The Jasmine Star Show

How I Built 8-Figure Relationships on Instagram

• Jasmine Star

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When they win, I win. When I win, they win.

That’s how I approach networking. It’s not about “getting in the room”—it’s about expanding the room so we can all win together.

In this episode of The Jasmine Star Show, I’m pulling back the curtain on how I’ve intentionally used Instagram to build real relationships with 8-figure founders—relationships that started with zero connections and zero expectations.

Here’s the deal: people are always asking me, “Jasmine, how did you get into that room? How did you build a network of powerful founders?” And today, I’m breaking it ALL down.

But I’m not giving you theory. I’m giving you the actual steps I used. Plus, I’m sharing two real-life examples of women I met on Instagram who are now part of my mastermind and personal network.

Here’s what you’ll learn:

  • The exact 4-step framework I use to build authentic relationships online (Follow. Study. Engage. Invite.)
  • How I built a connection with Shay Bacani, a powerhouse in the beauty and wellness funding space
  • Why story-driven engagement and real connection is more powerful than cold DMs
  • How to shift from being a fan to being a peer (this part is gold)

Whether you’re scaling to eight figures, seeking strategic partnerships, or just trying to connect with like-minded founders—you’ll walk away from this episode with a clear, simple roadmap to start building your dream network… one DM at a time.

And yes, I even read my actual DMs to Shay. (Spoiler alert: there’s nothing fancy—just intentional connection.)

It’s time to build a network that matches your ambition.

Let’s get to work.

Click play to hear all of this and:

[00:01] Why abundance and connection matter more than “getting in the room”

[00:56] Why stories—not just strategies—connect us the most

[01:20] A sneak peek into Jasmine’s current focus: business acquisition and advisory work

[02:58] How Instagram's algorithm helped Jasmine find her people (shoutout to IG!)

[03:52] Real-life example: How Jasmine discovered and connected with Shay Makani

[04:46] How Jasmine used Story replies, thoughtful engagement, and DMs to build trust

[05:40] The exact DMs Jasmine used to move from follower to Zoom call with an 8-figure founder

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📧 Join my Newsletter for a weekly cocktail of insider business strategy, personal reflections, and the journey of being a thought leader: https://jasminestar.com/newsletter 📧

For full show notes, visit jasminestar.com/podcast/episode569

Jasmine Star 00:00:00  When they win, I win. And when I win, they win. And that is the approach. It is the approach of abundance. It is the approach of connectivity. It is the approach of together we are stronger. So let's help each other move the ball down the field. One of the most commonly asked questions that I get on Instagram is, how did you get into that room? What can I do to get in that room? How did it start? So that's what I want to dive into today. I want to share a few things that I've done strategically, so that you can go and do it out on your own, specifically on Instagram. Welcome to the Jasmin Starr Show, where I help empower seven figure founders to scale to eight figures and find how to build a network with other seven and eight figure founders on Instagram. Let's dive in. Okay, so this episode is going to get down and straight to the point. I don't want to talk about theory. I've spent probably five years on this podcast talking about the principles of what it is that I do and what I come to find out based on your feedback.

Jasmine Star 00:00:55  Thank you so much for leaving reviews and sending me messages on What's really resonating is that story. Story is the thing that's been connecting the dots. And so instead of me talking about the principles and frameworks of what I do, what I want to do is principles, frameworks, and then interject stories in real life examples. So on that note, I wanted to share two examples of how I started networking and building relationships with two separate eight figure founders to build out my network in support of others. So before I do that, I want to share a framework that I use just to keep slowly in the back of my mind as I approach every single relationship. It is four part frameworks. Step number one. Follow step number two study. Step number three engage. And step number four invite. Follow. Study. Engage. Invite. Now right now the focus of my business is on my holding company. JD and I are strategically outright owning businesses, investing in businesses and or sitting as advisors for equity share in businesses as they grow in scale.

Jasmine Star 00:01:57  I'm doing everything I can to support our businesses. In addition to supporting the founders who are bringing us on board for strategic partnerships. Now, I want to be learning from people who are stronger, better, more experienced in building eight and nine figure businesses. And I want to do this in three main ways. I want to learn from people who are and or have a lot of experience acquiring businesses, scaling businesses, selling businesses and financing businesses. So I said three. That was actually four. But the order of importance would be acquiring businesses, selling businesses and financing businesses. These are things that I'm experienced with, but not half as much as I would like to be and that I need to be as the business grows. So I began following and researching people who have skill sets that I desire, experiences that I desire. And in the process of doing that, the Instagram algorithms continue to serve me up more content from people who are exactly the people I wanted to learn from. Shout out to Instagram.

Jasmine Star 00:02:58  Okay, so here are two stories of people that I was able to connect with solely on Instagram that have turned into real in-person relationships. And I've really been very fortunate not just to grow my network, but to introduce these women to the network in my mastermind to help support their businesses. So let's break this down. I want to get you front row. Let's get to the tea. So we started off as strangers. Like, I just want to state that they did not know me, and I only found them by way of the Explore Instagram algorithm. Okay, randomly on Instagram, I came across a woman by the name of Shay Makani. Now she connects global beauty and wellness brands with capital and investors. I was just reading that. That is directly from her Instagram bio. Now if you want to get funding, if you want to secure capital, raise capital. If you want to sell your company. Shay is going to be a really great person to get in contact with. And I started figuring all of this out by way of getting started on Instagram.

Jasmine Star 00:03:52  So let's go back and follow that framework. Follow, study, engage and invite. I immediately followed Shay. I went through her feet. I started getting a good context of what it is she did. Then I started studying Shay. I went through and I put her name in and on podcast platforms, and I just started consuming every podcast that she had been on. I want to study her. I want to understand her. I want to see her perspective. I want to see the way that she sees the world. And I listen to hours of podcast. And then I deeply understood her point of view. So I followed, then I studied, and then I engaged. Once I understood the way she views things and what she finds valuable, I decided to reach out. Now, yes, I did leave a comment here and there, but my best way of connecting with somebody is to connect by way of stories, because I can add a very clean, clear perspective of wow, I really love your vacation, or I love that you're taking your two daughters out for ice cream, or that was a really cool connection that you made for that company.

Jasmine Star 00:04:46  Or I really loved you on this recent podcast. So I was just communicating via stories. And what happened was when I decided to reach out one on one, it expedited it. I just didn't hit her up to say like, hey, we should hop on a call. It was after engaging and being somewhat familiar with each other online, I decided to say, how might I connect one on one via DM and offer insights or feedback that that are leveraging my skill set, let's say marketing, let's say branding, let's say insights from a digital marketing perspective. So what I wanted to do was to signal similar commonalities or strengths. Every time I was engaging with her, it was to say, I essentially, I know a lot about you, and what I want to do is I want to signal we have more similarities than differences. So after a couple months of engaging, I decided to reach out and I'm going to read our exact Instagram direct messages and show them here. Hi Shay, pleasure to meet you.

Jasmine Star 00:05:40  I'd love to connect and learn more about you and the work that you do with entrepreneurs. She responds. Hi Jasmine, I connect founders to investors and help them raise capital or get acquired. I'd love to connect in person if you're in Southern California or via zoom, I respond, this is a dream. Thrilled we connect. I'd love to hop on zoom. Best email address. And she says, oh, that's what I love to hear. Are you looking to raise, sell or acquire a brand? I said, I'm an entrepreneur, investor and advisor. So all of the above. I host a mastermind for seven figure female founders. So I think there's a lot of synergy for us. I'll send via email. She says she love it and she can't wait to connect. That was the start. After fostering a relationship that brought us to be connected in a deeper way. So my goal on zoom, remember, I like that slow burn. I like to build trust along the way. My goal on zoom was to get to know shape personally, to take it from social media, to actually take it to a private call.

Jasmine Star 00:06:31  I wanted to see if I would be able to connect her with my network. I am in a lot of networks of women who are looking to raise capital, get funding or sell businesses, or get acquired. Thirdly, I wanted her to build trust in me. And fourth, my long term goal. My long term goal, like we had originally reached out in March or April of 2025. My goal was to say I want to build such a relationship with her, that she will come back and speak at my mastermind in January 2026. That was my goal. And then things took an unexpected turn. Okay. I hop on the call with Shay and here's one thing I absolutely love. This is a woman after my own heart. We make about 1 or 2 minutes of pleasantries. I explain a little bit more about who I am. She's like, yes, I've done my research. I know a lot about you. What was that? She was signaling. I had done research on her. She had done research on me.

Jasmine Star 00:07:19  We meet each other. We immediately vibe. We see there's a lot of connectivity. And she immediately said, what's the best way I can support you? And I was like, well, I'm looking forward to you speaking in a mastermind in the future. And I was like, I'm thinking about January of next year. And she's like, okay. And I said, but we're also having a mastermind event next month. And she was like, what are the dates? And I gave her, and she's like, I can speak at that. Literally, like four weeks later, she's ready to commit to come in and speak to my mastermind. And here's the thing that blew my mind. Shay came in. Shay gave about a 45 minute presentation. We went to 20 minutes of Q&A, and there in that meeting, it was a very quick win for a mastermind member. So she was building out a SaaS application in addition to her business. Right? It's a SaaS platform, and she knew exactly what she was gonna do with it.

Jasmine Star 00:08:06  And she said, I'm going to bootstrap. After Shay's presentation, she had said, you know what? And like, I had so many conversations. So as a SaaS vendor myself, I was speaking to this woman in my mastermind and I'm like, okay, this is what we need to do this. We need to avoid this. So we build it out. This is the timeline. Do we do offshore? Do we do like here in the States? Developers. We went through all of this and she said, I made these decisions and I am going to bootstrap. And she told me this after that conversation with Shay, she immediately was like saying, before I leave this event, I am calling people who have already reached out to say they want to invest in me, and I turned them away. But now I know I'm taking on investors. So she immediately after. That event is such a quick start and so smart and so inspired that she had said, I'm going to not bootstrap this.

Jasmine Star 00:08:49  I'm going to get investors, and I'm starting to build this thing out. I'm making the commitment and I'm going all in. So that was a win for Shay, right? Like, oh wow, look at I empowered another female founder. But what's the real win? The real win is that if and when this woman gets ready to sell her business or get acquired, she's going to be calling Shay. She's going to go to the person who knows her business who gave her this idea. And that's the goal here, is to build win wins across all networks and support everybody moving forward. At the same time, the ideal outcome would be Shay gets more business by sharing her knowledge with this amazing group of women. Okay, let's get another example. So example number two of connecting with eight figure founders on Instagram to strategically build out a network. Yes. How to network and how to build relationships with millionaires on Instagram. Let's go. This is exactly what I want you doing as you pursue upward mobility for your life and for your business.

Jasmine Star 00:09:40  Example number two. Okay, I came across a woman here again in the explore feed of Instagram. She came across my explore feed three times in two weeks and I was like, this is a lot. Seemingly coming out of nowhere. And at first I thought she was a business coach. But then I quickly learned that she's a growth advisor. And yes, there's a lot of differences. She explained to me that she essentially acts as the chairman of your board. Before you have a board of advisors, she is preparing your business for sale or acquisition, even if you're not planning to sell your business, she firmly believes. And this is what she advocates. And she sits as this advisor is you want to build your business so that it's sellable, so that it's not dependent entirely on you, so that you are not in the weeds, so that you can take a 3 or 4 week vacation and come back to your business, and things are still moving and you are still profitable. That's what she's moving you towards.

Jasmine Star 00:10:32  And she explained all of this to me at lunch. Okay, I had said that I found her on the explore feed. Her name was Jessica Marx and it was crazy how the algorithm works. I followed a few seven figure founders and they were at an event, and they were at an event that Jessica had spoken at. And so the algorithm picked up that I followed. This is how I'm guessing, right? And like, nobody really understood the Instagram algorithm, but this is my best guess, is that because I followed a few people at the event and they had tagged Jessica, that Jessica came up with my explore feed, and then I went in a deep dive of Jessica. Now I followed the same pattern that I did with Shay. I'm engaging with her work. I am finding ways to give value. And we ended up at lunch in San Clemente, California. She is from San Diego. I want to go back and I want to repeat the framework. Follow. Steady. Engage. Invite.

Jasmine Star 00:11:21  So I followed Jessica Marx. I studied her. She has a podcast. I listened to her guest podcast. I was looking at her clients. I want to know how her business worked so that I would be able to create alliances with my network and hopefully hers. I understood her perspective. I understood her business and I quickly understand who she helped. Amazing. So I began engaging and I was doing the same thing that I was doing with Shay. And we had never spoken outside of Instagram DM. Now I was consulting with an entrepreneur. And she was looking for an audit of her business, and she was looking for a very specific. Audit in a very specific industry. And I immediately thought of Jessica. I was like, I need to introduce this woman to. Jessica to do one of these SEO audits. Like an internal audit to figure out what type of SEO does she need. And so I went to Instagram DM and I asked Jessica, can I make an intro? Like this woman is looking basically exactly for what it is that you provide.

Jasmine Star 00:12:27  So we went back and forth with voice memos. I think I'm going to probably show a screengrab if I can grab that of that. And then we decided to meet for lunch in Southern California, in San Clemente. And at lunch we talked about how can both of our businesses create synergies with each other? And then I got into what are the biggest mistakes that we see? A lot of founders, male and female, but specifically female founders. What is it that's getting in our way of raising capital, selling businesses? Why do we have a tendency to stay in the weeds? What are the systems that we need? And when we use these words like you have to systematize and you have to create SOPs and KPIs, why is it that traditionally some female founders kind of shy away from setting up that level of foundation? Why do you see a lot of founders get stuck in that 1 to $2 million range and have a very hard time moving through? We got into all of this because I was really trying to understand how closely are we aligned to our philosophies and who it is that we serve.

Jasmine Star 00:13:17  So we spoke about where the industry is headed, and I can go on and on and on, but I won't. Here's why I invited Jessica to come on my podcast. Her insights were so fascinating to me, and I want to share everything she sees and knows with you. So this is me taking my framework I want to follow. I want to study. I want to engage. And then I want to invite. And I'm very excited to say that both Shaye and Jessica are going to be coming on a future podcast episode, and that would not have been possible had I not decided to dedicate time and energy in figuring out how I serve people well, how I can create synergies within our audiences, how I can connect people to create value and drive business. Because my firm belief is that when they win, I win. And when I win, they win. And that is the approach. It is the approach of abundance. It is the approach of connectivity. It is the approach of together we are stronger, so let's help each other move the ball down the field.

Jasmine Star 00:14:12  That is what I wanted to do with this podcast as well. I am sharing with you what I am doing in real time, showcasing the receipts and showcasing possibilities for your future. What an honor and a privilege that I get to do this, and I can't wait to hear what you are doing to network with millionaires on Instagram. So send me a DM at Jasmine Star. Thank you a thousand times over for watching and listening to The Jasmine Starship.