Interabled Couple Turned YouTube Sensations With the Influence to Drive Audiences to Stay Positive
While striving to educate and raise disability awareness through social media, Cole Sydnor and Charisma Jamison are the perfect pair of influencers to partner with Drive, a brand focused on removing the ‘dis’ from disability.
In 2014, I was diagnosed with a rare autoimmune disorder called Chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP). CIDP is a condition that targets your body’s nerves, causing progressive weakness and impaired sensory function in the arms and legs. When I first learned of my diagnosis, I was shocked, scared, and surprisingly relieved. I was relieved because after being initially diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, I was grateful to have the lesser of two evils.
Being overly independent by nature, I continued my level of normalcy for as long as I could until my condition gradually worsened. My muscles began to deteriorate, causing a desperate need for assistive devices. After years of hospital visits, rehab stints, and physical therapy sessions, I had amassed a large assortment of equipment. I found myself using tools ranging from wheelchairs, crutches, canes, walkers, shower chairs, and braces for my hands and legs. After getting acclimated to my collection, I realized that they all had one brand in common — Drive.
Drive DeVilbiss Healthcare is one of the fastest growing home healthcare companies in the world. They were originally formed in 2000 with a mission to promote independence and enhance the quality of life of the people they touch. Drive offers a complete line of durable medical equipment distributed through numerous retailers and home healthcare providers. But despite their strong reputation and experience, Drive has a very small social media following and experiences low engagement on multiple platforms. With only 4,940 Facebook followers, 1,157 Instagram followers, 1,720 Twitter followers, and 2,770 YouTube subscribers, Drive needs to increase their overall reach. They must bring more value to their customers through content that’s relatable and relevant to make a real impact.
The importance of disability awareness has been given prominence over the past few decades, and companies like Drive must continue to educate and advocate for individuals with disabilities all over the world. For Drive to establish a connection with their target audience and send more authentic messages, they should partner with a micro-influencer. This partnership would benefit Drive because the micro-influencer will have an active and loyal following. Audiences want to engage with a trusted thought leader, especially when lives are impacted. Customers want to see Drive’s products being used by actual people living with disabilities.
Similar to Drive, quadriplegic Cole Sydnor and his fiancée Charisma Jamison strive to raise disability awareness through their platforms. They created their identity on social media in 2018 with the desire to make people realize that no matter what the circumstances are, people with disabilities can live happy and meaningful lives. With 19,603 Facebook followers, 48,600 Instagram followers, 97,900 TikTok followers, and 398,000 YouTube subscribers, Cole and Charisma have the reach and influence to help Drive spread their message. By using social media to show the challenges and triumphs of their lives as an interabled couple, Cole and Charisma have already built the audience that Drive is targeting.
Along with content centered around their relationship, Cole and Charisma also perform various demonstrations on their YouTube channel detailing the pros and cons involved with using certain products and assistive devices. However, a partnership with Drive would allow them to incorporate new content consisting of contests, giveaways, social media takeovers, product promotions, tutorials, live streams, and customer shout-outs. These sources of content could be incorporated into a weekly or monthly series presenting opportunities to increase audience engagement. Ultimately, disability impacts everyone in different ways. A brand partnership would help to minimize the discriminating culture and promote disability awareness to a larger audience. Increased awareness and inclusivity start with using a platform to educate audiences, so in the words of Cole and Charisma, “Remember to stay positive!”
Sources:
About Us. (2019). Drive Medical. Retrieved from https://www.drivemedical.com/us/en/about-us
Officer, S. (2019, July 31). Interabled YouTube Couple Cole and Charisma Are Getting Married! Why Planning the Proposal Was Hard. Inside Edition. Retrieved from https://www.insideedition.com/interabled-youtube-couple-cole-and-charisma-are-getting-married-why-planning-proposal-was-hard
Pascarell, R. (2020). Quadriplegic Cole Sydnor and His Fiancée Charisma Jamison Utilize Social Media Platforms to Educate and Raise Awareness. Chaffin Luhana Foundation. Retrieved from https://www.chaffinluhanafoundation.org/challenge/cole-sydnor-charisma-jamison/
Schwarz, R. (2020, July 24). Is Smaller Better In Influencer Marketing? Forbes. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2020/07/24/is-smaller-better-in-influencer-marketing/#663b38977685
Wissman, B. (2018, March 2). Micro-Influencers: The Marketing Force Of The Future? Forbes. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/barrettwissman/2018/03/02/micro-influencers-the-marketing-force-of-the-future/#ce5281c6707b
