A Successful Change From Freelancer to Growing Agency

Jack Shepler has been a member of UACADEMY for many years. 

He runs a digital agency called AYOKAY. He grew it from a small, creative, freelance practice into an amazing 7-figure agency that’s working with healthcare, nonprofits, and various other businesses, both national and international.

Episode highlights with Jack Shepler

• Where the journey started (at age 14!)
• How Jack got into music festival photography (at age 16!)
• The (nice!) transition from working at an agency to running his own business
• The biggest change from freelancing to running Ayokay
• How marketing changed over time, as Ayokay grew
• Do nonprofits have any money? Jack breaks it down for us

Lightning Round with Jack Shepler

• Best advice: Listen
• Habit that contributes to success: DJ’ing and getting involved locally
• Recommended tool: Hubspot
• Recommended book: E-Myth by Michael Gerber

Connect with Jack Shepler, plus resources

• LinkedIn
• Ayokay.com
• Get Rich in the Deep End by Brent Weaver

Quotes from Jack Shepler’s episode

• “I was that 16-year-old, emailing LiveNation, asking for press passes.”
• “Sixteen, in the photo booth, networking with Rolling Stone!”
• “I definitely did a few websites that were $200.”
• “Delegating! You can’t grow an agency to the extent I wanted to with just you.”
• “We didn’t make time for our own marketing. Our website was the same in 2018 as it was in 2011.”
• “It was a strategic choice, really…why don’t I focus on something I’m passionate about?”

Takeaways from Jack Shepler’s episode

• Growth doesn’t happen alone. Your time, income… it’s dependent on bringing in more people and moving yourself to focus ON the business
• It’s important to include some smart strategic thinking, but when choosing a niche you also need to be passionate about it

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