You were one of the first hires at Media Bridge. What were those early days like?

My first desk was Tracy Call’s kitchen table. That was nine years and three offices ago. Back then everyone did everything, and I still have that “roll up the sleeves” mindset. The agency and office are both bigger today, but I know we’ll always be scrappy and entrepreneurial at heart. 

How has the agency changed since you started?

We can help our clients more because we can do so much more now. Our bread and butter has always been traditional media, but today I’m just as confident in our digital capabilities, as well as social, OTT/CTV, influencer, events marketing, community involvement, you name it. We have incredible people in those areas, and since we all consume tons of different media, we have a better way of helping companies reach people throughout their day.  

You come from quite the entrepreneurial background. Tell us more about that. 

My mom owns her own business. My dad owns his own business. My grandparents both owned their own businesses, and I’ve had my own real estate LLC for 15+ years. I identify with entrepreneurial clients because that’s my family background. I know what they’re up against and the risks they have to take, which is why I’m naturally responsive, flexible, and look at every client budget like it was my own.

What does “The Best Strategy is to Care” mean to you?

It’s really the reason I came here in 2015. Tracy was a client of mine for 6+ years before I joined her team, and I saw the care factor in her from the minute we started working together. Today, caring runs through the entire agency. We’re wired to care as people but we’re also structured to care as an organization. We grow when our clients grow, and the way we’re compensated frees us to recommend only what we think we’ll work.

We’re like a fiduciary vs. a financial advisor: We’re not legally obligated, but we’re morally obligated to serve the needs of our clients. That’s probably why over a third of our current clients have been with us for five or more years, some for 10, 12, even 13. 

What’s the future of the industry?

It’s two things that sound like opposites, but they make sense together. On one hand, you’ll increasingly be able to advertise with a hook instead of a net. Hyper-focused targeting, like in OTT/CTV/programmatic/targeted audio, where you’re buying the person, not the program. That’s already here, and it will only get more efficient.

On the other hand, brands need to reach beyond the traditional ideas of “targeting” and “demographics.” As our sister agency Haus of Sonder says, people want to be marketed WITH, not TO. Especially for younger generations, brands need to be relevant and attract the right customers and employees. Doing that is about finding, creating and serving communities.

We’re at the top of our game in both these areas, and that’s quite a 1-2 punch.