As Told To is a recurring segment on xoNecole where real women are given a platform to tell their stories in first-person narrative as told to a writer.
This is Q's story, as told to London Alexaundria.
This was my second time going to see him because the time before, that was probably a few weeks in between. So it had been some time. I wasn't sure if he really remembered me or not, but I wanted to go back. Not just because of the happy ending, per se, but because he really was a good massage therapist. He really did know what he was doing as far as taking away pain.
So I went back. He recognized me; he was like, 'Hey, I ain't seen you in a while.' I said, 'Yeah, I know been busy.' Anyway, he goes through the usual; tells me to go in, get comfortable. I can either keep something on or get undressed like he told me the first time, whichever one I prefer, and I can either lay on top of the bed or underneath the covers.
MoMo Productions/ Getty Images
And I got in, I got completely undressed like I did the first time, and I laid down. I told him my problem areas because, again, I wanted another deep tissue massage, and so he was doing my massage, and I'm not gonna lie, there was a moment while I was getting the massage I was hoping that he would do the same thing that he did last time, but he didn't necessarily do that.
He started with my back, and then he went to my buttocks, then my thighs, and then calves, and when he did my inner thighs, he didn't play with me or anything like that. He kept it professional. He kept doing a massage and went to my feet.
But when he told me to turn over, he massaged my temples, and then he went to my décolletage, or chest area, and he massaged that. Then he went down and did my thighs and my shins. And as he's massaging me, and I'm relaxed, I feel him kissing me on my inner thighs. He goes from kissing me on my inner thighs to kissing me on my vagina.
Then started licking my vagina. Then he ate me out until I came. And afterwards, I literally was just shaking because he felt so good. Not only was my body just relaxed, but he was really good at giving oral sex too.
Him, eating me out was amazing. He didn't expect anything in return, and he literally went back to massaging me like nothing ever happened, and then told me how good I taste and how great he thinks I am.
He has asked to hang out before. I have not hung out with him because I just wanted to keep it, just there, and since then, I have not been back, but I'm strongly considering going to see him again, because it was amazing.
Let’s make things inbox official! Sign up for the xoNecole newsletter for love, wellness, career, and exclusive content delivered straight to your inbox.
Feature image by PeopleImages/ Getty Images
RELATED
While an evolution is a natural progression that happens as businesses grow, a rebrand is a total change. Lola tells xoNecole, "A total rebrand is necessary when a business’s current reputation/what it’s known for is at odds with the business’s vision or direction.
"For example, if you’ve fundamentally changed what your product is and does, it’s likely that your brand is out of alignment with the business. Or, if you find your company is developing a reputation that doesn’t serve it, it might be time to pump the brakes and figure out what needs to change.
She continues, "Sometimes you’ll see companies (especially startups) announce a name change that comes with updated messaging, visuals, etc. That usually means their vision has changed or expanded, and their previous branding was too narrow/couldn’t encompass everything they planned to do."
Feature image courtesy
The Brand Doula was born in 2019, and its focus is on putting "the experiences, goals, and needs of women of color founders first," as well as brands with "culture-shifting missions."
According to Lola, culture-shifting is "the act of influencing dominant behavior, beliefs, or experiences in a community or group (ideally, for the better)."
"At The Brand Doula, we work with companies and leaders that set out to challenge the status quo in their industries and communities. They’re here to make an impact that sends ripples across the market," she says.
"We help the problem solvers of the world — the ones who aren't satisfied with 'this is how it's always been' and instead ask 'how could this be better?' Our clients build for impact, reimagining tools, systems, and ways of living to move cultures forward."
The Brand Doula has worked with many brands, including Too Collective, to assist with their collaboration with Selena Gomez's Rare Beauty and Balanced Black Girl for a "refresh," aka rebrand. For businesses looking to rebrand, Lola shares four essential steps.
1. Do an audit of your current brand experience — what’s still relevant and what needs to change? Reflect on why you’re doing the rebrand in the first place and what success would look like after relaunching.
2. Tackle the overall strategy first — before you start redesigning logos and websites, align on a new vision for your brand. How do you want your company to be positioned moving forward? Has your audience changed at all? Will your company have a fresh personality and voice?
3. Bring your audience along the journey — there’s no need to move in secret. Inviting your current audience into the journey can actually help them feel more connected to and invested in your story, enough to stick around as changes are being made.
4. Keep business moving — one of my biggest pet peeves is when companies take down their websites as soon as they have the idea to rebrand, then have a Coming Soon page up for months! You lose a lot of momentum and interest by doing that. If you’re still in business and generating income, continue to operate while you work on your rebrand behind the scenes. You don’t want to cut existing customers off out of the blue, and you also don’t want so much downtime that folks forget your business exists or start looking for other solutions.
While determining whether the rebrand was successful may take a few months, Lola says a clear sign that it is unsuccessful is negative feedback from your target audience. "Customers are typically more vocal about what they don’t like more than what they do like," she says.
But some good signs to look out for are improvements in engagement with your marketing, positive reviews, press and increase in retention, and overall feeling aligned with the new branding.
For more information about Lola and The Brand Doula, visit her website, thebranddoula.com.
Let’s make things inbox official! Sign up for the xoNecole newsletter for love, wellness, career, and exclusive content delivered straight to your inbox.
Feature image courtesy
