l-r. Kate Haslam, Meredith Barfield,
Natalie Butler, Andrea Kinnear, Megan Fowler
“Having that diverse
group of women has
been able to push our
message out faster.”
— Kate Haslam
Influencing
Savannah
Savannah Women Come Together to Support Local
Charities Through the Power of Social Media
areas of marketing, sales, and advertising. “We
wanted to utilize it so we could help different
organizations through fundraising and awareness
initiatives,” Barfield explained.
The blueprint for Savannah Influencers was
conceived in September of 2016 when Barfield
and Co-Founder and Vice President Andrea
Kinnear put their heads together and decided to
bring local, like-minded women together for fun
events that double as fundraisers for community
charities.
A year and a half later, Savannah Influencers
became an official nonprofit dedicated to
improving the lives of others through helping
select area charities with funding. Last year, they
supported SAFE Shelter Center for Domestic
Violence Services. The group recently selected
Coastal Children’s Advocacy Center as their main
charity for 2018.
Treasurer Kate Haslam said because Savannah
Influencers is made up of a diverse group of
women, they hardly have to outsource any
work. According to Haslam, the group includes
a mix of CPA’s (Certified Public Accountants),
photographers, bloggers, teachers, and
entrepreneurs.
“Having that diverse group of women has been
able to push our message out faster,” Haslam said.
“One of the sayings I’ve always liked as a working
mom is, ‘If you need something done, ask someone
who’s busy.’ We’re all very busy but we’ve put a lot
of time and effort into this organization, because
we believe in what it does and what it can do for
the community.” •
— EMILIE KEFALAS
O
NE OF THIS YEAR’S MOST
TALKED ABOUT SOCIAL
media buzzwords is
“influencer,” meaning one
whose social presence
generates a following large
and consistent enough
to pay attention to said influencer. On
paper, the term might reflect a tired
exercise of selfies and shameless self-
promotion, but one group of Savannah
women is rapidly changing the name and
game of what it means to influence in the
digital age for the better.
26
SOUTH MAGAZINE
June | July 2018
Savannah Influencers is a “For-
Purpose Organization” made up of 24
local women who share a common goal:
to support one another in life, business,
and charity chiefly through the forces and
effects of social media. The organization
is headed by a board of five women who,
like the makeup of their group, each come
from different walks of life.
According to Co-Founder and
President Meredith Barfield, the group
understands how social media can be
used for a positive cause based on each
member’s own experience in various
HOW TO
Get
Involved
The Savannah Influ-
encers are made up
of 22 local Savannah
women who desired
a modern day com-
munity group. For
more information,
go to savannahin-
fluencers.com.