Instagram Influencer Spotlight On: Kat Sun @kat.eats

1) Tell us a little about yourself. What are you doing now and where do you come from?

My name is Kat and I live in the San Francisco Bay Area. I work full time at a biotechnology company and also as an Ambassador for Gogobot, a travel company, on the side. I love meeting and connecting with fellow travel lovers and foodies!

2) What are your topics of interest? What do you post on Instagram the most?

I would have to say food, travel, and health/fitness are my favorite topics. I post food exclusively on my foodie Instagram account @kat.eats and I post about personal experiences, health/fitness, travel, and brands that I connect with on my personal Instagram account @chocfullokat.

3) How did your Instagram name come about?

I think @kat.eats is pretty self-explanatory — I eat a lot, so it made sense for my Instagram name. As for @chocfullokat, it’s a play on words. If something is “chock-full” of something, there’s a lot of it. I decided to use ‘choc’ instead of ‘chock’ because I also love chocolate…and I guess the username looked better without the k. My blog, Instagram, and Twitter page with that username is chock-full of things about me!

4) What are some apps you use to edit your photos? Share with us your photo-editing routine!

I like using Snapseed to edit the look of my photos since it’s a professional photo editing app and easy to use. I use Pixlr to add a watermark to my photos when I need to; the app lets you adjust the transparency of the text, which I like.

5) Any Instagrammers whom you really like? Which Instagrammer inspires you the most?

I’d have to say @cyneats. She’s gained quite a bit of notoriety in the food photography space, manages other restaurants’ Instagram account pages (so she does a lot of photo shoots), and she get sponsored to travel and eat! That’s part of my dream!

6) If there’s one thing your fellow Instagrammers just gotta try now, what’s it gonna be?

I think that would have to be Thai-style ice cream rolls. Two cafes that make ice cream this way have popped up in the Bay Area, finally! New York has a few and the OC has one too.

7) What’s your favorite part about being an influencer?

It makes me feel happy and energized when I get positive feedback from others saying that I’ve inspired them to try something or taught them something new. I post things to share my own experiences and to let others that there’s a new restaurant or business in town. I love supporting small, local, and community-focused businesses.

8) What are some of your top tips to brands for running campaigns? How do you maintain authenticity?

Engaging with your community is key; consumers want to feel like they’re being heard and that they have a way to interact with the brand on a more personal level. A great way to do this is through cultivating a small team of champions and ambassadors that will support you. You can bring consumers in through trials/sampling and you can target influencers in the community for an exclusive sneak peek and they’ll post about your business and respond to inquiring consumers on your behalf.

9) What would your advice be on the importance of quality and original content?

Quality of photos and writing gives you credibility and original content makes your passion shine through. Copying content doesn’t put you in front of the curve, you need refreshing and new content that engages consumers. Put your own voice out there too and be unique.

10) What do you like best about partnering with brands?

I love discovering new brands and products that share similar interests and passions! Participating in campaigns has allowed me to discover things I otherwise wouldn’t have and participants have an opportunity to interact with them more personally during the campaign too.

Topics:

• Food & Drink
• Hair & Beauty
• Health & Fitness
• Nature & Outdoors
• Photography
• Travel

Country:

United States of America