Co-Founder and CEO of Socialfly, Stephanie Abrams, on the business of social media, listening more than you speak, and failing often – if you’re lucky.
It’s not surprising that Stephanie Abrams was once a theater-loving, entrepreneurial kid who ran a successful Beanie Baby™ business. Now, she’s successful in social media marketing, a career field that is a perfect fit for her natural knack for communicating and engaging others. But it was while working in sales at Marriott International that she learned an incredibly valuable, unconventional lesson about life – a lesson that would ultimately contribute to her success not just in sales, but as a business owner and entrepreneur.
As she advanced in her career working at Hilton, Stephanie went out on a limb and “advised” her employer to use social media to promote its new spa. She volunteered to help the international brand with its social media efforts despite the fact that it was not part of her job. This unpaid experience taught Stephanie several things, including the potential and tremendous business opportunity of social media.
Eventually, Stephanie started helping some entrepreneurial friends with their businesses on the side. Soon after, she took a leap of faith and launched her first social media agency, Gabbaroo, in 2009. The venture didn’t go as planned, and Stephanie and her business partner parted ways. But at this pivotal point, when many others would have only seen failure and given up, Stephanie believed in potential (her own and that of the successful agency she envisioned) and remained focused on her goal.
Over the next six months, Stephanie took on a full-time job to save money for the business, applied her lessons learned from the previous experience, and launched Socialfly with a new partner. Today, that “second try” has turned into a successful 10-person (and growing) shop that has helped hundreds of businesses enhance and successfully leverage their online presence.
Stephanie shows that everyone experiences failure, and things in life and career don’t always work out as planned. However, with perseverance and patience, we all can discover that “something even better” that’s waiting for us down the road.
What were you like as a child and what skills or strengths did you have then, that relate to what you do today?
I feel like I’m the same person I was as a child. I was extremely active, a go-getter – the kid who was always selling something. When I was 10 years old I sold the latest beanie babies at a higher price and remember parents [my customers] lined up outside my door.
Do you think that your parents’ support was a key part of the equation?
Yes. Another thing I was very involved in, that my parents supported was musical theater. I actually started when I was five years old and continued it through college. It taught me how to perform in front of an audience. But the biggest thing I learned from doing theater was about rejection.
Of course, I went on many auditions but did not get every part. I learned that it’s okay if people say no because it means that something bigger and better was coming. It’s really helped me in my career because so much of my business is sales. People simply are not going to say yes all the time. I’ve learned not to take a “no” personally.
How do you move from a successful career [path] to something totally unknown? Did it build over time or was it an “aha” moment?
Definitely over time. I moved to New York in 2008 when I started working for Hilton [Hotels]. I loved the work that I did there, but didn’t feel I was thriving in the corporate environment. It’s not like I woke up one morning and decided to start a social media agency. The process happened organically. At first it was helping friends [with social media, sales and marketing] on the side. That’s when I realized that it could be a business. I reached a point when I just knew my full-time job wasn’t right for me anymore, and I took a risk. I knew there was a greater plan, I just didn’t know what it was yet. [Laughter.] Truth is, I really had no idea what I was doing. I just knew that I could make it happen; and I figured it out as I went along.
What in particular made you think that you would be able to make it happen?
Whenever I put my mind to something, I’ve always been able to make it happen. I didn’t know how hard it would be, but that’s a blessing in disguise because if I had known how hard it would be, then I might not have done it. Knowing what I know now about what’s really required to start another business, I would have a real plan and know exactly what I wanted to do.
Where did the real experience and interest [to start your own business] come from?
In 2009, while working for Hilton, they opened a new spa. Since I had already been helping friends develop [and implement] social media plans, I told the spa owner they had to start using social media. I helped the spa set up their social media presence, which wasn’t even part of my job. I was working in sales and marketing at the time. I could soon see the bigger need and that everyone would need to start understanding [and using] social and digital media. I loved Facebook. I joined when I was a sophomore in college when it first started. I knew it was more than a splash and was going to reach so many people and change the future [of how we connect, follow and share] but I had no idea how.
Since I was a teenager, I’ve just always known what I wanted to do and went after it, but starting my own business in social media was never on my radar.
In terms of starting to build your business, how important was it to connect with people?
When I worked at Marriott, I was doing sales in their [vacation] ownership division. I was meeting between one and three families a day and taking them through the whole sales presentation. It taught me how to talk to anyone and everyone, especially how to start conversations.
One of the best things I really learned there, was from my mentor, it was about listening, specifically taking the time to listen to people. [The great thing about life] is people will always tell you exactly what they need and what they’re looking, if you just let them talk.
What is your advice for others looking to start a business?
Do informational interviews with people who have already started their own business so that you can learn from other people’s mistakes and successes.
Everyone has challenges; how do you motivate yourself?
I’m always thinking and planning ahead for what may or may not happen. Making lists or thinking about how I get to where I want to be, and expecting that things won’t always work out prepares me to better respond when things don’t go as planned. I always try to learn from whatever happens. As long as have a goal, I’m good. But if I don’t have some type of end goal, then it’s hard for me to deal with the day-to-day.
For example, a recent client decided not to renew our contract. The final decision maker was someone high up in the company who we never had a relationship with nor got to know. Immediately, we tried to figure out if there was something we could have done differently. We took the time to learn the lesson by going through the numbers to see if we increased sales or if it simply came down to the fact that we didn’t have the relationships with the “right” people in the company. We now have a plan to work together to prevent the same mistake from happening again.
Do you believe that failure is not an option?
You have to fail [at something] in order to get to where you’re really meant to be. When I first started my business, it was with a different business partner. We eventually parted ways. But then instead of giving up [on the whole business], I tried to apply things I’ve learned and not make the same mistakes when I found a new partner.
Also during this transition, I went back to working for a company for about six months, so that I could live and survive and have enough money to start the business again. But [like everything I do], I still worked my hardest and gave them my all for those six months because there were things to learn from this experience, too.
How is your career environment a fit for who you are?
It goes back to my childhood, being comfortable in front of other people and performing. Bringing in new clients requires me to go out all the time, network and meet people. Since it is my own business, I also like that I am able to create my own schedule. Regardless of the environment, one of my biggest fits and “strengths” is that I’m a [perpetual] learner. I have the ability to always be a student [in any situation or experience] and constantly educate myself.
I also have learned to know my strengths and weaknesses. When Courtney (Spritzer) and I first started the business, I went out, met people and [found] ways to talk about the business, while she handled operations and analysis. Now we’ve grown from two to a team of 10 people. We had to figure this out a bit and learn how to play to our strengths.
Working at Marriott, that was all about helping you play to your strengths. [It] taught me how to do that in myself and others. Everyone can [and should] learn how to manage and build on their strengths.
What is one unconventional or quiet lesson that you learned from someone?
Since I’ve always been a talker, the biggest thing I learned actually has to do with listening. Learning to listen to what people are saying enables you to deliver to people [exactly] what they want.
Also others have taught me how I can be successful by using the strengths that I have and how to work off other people’s strengths [which may balance out my weaker areas]. It’s a great fit for me to partner with someone who is extremely analytical. Having opposite skills and talents in a business partner [or colleagues] allows you to divide and conquer.
About Stephanie Abrams:
Stephanie Abrams is the Co-Founder and CEO of Socialfly www.socialflyny.com, a social media marketing and public relations agency located in New York City. This quintessential go-getter focuses her energy and smarts by setting a goal, refusing to take “no” personally, and working hard to make things happen.
She gracefully reminds us that life will not always go as planned. In 2011, Stephanie was diagnosed with M.S. and she serves as a champion of Multiple Sclerosis awareness and fundraising, as well as a committee member of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.
Stephanie is living out her purpose in many creative and meaningful ways. She co-founded the female entrepreneurial social networking group, “Startups in Stilettos”, which connects young female professionals and entrepreneurs. She shows that success in life is sometimes about recognizing tremendous opportunities and finding creative ways to prepare ourselves to meet them.
Stephanie Abrams is a graduate of the Cornell University School of Hotel Administration. She is writing her first book focused on teaching female entrepreneurs how to use social media to grow successful businesses. Follow her on Twitter @stephjillabrams and @socialfly.