Where Are They Now? with Lindy Goodson

Where Are They Now? with Lindy Goodson

By: Alyssa Moncrief

As an Ole Miss freshman, Illinois native Lindy Goodson and roommate Abby Bozeman’s Martin Hall dorm room went viral for its over-the-top, creative decor and was featured in magazines such as Southern Living and Teen Vogue. Five years later, Goodson capitalized on her success and created a social media presence with over 100,000 followers while running a successful business, Fraze Shades. 

Goodson is living a Gen-Z dream. At 22 years old, she works full-time as a social media influencer creating fashion, beauty, and lifestyle-oriented content. She has caught the eye of brands such as Budlight, Aussie Hair, Curology, Ulta, and Vistaprint. 

From a young age, Goodson knew she wanted to work in beauty or fashion. 

“I had an account in high school called OOTD by Lindy [on Instagram] where I used to post my outfits every day...Literally, if I didn’t put together an outfit and take a picture, then I wasn’t going to school,” Goodson said. “It's just kind of molded from there, and I’m obsessed with it.”

Goodson’s Instagram account now reaches over 24.2k followers and offers valuable fashion, beauty, and editing tips. Goodson’s bright and colorful feed stands out with fun edits emphasizing bold styling tips. 

As an Instagram influencer, insights into her posts are essential.

“Engagement is the most important thing,” Goodson said. “I try not to focus on numbers, but the genuine relationship. I actually can’t see likes anymore, so I try to actually get engagement...I want to make sure it really gets out there.”

Instagram has always been Goodson’s preferred platform, but her YouTube channel was created to post videos about how she edits her pictures and creates unique graphics.

“It was never a planned thing, but people kept asking me how I edited pictures, so I decided, oh--I’ll just make a YouTube channel.”

Since gaining success with YouTube, Goodson has moved to TikTok, where she took advantage of the ‘For You Page,’ finding her audience in beauty and fashion. 

Since gaining success with YouTube, Goodson has moved to TikTok, where she took advantage of the ‘For You Page,’ finding her audience in beauty and fashion. 

“Lately, [my favorite platform] is TikTok!” Goodson said. “I like that so many people who have never seen me before can find me, which is why I’ve been able to grow on Instagram lately, too.”

Her most successful TikToks include thrift shop hauls, styling accessories, and behind-the-scenes of her Instagram edits. 

Outside of content creation, Goodson is also a business owner. At Ole Miss, Goodson founded Fraze Shades, a custom sunglasses and accessories business with her friend Liz. 

“We didn’t even know we wanted to start a business,” Goodson said. “Liz (her business partner) sent me a picture of a business competition flyer and said, ‘Should we apply?’”

Fraze primarily sells custom sunglasses to sororities and individuals but also sells items like fun purses, jewelry, and party accessories. Their shades can be seen on girls in various sororities all over the country. 

Despite having nothing to do with social media content creation, Goodson found that her business background and time spent at the Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship at Ole Miss taught her essential skills like business lingo and public relations tactics. 

“Take advantage of resources like the Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship at Ole Miss,” said Goodson. “They set up meetings at the law clinic...and set [Fraze] up as an LLC to become a legitimate business. Definitely reach out to people in your major, program, the business school...wherever you can get plugged in!”

Although a successful influencer, Goodson still struggles with common post-grad thoughts. She often wonders how her content will evolve now that she is unable to make the videos she started with, such as “College Week In My Life” and “Sorority House Tours.” 

Edit from a collaboration with Ulta Beauty.

Goodson focuses on posting genuine content for college students who want to create their own space in the content creation world, like what she would show her friends. 

“Whatever you would send your friends on Snapchat, start sending it to literally everyone on Instagram too because, then, your followers will know you on a deeper level,” Goodson said. 

Feeling inspired? Keep up with Lindy on her Instagram @the_real_lin_shady and Youtube.

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