Show Up Anyway with Renee Dalo

Why does some “please support me” content make us root for someone… while other versions make us want to scroll away immediately?

This week, Renée is unpacking the rise of sympathy marketing: the “don’t scroll,” “my business is struggling,” and “help me hit this financial goal” content showing up all over TikTok, Instagram, and Threads. From creators asking their audiences to help fund a questionable purchase to one very persistent sushi restaurant owner who has successfully put herself on Renée’s must-visit list, we’re looking at what makes vulnerability feel compelling, when it starts to feel manipulative, and what happens when vulnerability itself becomes the sales mechanism.

But there’s a bigger marketing question underneath all of it: What are you training your audience to come to you for?

Because attention isn’t the end goal. Your content is constantly teaching people what to expect from you, why they should keep watching, and what role they have in your world. So before you ask, “Will this get views?” there might be a much better question: Whose attention do you actually want?

And while you're here, show some love to TFish Sushi: https://www.instagram.com/tfishsushi/

CONNECT WITH RENEE

On IG: https://www.instagram.com/reneedalo/

on Tiktok: tiktok.com/@thereneedalo

Join The Verve & Vision Club here: www.reneedalo.com/club

This week, I have GUESTS. For the first time ever.

I’m in Atlanta with social media strategist Emily Rochotte and content creator Sheena Kalso, recording from our deeply glamorous basement bunk-bed room the morning after The Reelies.

Between the three of us, we walked into the weekend with 19 nominations. We walked out with approximately one million new inside jokes, and a LOT to say about visibility. (And maybe an award or two.)

We’re talking about what it feels like to be in a room full of people who actually understand the work of content creation, why a reel doesn’t have to go viral to be good, the weird vulnerability of making content in front of other people, and what happens when you stop letting “this might be cringe” make your decisions for you.

Also: red carpets. A wardrobe malfunction. The Susan Lucci Award. Making friends on the internet and then meeting them in real life. Pizza at the after-party. And the reminder we all apparently needed: Keep going. Because you never really know what can happen when you make the thing, submit the thing, get on the plane, walk into the room, and show up anyway.

COME FIND ME:

Instagram:    / reneedalo   

TikTok:    / thereneedalo   

CONNECT WITH OUR GUESTS

Sheena Kalso:    / behindyourscenes.co   

Emily Rochotte:    / emilyrochotte   

THE VERVE & VISION CLUB For solopreneurs and small business owners who want to get more visible, more confident on camera, and more consistent with video marketing: https://www.reneedalo.com/club 

Subscribe to Show Up Anyway for more conversations about visibility, confidence, business, content creation, and building a career that actually fits the person you are now.

After almost 14 years as a wedding planner, I worked my final wedding.

And the very next day, I opened my laptop on a plane and finally wrote the ending of the book I had been blocked on for years. Coincidence? I don’t think so.

In this episode, I’m talking about retirement, identity, closure, and what happens when you realize you may be finished with something you’re still very good at.

We also get into the things we keep carrying because they used to work, what it means to outgrow a version of yourself, and why sometimes the ending doesn’t come until you actually let something end.

Plus, I’m sharing why The Retirement Party, a virtual event for wedding pros happening September 14–15, could not have landed at a more perfect time. If you’re in a season of change, rebranding, letting go, or asking yourself what comes with you into the next chapter, this episode is for you.

If you’re a wedding pro, you can also join me live inside The Retirement Party on September 14. More info here

 CONNECT WITH RENEE

Instagram: @reneedalo

TikTok: @thereneedalo

The Verve & Vision Club: For solopreneurs and small business owners who want to get more visible, more confident on camera, and more consistent with video marketing.

Filming in public can feel deeply awkward. Filming in front of strangers is one thing. Filming while your family watches you set up your phone, walk through the same shot twice, and wonders what exactly you are doing? Entirely different experience.

In this episode of Show Up Anyway, I’m talking about the discomfort of creating content in public, including a staircase in Manchester, a beautiful library, and my dad very much not understanding why I needed to get the shot. We’re talking about the difference between actually being disruptive and simply feeling self-conscious, why being seen trying can feel so vulnerable, and what happens when you stop requiring yourself to feel completely comfortable before you create.

Because the goal may not be to stop feeling awkward. The goal may be to let it be awkward and get the shot anyway.

If you’re building a visible business, creating content, pitching yourself, or putting yourself out there in any way, this episode is your reminder that you cannot build a visible life while making sure no one ever sees you trying.

Want to see the Reel I made on the colorful stairs? Click here

Or the Reel I made in the Rylands Library? Click here

Want support building your visibility, confidence, and content strategy? Join me inside The Verve & Vision Club, my membership and community for entrepreneurs who want to show up more consistently and market their businesses with more confidence.

What happens when you decide your ideas are worthy of your time, energy, and intention?

This week, I’m coming to you from New Orleans with some very exciting news: I am a nine-time Reelie Awards finalist. Nine nominations. Seven categories. Two categories where I am quite literally competing against myself, which is both wild and deeply hilarious.

But this episode is not only about the nominations. It is about what changed after I attended The Reelies last year and put myself in a room full of people who treated short-form video as a legitimate creative discipline. That room stretched me. It made me think more deeply about storytelling, hooks, pacing, editing, performance, and what might happen if I gave my ideas more time instead of treating every reel like a quick little side project.

In this episode, I’m talking about:

• Why receiving recognition can feel surprisingly vulnerable

• The ways women minimize their accomplishments before anyone else can

• How attending The Reelies changed the way I saw my work

• Why making more content helped me become less precious about every post

• What happens when you treat visibility as a creative practice, not an afterthought

• Why your weird, specific ideas may be exactly the ones people remember

• The invisible work that happens before any visible success

• Why you cannot be recognized for work you never publish

Your version of recognition may not be an award. It might be a speaking invitation, a dream client, a collaboration, a new opportunity, or simply becoming known for a point of view that is entirely your own. But first, you have to publish. You have to submit. You have to put your name in the conversation. You are allowed to change your mind about who you are and what you do. You are allowed to add a new title. You are allowed to take your creativity seriously. And you do not have to pretend your accomplishments mean nothing in order to remain likable.

Vote in The Reelies

I am nominated nine times across seven categories, including Best Transformational Reel, Most Engaging Story, Best Talking Head Reel, Best Use of Effects, Best Use of Trending Audio, Best B-Roll Reel, and Best Acting in a Reel.

Voting closes August 9, 2026: https://www.thereelies.show/voting

You can vote once in each category, and I highly recommend watching the other finalists too. I am in truly fantastic company.

Join The Verve & Vision Club

This August, we are going deep into TikTok inside The Verve & Vision Club. We’re talking trends, TikTok Lives, TikTok Shop, affiliate opportunities, content strategy, and how to use the platform to market your business.

Join through this link and receive two weeks free: www.reneedalo.com/club

Check out the DJI Osmo Pocket 3 Creator Combo here: https://amzn.to/4wCezgl

Connect with Renée

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/reneedalo/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thereneedalo

Now go publish the idea, submit the reel, shoot your shot, and show up anyway.

Attending means you bought the ticket, packed the bag, glanced at the schedule, and made it into the room.

Showing up means you decided who you wanted to be before you ever arrived.

In this episode, I’m sharing how I prepare for conferences both logistically and emotionally, why I believe conferences are what you make of them, and the very true story of how I arrived at Social Media Marketing World as a regular attendee and left as one of the emcees.

Yes. That actually happened.

It started with filling out the conference app, replying to a message, agreeing to be a backup, and packing an extra outfit “just in case.”

Then, halfway through lunch, I got the call.

This episode is about being ready when the unexpected opportunity arrives, making yourself visible before anyone knows your name, and increasing the surface area for good things to find you.

Because sometimes showing up looks like introducing yourself at the party.

Sometimes it looks like hosting the 7:00 a.m. breakfast meetup.

And sometimes it looks like running through a convention center with half a burrito still in your mouth because someone needs you onstage.

The difference between simply attending and fully showing up

How to decide who you want to be before a conference begins

Why filling out the conference app actually matters

The small decision that led to an unexpected emcee opportunity

How I prepared myself to be seen before I knew I would be onstage

The emotional shift from attendee to emcee

Why staying ready makes it easier to say yes

How conferences increase the surface area for opportunity

What happened when I was the only person who replied

Whether you are heading to NACE, WIPPACON, CFWA, Engage, Wedding MBA, or a conference in a completely different industry, this episode will help you think beyond your ticket and your travel plans.

The real question is not simply whether you are going.

It is: How are you going to show up once you get there?

Follow me on Instagram for all of the conference shenanigans: @reneedalo

And come find me on TikTok, where I go live on Wednesdays around noon Pacific to unpack whatever WedTok is talking about that week: @thereneedalo

Watch the podcast on YouTube and leave a comment telling me which conference you are attending next.

And remember: pack the extra outfit.

Posting the exact same video on Instagram and TikTok sounds efficient. But what happens when the content that performs beautifully on one platform completely flops on the other? In this episode, Renée shares the realization that changed the way she approaches her content: Instagram and TikTok are cousins, not twins. They may share the same creator, message, and business, but each platform has its own personality, culture, and expectations. Instagram tends to reward more polished, intentional, business-forward content, while TikTok favors looser storytelling, opinions, personality, and content that feels a little more spontaneous. Renée also shares why her viral Instagram Reel barely moved on TikTok, why an old video about Italian chickens is still finding viewers, and how wedding professionals can use TikTok and WedTok to understand the conversations their clients are already having.

In this episode:

The question to consider this week: Where are you forcing your content to be twins when it would work better as cousins?

Mentioned in this episode: 

If editing content fills you with immediate dread, the Verve & Vision Club includes a growing library of short, practical editing tutorials designed to help you learn one small skill at a time.

What happens when someone asks, “What about you?” and you say yes before you have any idea what you’re doing?

In this episode, Renée shares the story of the speaking opportunity that changed the direction of her career. What began as a volunteer leadership role, a borrowed idea, some hastily made slides, and a whole lot of nerve eventually put her in front of thousands of people and opened the door to a career she had not yet imagined for herself.

It’s a story about meeting the moment, taking action before you feel ready, and recognizing that the opportunity you keep waiting for may require you to pitch yourself first. Renée also challenges you to identify one thing you want to be part of and finally throw your hat in the ring. Because you may not feel ready. You can still show up anyway.

Learn more about the Verve & Vision Club at reneedalo.com/club.

Follow Renée on Instagram: @reneedalo

In the very first episode of *Show Up Anyway*, Renée Dalo introduces the visibility problem: the gap between how qualified you are and how visible you allow yourself to be. If showing up online feels harder than it “should,” this episode will help you understand why. Renée talks about perfectionism, overthinking, nervous system resistance, fear of being judged, and why visibility is not just a marketing problem.

She also shares what happened when one of her reels reached 2.7 million views, why going viral did not magically change everything overnight, and how it did expand her capacity to be seen.

This episode is your permission slip to stop waiting until you feel ready and start building small visibility reps instead.

Connect with Renée:

Follow Renée on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/reneedalo/

Follow Renée on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thereneedalo

Watch the podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@reneedalo

Join The Verve & Vision Club: www.reneedalo.com/vandv

Learn more about Renée’s work: www.reneedalo.com

Welcome to Show Up Anyway with Renée Dalo — a podcast for creative entrepreneurs navigating visibility, leadership, confidence, and the messy middle of being seen. In this trailer episode, Renée shares the heart behind the show and why showing up online feels so vulnerable for so many business owners right now. We’re talking about visibility, burnout, self-trust, consistency, speaking, content creation, and learning how to move forward before you feel fully “ready.” Because you do not need to be fearless to move forward. You just have to show up anyway.

Follow Renée: Instagram: @reneedalo TikTok: @thereneedalo Learn more at ReneeDalo.com