Kimberly Hickok and Angela McFarland,
longtime Capital District media and marketing
professionals, have launched FoodHomeLifeStyle.com, an online resource offering practical
and doable lifestyle tips to women ages 25-54.
The startup, launched earlier this year, is
presently in a web and social media stage and
will evolve into an online and wireless service
for digital TV channels, the women said.
“About a year ago, two well-respected
lifestyle celebrity web brands were feuding,”
said Hickok, referring to Martha Stewart and
Gwyneth Paltrow. “What we learned from
watching the spat unfold, and listening to
the fallout in the media and online was this:
People, women in particular, are looking for
practical information they can use; information
from a source that they can relate to.”
Food and lifestyle blogger Hickok (www.kimversations.com) of Ballston Lake, is the
CEO, executive editor and strategic content
creator. She is a 20-year marketing expert and
business strategist and has served a number
of national and regional brands.
Hickok has owned her own graphic design
business, lent support for a national nonprofit
agency and has been a top sales performer in
the print and web development industry.
McFarland, of Ballston Spa, is the COO,
creative director and brand strategist. She has
over 20 years in advertising and marketing
experience, is the former owner of several print
hyper-local publications and current publisher
and partner in Newzmedia Holdings LLC, parent
company to the Ballston Journal Online, a digital news media formed in 2013.
McFarland is experienced in all facets of
media and operations, including traditional
print, direct mail, radio and billboard to the
newest forms of digital message delivery. She
has held advertising sales leadership positions,
targeting small to medium-sized businesses,
for most of her career.
“We all eat, have a roof over our heads, deal
with life’s challenging situations and wear
clothes,” Hickok said. “Ang and I met and the
name FoodHomeLifeStyle just clicked. If we
had to dream big, and we do, we’d love to see
our site eventually be the Huffington Post for
all things related to food, home, life and style.”
Since the site’s launch, Hickok and McFarland
have been experimenting with the content
to see what resonates most with readers.
“To be honest, we didn’t expect our site traffic
to increase the way it has. That just proves
that there is room in the marketplace for our
brand of content,” said Hickok.
“It’s been a period of trial and error and we
are learning that people not only want tips to
help make their lives easier but they also want
to be entertained. We were surprised when a
post, about the importance of making sure
your backside is covered when you wear leggings,
went viral,” said Hickok.
“Kim and I have known each other for several
years,” said McFarland. “Our career paths
in media are almost identical from working
telephones at small newspapers many moons
ago to diving in full steam with everything
digital media has to offer … We share humble
beginnings, a common passion for information
and an equal desire to educate and have fun
doing it with like-minded women.”
The website features a range of topics from
do-it-yourself home decorating, fashion and
beauty, food, health and finance.
McFarland expects to see a dabbling of pop
culture, relationship discussions and more
travel added to the lineup by first quarter of
2016. She said the content is generated by a
small team of relatable women, each are committed
to inspiring the audience with easy-to-manage
tips and ideas.
The two continue to seek content providers
and are looking to incorporate more do-it-yourself tutorials. Eventually, they plan a
regular form of interactive media with their
followers.
FoodHomeLifeStyle.com’s current launch
is focused on the Northeast region consisting
of New York, Vermont, New Hampshire,
Maine and Massachusetts. The partners have
identified five additional target regions across
the country that will replicate the business
concept, with content specific to each region.
Visit the website at foodhomelifestyle.com.