some people have said that that’s not culturally sensitive. And I’m like, that is the name that’s listed on the website when you go to buy the item. You know, that’s not necessarily my term that I’m using. So I think that there’s going to be people who are looking to be, I don’t know, to be offended, or maybe they just really need to get they need to get their feedback.

Kathi (09:18)
Right.

Lauren (09:31)
off their chest and release that into the world. But there’s a lot of people where I’m like, just because you feel compelled to say something does not mean that I receive it in my comments.

Kathi (09:41)
Yeah, and I think there are different ways of approaching this kind of stuff. I think there was a lot of backlash for Kimono by Kim. Kim Kardashian was going to name her whatever, whether the Spanx or whatever. I can’t remember what hers are called. Skims, that’s what they’re called. They’re called Skims. Kimono. But you’re right. Oftentimes, that’s the descriptor used on the website. And guys,

Lauren (10:00)
Yeah.

Kathi (10:10)
I just looked up Lauren’s TikTok, which comes up in my page every day. Do you want to know how many followers you have? 4,999.

Lauren (10:20)
How many?

Oh my gosh, I just need one more.

Kathi (10:26)
One more, just push her over the edge, push her over the edge. But you’ve had a couple of videos that have had a half million views.

Lauren (10:28)
That’s funny.

It’s so it is so funny because the videos that I feel like, you know, sometimes there’s days where I’m like, you know what, this is a good video, like, you know, either my hair looks good, my outfit is super cute, whatever it may be. There’s other videos where I come on partway through getting ready, my hair is still in a towel, I have no makeup on, I try something on, it’s not working, I try something else. And those are the videos that go, you know, quote unquote viral. And I’m like, oh my gosh, like, half a million people just saw me like with my hair in a little like,

Kathi (10:44)
Yeah.

Lauren (11:05)
turby twist towel like, oh well.

Kathi (11:09)
And you guys you can’t see her but she’s adorable. So it’s fine. She’s fine in a towel in her hair in a towel. That’s what I keep alluding to you getting undressed. This is not what I’m trying to project here, Lauren. That is not the content of D. Did you. So you don’t really notice any difference between the ones that go viral and the ones that don’t

Lauren (11:21)
That is not the content.

No, I mean, the few videos that have gone viral are the videos where either I didn’t like necessarily love my outfit that day would not classify it as one of my best videos. And I don’t know if it’s just it’s this algorithm. It’s luck of the draw. You know, maybe people are looking for those people who don’t have this super curated life and bedroom and closet. You know, I’m just a very normal person. And so, you know, maybe that’s what catches people’s attention is that they feel

Um, like they relate to me a little bit more. And so maybe that’s it, but yeah, I honestly have no idea. Tik TOK and the algorithm is very fickle.

Kathi (12:04)
Yeah.

It’s a mystery, isn’t it? So I know that you, how do you, you work full time, you have a very full life. How do you balance keeping up with TikTok and keeping up with your real life? In some ways, it feels like you’ve tucked TikTok into your real life. Is that accurate? Okay.

Lauren (12:33)
Yeah, definitely. Yeah, definitely. You know, it’s a hobby for me. And because I’m filming directly into TikTok, and then I add a voiceover, you know, TikTok in total takes me like two to four minutes a day. So it really is not a big time commitment for me. And you know, I’ve had some people in person ask me, you know, they’ve asked me, are you trying to become an influencer? And I’m like, I mean, if anything, I’m like, de-influencing people, because I’m telling them to get rid of their stuff.

Kathi (12:46)
Mm-hmm.

Right.

Lauren (13:01)
But I think there’s something to be said about there’s no pressure to post. I’m not monetizing anything. I don’t have any, you know, sponsors or partnerships or anything where I feel obligated. So certainly my full-time job, my real life takes priority. And if for some reason I can’t post, you know, it is what it is. And I’ll pick back up and the same followers will, you know, hopefully still be there. I try and be consistent. I mean, it is a priority, but it’s, I think because I feel no pressure, you know, if a video gets,

Kathi (13:22)
Yeah. Yeah, you are.

Lauren (13:30)
300 views or a video gets 30,000 views. I mean, it really makes no difference to me.

Kathi (13:37)
Okay, so I was going to ask you about monetization because I’m guessing you’re eligible for TikTok’s monetization program.

Lauren (13:48)
You know, I looked at this one time and I think you have to have 10,000 followers. So I’m about halfway there. And I mean, we’ll see what happens if and when I ever reach that number. I’m certainly not, I’m certainly not posting videos to just climb the ranks. Um, so if that happens, that would be cool, but regardless, I’ll still continue to post and make videos for fun. Um, but I think you have to have 10,000 followers before that.

Kathi (13:53)
Oh, okay.

Yeah.

Okay. Well, and if there are any brands out there listening, you know, if you wanted to send her a shirt, I think that I love that, you know, like, if somebody sent you a shirt, that would be a natural way of doing a tie in or promotion. And we would expect your honest feedback. And yeah, and we would, I know we would get it from you. And I just, I love

Lauren (14:34)
Oh, definitely.

Kathi (14:41)
that you are authentically doing this, you’re tucking it into your real life, it looks like you’re having fun while doing it, and you respond to a lot of the comments. So you’re not just trying to build numbers, you’re saying, this is actually something I love doing. And I think that is such a great way of doing it. With authors, there’s so much pressure to build a platform, to build your numbers.

And I don’t know that TikTok is necessarily the best way to do it for authors. I think Instagram and Facebook can actually give you a lot more bang for your buck. But I want to do TikTok because I am such a big consumer of TikTok that I just want to go splash around in the pool with all of you creators. I just think it’s fun and it’s something I want to do. So this has given me some inspiration and just thought.

ways to think about how can I do this with my everyday life and not have to because I know there are people who spend hours and hours and hours editing their videos, filming their videos, bribing their kids for their videos. I want none of that life. But you’re doing it without doing trends. I don’t know. I don’t remember you doing any trends. Maybe do you ever use sounds or anything like that?

Lauren (16:06)
Um, no, I really don’t. I mean, I kind of follow along the trends, but I don’t feel like that necessarily directly correlates to the type of content that I’m making. So I feel like I’m just doing my own thing and that it will attract the type of people who are looking for that type of content.

Kathi (16:07)
Yeah, yeah. Yeah.

Right.

Well, it attracted me and I had no idea that we were crossed paths, you know, what was it, 14, well, no, I’m trying to think. Yeah, 14, 15 years ago when my kids were in high school and you were their intern and the algorithm didn’t know that either. But I’m so glad that the algorithm…

Lauren (16:35)
Yeah.

Kathi (16:45)
just say it because this is a Christian podcast. The Holy Spirit brought us together and I’m so glad that happened. Lauren, thank you so much. We’re going to put Lauren’s links to her Instagram and to her TikTok so you can go follow along. I would love for one of my listeners to be the 5,000 because you guys will get so much out of watching her videos. Lauren, thanks again for being here.

Lauren (17:11)
Yeah, thank you so much for having me. I hope this inspires your listeners and that they just feel empowered to post their own authentic content.

Kathi (17:23)
I love that. Yes, authentic content, something we desperately need. Friends, you’ve been listening to the Writing at the Red House podcast. I’m Kathi Lipp.

Now, go share your only you story of God’s extravagant love in your life.