If you’re like me and grew up during the 2000s, I’m sure you were curious about what it’s like to be an influencer or work for one at some point or another. Let’s be honest, their lives appear to be way more fun and carefree than our own. But what really happens behind the scenes of an influencer? My friend Cortney Erin, who is a personal assistant to model and influencer Erika Costell, let me ask her all the questions you are curious to know.
For starters, where do you even begin? Cortney always knew she had wanted a job that allowed her to travel and do something different every day. Initially wanting to work in the music industry because of her fangirl days, Cortney was interested in touring and working for a musician. Now that she’s worked for influencers for a couple of years, she’s found her sweet spot: “They do it all: content creation, acting, music, business, fashion, etc. You get to see every side of the industry rather than working for someone who’s only an actor, for example.”
So, you’ve found which aspect of the entertainment industry you want to work in. What comes next? Right out of high school, Cortney reached out to a publicist named Mark, who she thanks for getting her into the industry, and asked if there was anything she could do to help him. He began giving her random tasks for a few of his clients and eventually introduced her to James Maslow (yes, James from Big Time Rush). James needed an assistant, and after working for him a month-long trial period, she was hired.
Being 17 going into the job, Cortney didn’t have much experience. However, what set her apart from others was her willingness to work anywhere at any time and her social media literacy. James wanted his social media to be cooler. Given that she’s always had an aesthetically pleasing Instagram feed, she was perfect for the job. Over the one and a half years she worked for James, his social media grew over 600k followers. She accredits this to her “consistent posts, engaging with his audience and coming up with a ton of new ideas.” During this time, she also networked and developed other relationships that led her to her current position with influencer Erika Costell.
Cortney’s job title is technically “personal assistant” to Erika Costell, but what do assistants really do? “Assistants do a lot more than you’d think. It’s not all dry cleaning and coffee; we’re photographers, social media managers, creative directors, hair stylists, personal drivers, the list goes on depending on who you’re assisting,” said Cortney. Needless to say, not only is Cortney Erika’s assistant, but she’s built a personal friendship with her as well.
Considering that they spend most of their time together, Erika has served as not only a friend but also a mentor to Cortney. Erika similarly started her career in social media as an assistant, so there is a commonality and understanding between the two. Cortney said that she’s been able to learn a lot from working with Erika, considering that she’s involved in several projects across the board. “I’ve learned that I don’t actually like touring for music and love being included in the business side of things and facilitating deals,” said Cortney. The most rewarding part for her is seeing projects start from scratch and come full circle.
For every influencer, there’s a business side of things. So, what skills has Cortney learned over the years of being an assistant? “I learned how to talk to brands/facilitate deals, track analytics, schedule content and plan collabs and just organize someone’s life that’s not your own,” said Cortney. She also said it’s not as easy as it looks, but the experiences that come with her job make it all worth it—it’s a great balance.
Apart from technicalities, Cortney has also learned to adapt to new situations. She prioritizes someone else’s life and career over her own and has adjusted to drop whatever she’s doing at any given moment. If you’re still interested in a job like hers, here’s her advice: “Be ready to be asked to do something you’ve never done before—and figure it out. If you ask too many questions, it would honestly just be easier for your boss to do it themselves.”
What comes next? Cortney doesn’t know where she sees her career heading but believes that being an assistant is the best position you can start as. Over the years, she’s been able to try everything and see what interests her most. “I used to think I wanted to get into music tour management, and as an assistant, I got to go to my first music tour across the country in 2018. It was an amazing experience, but I totally learned from it that that’s not something I want to do multiple times a year as a career,” said Cortney.
Being an assistant is also a great way to meet new people and open doors for your future career. Though Cortney isn’t sure what she wants to do next, the skills she has could set her up to be a manager if she finds an interest in that. Working with Erika has also been inspiring as she is not only an influencer but also a businesswoman. “[Erika] has multiple start-up businesses that I’ve watched go from just an idea into an actual running business, and I think it’d be awesome to be a part of a project like that from the start and grow with it,” said Cortney.
Working with influencers and in social media is way more than just curating the perfect Instagram feed. If you’re willing to put in the energy and time, Cortney has made it abundantly clear that it’s worth it for the connections, experiences and relationships that come out of working in the influencer industry.