You've Been Thinking About This For a While
Maybe years.
You’ve watched other women turn their love of their city into something real, a local platform, a creative outlet, a guide people actually want to follow, and you’ve wondered if you could start one too.
YOU CAN.
The reason you haven't started isn't lack of ideas, or lack of taste, or lack of love for your town. It's that nobody's handed you a clear plan.
THAT'S WHAT THIS IS.
What Actually Gets You There
It's not from a viral Reel or a pretty carousel from last night's dinner.
It comes from positioning.
It's whether, in three seconds, a stranger understands exactly what your account is, who it's for, and why you're the one to follow.
You're not positioning yourself as an influencer. You're positioning yourself as your town's CITY GUIDE.
That clarity is what earns the follow.
And it’s what makes a business owner take you seriously enough to consider a partnership.
The City Guide IG Starter Kit builds exactly that.
What's Inside — The 5-Phase Journey
31 lessons across five phases.
Every step from "I have an idea" to "I have a guide that's actually earning."
FOUNDATION
Get clear on what your guide is and who it's for. Lock your niche, your five content pillars, your voice, your one-sentence definition, and the Instagram bio that turns a stranger into a follower.
SET UP
Build the look and the system. Pick a simple starter look, including colors, fonts, and a Canva logo template. Customize 30 ready-made Canva graphics. Learn to shoot like an editor on your phone. Build the caption system that makes you sound like a real local, not a generic promo page.
LAUNCH
Four focused weeks of going live. Exactly what to post, how to introduce yourself, and how to get your account in front of the right local audience with a coordinated giveaway, including email templates, graphics, and captions ready to go.
GROW
The next two months of consistency. A signature weekly series, a post-idea bank you can pull from forever, the Instagram tactics that actually move the algorithm, and a "batch a month of content in two hours" system so you never scramble for a post again.
EARN
Start creating local partnership opportunities. Learn how to begin with trades, build your media kit, send a simple cold pitch email, set starter rates, and understand what to offer when a business asks how to work with you.
SUPPORT
When you’ve worked through the kit and you’re ready, book your included 45-minute one-on-one strategy call with Lindsay. We’ll talk through your city, your Instagram plan, and your next best move.
Check Out the Curriculum
Hi, I'm Lindsay — founder of Laguna Beach Living and City Living Network.
I started Laguna Beach Living because I loved my town and wanted to create a better way to share the restaurants, shops, events, stories, and local businesses that made it special.
The Instagram grew to over 26,000 followers, turned into my full-time business, and eventually led me to create City Living Network, a national collective of women building local guides in their own cities.
The City Guide IG Starter Kit is the lower-lift way to test the city guide concept on Instagram before investing in a full website, custom brand, or bigger business build.
Inside, you’ll find the strategy, templates, and lessons I’ve spent years refining through trial and error, plus what I’ve learned from launching more than two dozen city guides nationwide.
The City Guide IG Starter Kit is a self-paced course for launching a local Instagram guide.
You’ll get lessons, templates, prompts, and a clear 90-day plan to help you start posting, grow locally, and begin pitching simple partnerships.
A Few Questions, Answered
Do I need a website? No. This is built specifically for launching on Instagram first, so you can test the idea before investing in a website.
Do I need a big following? No. Local businesses care about reach to their exact customers — a small, hyper-local audience is often more valuable to them than a big scattered one.
Does my city need to be big? Smaller cities often work better. Less competition, more loyalty, easier relationships with local businesses.
What if I'm not techy or a designer? You don't need to be. Your phone is your camera, Canva is your design tool, and the 30 templates do the design heavy lifting. If you can type a caption, take photos on your phone, and edit a Canva template, you can get started.
How long will it take? You can work through the lessons in a week or two. The 90-day launch plan is exactly that — 90 days, mostly two or three focused hours a week.
Does buying the City Guide IG Starter Kit give me exclusive rights to my city? No. The City Guide IG Starter Kit teaches you how to start your own Instagram-based local guide independently. It does not reserve a city within City Living Network, include territory exclusivity, or include a done-for-you website or custom brand build.
Can I apply this toward the full website/network option later? Yes. If you decide to apply for the full City Living Network website/network option later, your Starter Kit enrollment can be credited toward that investment if your city is still available and you’re approved.
Will this help me make money? The Starter Kit teaches you how to position your guide, create useful local content, build a simple media kit, and begin pitching starter partnerships. It does not guarantee income, but it gives you a clear path to start creating opportunities with local businesses.
Ready to Start Your Local Instagram Guide?
Get instant access to the City Guide IG Starter Kit and start building your city guide with a clear plan, templates, prompts, and a 90-day roadmap.