"If you are on the fence, take the (calculated) leap" with Akvile DeFazio

Photo credit courtesy of SLOtography

As someone who lives for connecting people, making the connection between people and brands is what Akvile DeFazio, President of social media advertising agency, AKvertise, does best. She has 13 years of experience working in digital advertising for a variety of brands in eCommerce, mobile apps, events, and entertainment and founded AKvertise in 2014. As a conversion-driven marketer, Akvile is passionate about helping businesses expand their online visibility and reach their goals through her expertise in Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, LinkedIn, Twitter, Snapchat, and TikTok Ads. AKvertise has earned multiple accolades, including winning the best small agency award from the annual U.S. Social Media Awards in 2020 and being short-listed for three others.

Can you tell our readers about your background?

Hello and thank you for allowing me to share my story with your readers. I was born in Lithuania, emigrated to Canada during the tail end of the Cold War, and have been moving west and south where I felt drawn to since childhood until I landed in the Los Angeles area, where I have truly called home for the last decade.

I have a Bachelor’s degree in Exercise Science as I initially pursued a career in physical therapy but realized that it was not what I wanted to do and I sensed I would find fulfillment in my work in a more creative but helpful way elsewhere. I always felt a desire to work in something more creative as I grew up in an artistic household and you would most always find me painting, playing music, or creating. When it came to my time working at physical therapy clinics, I found myself jumping on every marketing-related task. Since age 10, I began exhibiting entrepreneurial behaviors as we didn’t have much when I was younger, so I collected rocks, used crayons to draw nature scenes and designs on them, and sold them on the curb of our apartment complex – most for $0.05-$0.25 but one person gave me $20! As I grew older, I found myself searching for free things that still had life in them and would flip them on eBay and later Craigslist, often paying for all my living expenses through college. That entrepreneurial bug was only growing larger as the years went on.

I applied to graduate school all over the country to complete my doctorate in physical therapy, however, even with my excellent grades, I was rejected each time given how competitive the programs are and how small each class is. I was too scared at the time to tell my parents that I didn’t want to pursue it any longer as I didn’t want to disappoint them, but when the school advisor suggested looking at career alternatives, I felt like she finally gave me the permission I needed to move forward. I told my parents and of course, they were concerned, given that the medical field in their eyes was stable and lucrative, especially when I grew up with nothing. A parent just wants what is best, but I knew what was going to be best for me. Now, fast forward, they share that they are so proud and I’m grateful that that moment in time was so formative as I have found my voice and am no longer hesitant to share it. 

How did you start your business? What were the first steps you took?

The way I began my business was a bit unorthodox. I worked in-house for a number of brands for years and at the last place I worked, I yearned for something more after the 3 years I was there. There was no further growth within the company and I was feeling burned out – for which they hired three people to replace me after I resigned. I wanted not only the responsibility but the authority for what I did on a grander scale. I loved the work, but I wanted to work with more brands, diverse brands, so I could learn, grow, and help them be successful using my skills.

My good friend and mentor, Pamela Lund, also an advertiser, though she specializes in search engine advertising, had been running her own agency for a decade or so at that point and I wanted to ask her if I could shadow her for a day since I didn’t have agency experience, but I was too nervous and didn’t want to waste her time. I put off asking her this small question for nine months until one day, my status quo was no longer acceptable. I emailed her and to my surprise, she responded and said she will do me one better. She said she will teach me everything she knows, will give me half of her clients, because that way, I can also gift her some of her time back. Turns out she had taken on too much work and wanted to build an unrelated new business. I took that leap, left my job, and haven’t looked back. I don’t think I can ever properly express my gratitude to her. She gifted me invaluable freedoms and I earned an amazing friend from this as we still partner up on some client accounts to this day.

If you want to do something you haven’t done before, find someone who has, and ask them the question(s) you have, no matter how small they are because you never know until you do, what amazing and massive gifts their responses can bring into your world. 

How do you differentiate your business from the competition?

We’re fortunate to be a part of such a vast industry where there is competition, but there is a great opportunity and plenty of work to go around. Every business can benefit from marketing and advertising. We differ from most advertising agencies in that we are intentionally small and we are not the “set it and forget it” type as we integrate with brands as their extended team that helps them achieve their goals via social media advertising. We don’t rotate through account managers so that we and our clients can build a long-term relationship that is founded on growth, an appetite for testing, experience, reliability, and trust. The way I see it if our clients win, as do we.

What has been your most effective marketing strategy to grow your business?

Networking. Building a community has been incredibly fruitful, not just in business, but in life. By being active on Twitter and LinkedIn, attending online and in-person conferences and other professional events – as well as speaking at them, joining podcasts as a guest to share information, and contributing to publications, has been invaluable. After 7 years of business, I have not yet had to purchase ads as everything has come in through word of mouth via one medium or another. By doing all of these things and focusing on the ways that I can give back to my industry and community, I have also learned, but the best part is that I’ve not only acquired clients and opportunities, but I have also made lifelong friends. If you are looking to grow, put yourself out there by seeking out communities that you can join. It will do your business wonders if people see you constantly, consistently, being helpful, informative, and inclusive.

 When it comes to public speaking, I had always allowed my nerves to get the best of me. I was scared to speak up and especially in front of a group of people. I knew that I needed to improve my public speaking skills so that I could pitch conferences and events successfully and to be able to confidently and smoothly convey my worth and my rates to prospective clients. After years of friends recommending that I attend the international public speaking club, Toastmasters, I finally did. I was determined. I didn’t miss a single weekly meeting for one year and pushed myself through all the nerves and eventually was nominated club president for a term. I landed more business as a result and was invited nationally and internationally to speak at many conferences. If you find yourself struggling with public speaking, I encourage you to visit your local Toastmasters group. You can go to the first meeting for free and just watch and see if you like it. I suspect you most likely will. I hope you do.

What's your best piece of advice for aspiring and new entrepreneurs?

If you are on the fence, take the (calculated) leap, and as Nike says, “just do it”. If you have something on your mind that you want to pursue or attempt, dive in so that you won’t have to wonder, “what if?” if you didn’t. If you try and don’t succeed, try again but in different ways and if you realize it’s not for you, there is no shame in that. You did it and that’s more than most can say. 

Before you do take the leap, prepare yourself financially, especially if you plan to stop working a full-time job. Have at least 3-6 months of savings to help float you as you get started. Find a mentor or other people that can help guide and/or support you. Having someone you trust that has knowledge/experience that you can talk to will make it easier for you to progress and to have a sounding board.

Build a website, even if it’s a single page, get it out there with what you do, what you’re great at, and value propositions as to why someone should work with you or buy from you. Get contracts in place to protect you for those rare, unexpected, but possible scenarios where something may not go favorably. Incorporate your business and open up a business bank account. Get processes in place and keep documentation to make your life easier and more efficient for if and when you scale your business. It’s yours, care for it and watch it grow as it may be one of the best leaps you take.

How do you balance work and life?

It’s certainly not an easy task and it’s constantly in flux, but I do try my best to keep things as closely to balance as I possibly can. It’s never an easy feat, but after becoming a parent, it has gotten more complex as there are only so many hours in the day to give parenting my full attention, as well as my business when I’m in work mode. I have been improving my self-care regimen to give my life balance by journaling, doing yoga, cooking, go hiking, and once each month, get a massage, more so pre-pandemic. To make sure I get everything in, it has been helpful for me to block off time on my calendar for both personal and professional tasks.

How can our readers connect with you?

If you are interested in learning more about social media advertising, have questions, want to collaborate, or work together, please don’t hesitate to say hello by contacting me at AKvertise, on Twitter, or LinkedIn.

LINKS

·      Website: https://www.akvertise.com

·      Twitter: https://twitter.com/AkvileDeFazio

·      LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/akdefazio/