Jessica Dante: Travel Content Creator, Entrepreneur, Founder of Love and London

Jessica Dante was born and bred on Long Island, New York, and attended university at James Madison University (where she ran her first business hosting parties for female students, selling them lingerie and intimacy products). Jessica lived in Florence for a year before moving to the UK, where she has lived for the past 10 years. she worked in social media before pursuing her own thing.

Jessica Dante’s channel started as a tourist YouTube channel that eventually became her full-time profession. Today, she heads up the digital media brand, Love and London, catering to travellers from all corners of the globe. They facilitate unforgettable experiences while helping them avoid the city’s overhyped and overdone spots. Instead, they guide tourists to London’s hidden gems and burgeoning hotspots, offering pre-made London itineraries and digital guides that have been downloaded hundreds of thousands of times.

What Piqued Your Interest And Made You Go For Content Creating?

I have wanted to run my own business since I was a kid, and after just a few months in my first corporate UK role I knew I had to get to a point where I was doing my own thing. I also knew I didn’t have any money for a startup and didn’t want to try to fundraise, as even just last year, less than 2p in every £1 invested went to all-female founding teams, compared to 85p for all-male founding teams so I knew it was not really an option. I did see however that content creators were building their own businesses and I thought that would be an interesting route to take. So on evenings and weekends I started learning how to film a YouTube video, how to improve my Instagram account, and how to be a good content creator so I could start reaching people.

Since Travel Blogging Has Taken Off In The Last Few Years, What Has Changed In How Content Is Produced?

It’s been said since I’ve started that video is key, but the IG loyals didn’t start listening until Reels was introduced and with the rise of TikTok. Now, it’s rare for a creator to be able to make a living without producing some video content because getting a lot of reach on TikTok and Instagram will basically only come from video at this point. The upside is that people connect with video much more than static content and it gives everyone a chance to build a dedicated, loyal audience.

What Are The Challenges Of Content Creating?

The first couple of years, at least, you’re doing absolutely everything. You’re the producer, scripter, shooter, editor, strategist, partnership manager, bookkeeper… the list goes on and on. Also, each platform is always changing. It’s a constant cycle of seeing what’s trending and working well and then trying to do your own take on that, but even the time to keep up on all of this is a LOT. Finally, it can be frustrating when as a content creator people don’t think you actually work.

People who come across me and see what my business is, they often assume I am mostly just running around London getting free food and making little videos. They don’t see the blood, sweat and tears behind the scenes, and that I’m running a team of 14 to make all of this happen (and have to make sure our revenue more than covers their fees!)

What Are Your Top Tips For Anyone Looking For An Unforgettable Trip To London?

Most tourists don’t understand how widespread London is, so you absolutely need to plan your days ahead of time and know what walking route you want to follow. Otherwise you’ll be spending hours on public transport trying to get around and you’ll miss a lot of amazing things along the way.

It’s a huge challenge when you don’t know the city, which is why we created our London itineraries, we give people daily routes for up to six days, saving you days of confusing research and planning time.

What Would Your Advice Be For Anyone Who’s Been Knocked Back In Business?

First off, it totally stinks, but the good news is you’re not alone. Social media makes it seem like everyone is making absolutely no mistakes when it comes to work but that’s truly not the case. Make sure you have some fellow business owners you can speak to on a regular basis about problems and concerns you’re having and they’ll share their own and it’ll help normalise all of the downtimes you’ll go through.

You Get Thousands Of Downloads A Month. What Are Your Tips For Launching And Building A Digital Marketing Brand? Is There A Secret Formula?

I think the main thing that businesses miss when trying to use social media for content marketing is that it’s not a place for you to post advert videos. You should use it as a way to communicate with your ideal customer and connect with them on a level that other brands can’t.

Think about what kind of content you can produce that will make your followers think “oh this is ME” or “I needed help with this!” . For example, if you’re running a plastic-free skincare brand, share content that helps followers to be plastic-free in all areas of their life, and other sustainability tips.

How Do You Envision Your Business Evolving With Technology And Social Media Evolution?

Everyone asks me about how AI will affect what we do and I ultimately don’t think it will take away from it much. Sure, people can ask ChatGPT for a London itinerary, but it won’t give them the personal details that we do in ours, like what days to avoid visiting a certain market or which dishes are good (and not good) at a restaurant that’s been recommended. As for social media, it will always be at the heart of what we do as that’s how virtually everyone comes across our brand, and at this point it’s helping us reach over 5 million people a month!

What Are Your Plans For Love And London For The Next Few Years?

Next year we’re launching our next city; Paris! It will be a challenge but tourists have similar needs when they visit Paris, with the added difficulty of language if they don’t speak French. We’ll eventually expand to more cities too.

Jessica Dante is a Travel Content Creator, Entrepreneur and Founder of Love and London Visit www.loveandlondon.com and follow instagram.com/loveandlondon