Building an Eight-Figure Agency From Scratch With Jacqueline Basulto

Speaker A: Welcome to the Marketing Agency Leadership Podcast where we have top leaders and founders of agencies sharing wisdom on how they built their company. Hi there, I'm Kevin Horrigan, host of the show where I feature inspiring agency leaders and owners are willing to share their insights and stories. Today's podcast is brought to you by spendytech. Declan. Hey. Spendytech, we help middle market larger companies get more leads. Who doesn't want more leads, right? At SpeedyTech, we take an end to end digital approach, starting with your website and making sure it's the right aesthetic appeal and convincing content to convert visitors into action. Then we take a look at all your digital marketing tactics such as search engine optimization, paid search organal, organic and paid social media email marketing, and more and more. With the correct website and optimized digital marketing campaigns in place, we help our clients grow. To learn more, go to www.spintheletter utech.com Spinny Tech thank you for your sponsorship today. Well, today's guest is Jacqueline Velsuto, co founder of Seedex. Cedex is an eight figure agency and she's been the main driving force behind everything from sales to company culture. Jaclyn's also been named to Forbes 30 under 30 has helped her clients generate more than 1 billion in revenue. She has great experience on the realities of building something from ground up, the lessons learned and how to keep surviving and growing. Jacqueline, welcome to the marketing Agency Leadership podcast.

Speaker B: Thank you so much, Kevin. And thanks for that flattering introduction. I appreciate it.

Speaker A: Yeah, well, you deserve that flattering introduction. Forbes 3030 something else. More than a billion in revenue for your clients, an eight figure agency. Uh, our fellow agency owners and leaders that want to learn more about yourself, tell us a little bit. Where did you grow up? Where did little Jacqueline study when she was a young girl? And what did little Jacqueline want to do when she had to make a living?

Speaker B: Sure. Well, um, I grew up in New York City. I'm the daughter of Hispanic American family with roots from Cuba and Puerto Rico. So I definitely grew up with the kind of immigrant go getter mentality of, um, you know, you have to make the most out of what life, what your situation is and what life has to offer. Uh, and so being in New York City, I felt so grateful to have access to such great resources. And growing up I was a really good student, obsessed with school. Um, but I was also super artistic and creative. So I studied, um, vocal music. I went to a high school for performing arts, uh, called LaGuardia High School. It's the High school that fame is based off of, um, and that was like the most fun time ever in my life. And then um, I, after that went to Columbia University and that's when I had to kind of make a choice as to what I wanted to focus my life on. Um, and so I honestly bounced around a lot of different things. Um, veterinary science, pursuing performance. I ended up majoring in political science. But I finally found marketing. Um, my junior summer I got uh, an internship at Google where I was working on marketing with uh, small business owners and helping them with their strategies. And it was the first time I was ever exposed to technology and marketing tactics and how they all align to really help business owners. And it was the perfect balance I think for someone who is very much a generalist like me and wants a little bit of everything. Um, and so I really learned to love it and the dynamics and the constant change of marketing and especially when you're first. I was a freelancer, but as an agency owner or operator you get to see so many different types of situations and that's what really drew me to this field. So um, I always kind of say I found it by happy accident and I'm glad I did.

Speaker A: Yeah, no, that's a great introduction and I love the explanation of, you know, um, being fresh into the country and having that, that you know, get done with the resources you have and then to see that you have to go to Columbia and all of that stuff like that's a major accomplishment. I'm sure you and your family have a lot to be proud of here. I'm sure that came with a, like you said, you were good at discipline at school and congratulations, that's a great opportunity, um, for your family and for those who maybe you, uh, those who maybe you looked up to as mentors at the time to show that you understood it and then maybe be able to pass that on to others. I think that's commendable.

Speaker B: Thank you. Thanks so much.

Speaker A: So we understand you kind of went through college with a veterinary school, uh, political science, all these types of things. Somehow another, you started to be co founder of an agency. What got you into that scenario?

Speaker B: Yeah, so I ended up receiving a full time offer at Google and I really didn't want to move to Mountain View. Um, and me being kind of, you know, I think all entrepreneurs are a little bit crazy and overzealous and too confident. But at 21 I decided I don't need to move to Mountain View. I'm just going to do this thing on my own. Um, even though I had no money and no idea, no contacts or anything, so I, I stayed in New York City and I started freelancing. Um, and so just little by little, what was just I was called Jacqueline's web Studio at first has grown into this company, cdx, that, that where we are today. But first, my first clients were really small local businesses, yoga teachers, cafes, et cetera. And um, it's just been kind of building brick by brick, getting uh, getting a little bit of a bigger client, a better testimonial, et cetera. Um, and same thing with, with my team going from one to two people and then one to four people. And it's been incredible. A lot of the original employees that were on our team when we first started are still part of the journey today. So, uh, yeah, it's been an interesting road.

Speaker A: So started out doing some freelancing, ended up having one team member, two, four. Um, how big is your team grown? How long ago was that and how big is your team grown to today?

Speaker B: So that was 2016, um, so almost nine years ago in November. And our team is 65 now. So, um, a big difference in terms of what I was doing then, which was trying to do every role right now, kind of being in, in more of a leadership role and looking towards the future and business development and um, kind of at a, at a larger scale.

Speaker A: Yeah, no, no, great, I appreciate you sharing that. So, um, you know, starting, you know, deciding not to go to Mountain View and go to work takes up that, you know, offer from Google and you know, kind of accidentally starting as a freelancer, getting yourself into the agency leadership. Um, two questions here. Can you tell me what's been the most rewarding experience as an agency owner? But of course the follow up question has been what's been the most challenging as an agency owner as well?

Speaker B: Yeah, sure. I think, um, the two most rewarding things, and they're kind of related, are not necessarily reaching a certain size or stature, but it's been the impact on people. One, with our clients, um, we have some clients that we worked with early on who have now grown from tiny companies into full fledged great organizations. And even today when we get a new client and we can make a huge difference in their business, it's no small matter. It's people's livelihood, it's places for people to work. Um, so that is a really awesome thing to actually see your work have that kind of impact. And then the other thing, which I couldn't have ever foreseen, and I think you start to see, once you've had more experience in being a leader is the impact on our team, like, being able to give people a good place to work where they're growing and they're happy and the culture isn't toxic. Those are really, that's like a really incredible gift to be able to give. Um, so I'm really grateful for that. And that's definitely the, the best thing. Um, the hardest thing is I think kind of they go hand in hand because I'm working with, because I'm in charge of or responsible for hiring people for their livelihoods, for their families, and then also on our client side were responsible ultimately a lot of times for people's growth, for their performance, um, and thus their business and the people that are part of their business. It's a lot of responsibility. And I think that early on, and I started this business in my early 20s, it was overwhelming at the time, and now I think I really embrace it and I feel grateful to have that responsibility, but that's definitely difficult. Being an agency owner, you can kind of feel like, depending on how many clients you have, like, let's say I have 20 clients. I'm, um, I'm in part running 20 businesses. So it's, it's a lot to hold in your mind and responsibility wise.

Speaker A: Yeah, no, no doubt. I think as agency owners, you know, we all, you know, love to onboard new clients. We all love to onboard new coworkers. Um, and it's fun to get them excited about being part of the agency, whether they're a client or coworker. Them's a responsibility of making sure you're fulfilling their expectations and, and, and clients are being good clients and coworkers are being good co workers. And not only now you're fulfilling your end of the job, but they're fulfilling their end. And it gets complicated sometimes.

Speaker B: Absolutely.

Speaker A: Um, Declan, one of the things you shared is one of the responsibilities that you seem to be still doing as co founder is new business for the agency. Who is your agency's ideal customer profile and how do you go about attracting them into Seedex?

Speaker B: Sure. Um, our ideal customer is someone who has product market fit. They have a great service or product. We service both consumer and B2B, um, companies, but essentially they're typically around 10 to 500 million. They're in a place where they have maybe a small marketing team, but not. They have a lot of gaps in terms of what their needs are. And so I like those opportunities because I think there's a lot of room to grow and um, similar to how you mentioned, we take a really comprehensive approach and sometimes that's really difficult with a, ah, huge enterprise entity. So um, I think that's our sweet spot and they have to be willing to grow and be challenged. And um, that's the, that's the ideal anyway.

Speaker A: Yeah, no, no, I think it's well articulated to it. I think um, having clients with a growth minded focus is certainly important. We're going to be measured on our performance. And so um, the growth minded for you, it's got to be something you hope of them and they got to be able to, they've got to be able to get what they want from you, but they've got to be able to help you and your team work in a consistent way in which you guys are most likely to be successful. And so, you know, sometimes clients sometimes think that because they write the check, they get to write the rules. And unfortunately when that happens, your team is often not following the secret sauce that made you so successful. So many other clients. And so having the courage to tell clients you respect what they're asking for, but you also want to respect the reason why they hired you and being able to have those open and honest conversations. It's a two way street and you want everybody to be happy and successful.

Speaker B: Exactly.

Speaker A: Jacqueline, um, another big thing that we talk about in the agency space all day these days. How's AI affected you and your team at cdex? How's it affected your clients, your coworkers, your company? But tell us how AI is, is affecting you and, and um, what you see is working or what do you see as being promoted, but you're not seeing it actually being experienced?

Speaker B: Sure, yeah. I mean I think like anything in the digital and technology space, uh, AI is something we have to keep learning about and educating ourselves about. And so we're just trying to take as proactive of a stance as possible and in terms of understanding what's out there using new tools. Um, we've also, I think I shared this with you before the podcast. We've started hiring um, AI engineers onto our team. And the reason behind that is because as much as I educate myself about a topic, I am, I'm specialized or my strength is business strategy and marketing strategy. And so it's been really incredible to have um, an engineer and AI and data engineer work through like marketing problems with us and tell us, well, actually that HubSpot workflow can be improved with this, you know, this type of function that I can implement pretty easily. Right. And so that is really great, is like just kind of seeing how, how different scenarios can be problem solved with AI. Um, so that's, that's where we are right now, which I think has been really ideal in terms of what I. With our clients. I think everyone is just like confused and interested about how they should be using AI and, and why. Right. And so again, we're just trying to educate people as much as possible and be proactive, um, and not scared because everything is always changing. It's just being, trying to be as on top of it as you can.

Speaker A: Yep. No, totally agree with you. Totally agree. Uh, two more questions for you. Um, the first of those two questions. Have you ever had any mentors and how they helped guide you in your career?

Speaker B: Sure. I've had of course, so many mentors in different ways. Um, and I think really, uh, you kind of take a little bit of everyone's experience, right. So everything's going to be, or you're always going to be a unique combination of different people's experiences and advice. Um, but I have a lot of mentors that I think have taught me different things. Like I think in the music realm, I learned a lot of discipline because I had very strict instructors. And so I'm always thinking about that as a mother as well. Like, how do I make sure my daughter has great mentors or coaches that teach her discipline. Right. And then had, uh, other mentors who, who teach me about spirituality behind business or, or the way thoughtfulness and self care, like that kind of thing, like how to be patient, how to, how to deal with stressful times, etc. And so I, I seek mentorship in a lot of places. And now I think as a business owner, sometimes it's difficult to find mentorship. And so I look to podcasts and books, people that I can't reach, um, but who still are sharing good insights to, to mentor me in part. Um, so, yeah, I think none of us are, none of us are made on our own. So grateful to a lot of people who've helped me along the way. Of course.

Speaker A: Yeah, no, I love that. I love the mentoring. It's not only to you, but your daughter and that I just absolutely think so that, um, you know, sometimes we learn through the upbringing. You know, your upbringing obviously was great at helping you instrument and then certainly, um, you know, through your schooling and then opportunity for Columbia, that's all good. But then mentors provide a whole other opportunity for you to learn from others experiences and help develop who you are. And so it seems like most of the other leaders and owners of the agency Marketing Leader podcast. You know, mentorship's been part of their evolution and help them think bigger than maybe what their own vision has. And so it rings quite true to what many other guests on the podcast share. Jacqueline, last question. Um, you live in Barcelona now. You're from New York City. Your first job offer was from Google. Where do you get inspiration from these days?

Speaker B: Uh, where do I get inspiration? That's a great question. Um, I think, like I was saying, I consume a lot of content, so books, podcasts, anything I can get my hands on. And then I get a lot of inspiration from the normal things in life and the beautiful things in life, like having I have a almost three year old daughter and I have three dogs. And sometimes just watching how they interact with the world teaches you a lot too. The openness, the. When you're stressed out about stupid things and they're just having a joyful moment, um, that, that teaches you a lot as well. So I, I get inspiration from, from a lot of places. But of course, as a newer mom, um, that's, that's a big place for my inspiration.

Speaker A: Well, I, I so appreciate you sharing that. I'm sure our audience does as well. You've been speaking with Jacqueline of Scenics. Jacqueline, if anybody wants to connect with you after, um, hearing the podcast, what's the best way for them to reach out to you?

Speaker B: Uh, they can add me on LinkedIn or email me at JacquelineDx US.

Speaker A: Perfect. Jacqueline, thank you so much for being a guest in the Marketing Agency Leadership podcast. We appreciate your time. We should. We appreciate your insights and we appreciate you sharing everything. It was very, very helpful and we do want to say thank you.

Speaker B: Thank you so much, Kevin.

Speaker A: Yes. Have a great. Thank you for listening to the Marketing Agency Leadership podcast powered by Spiniatech. And you can learn more@spinytech.com that's S P I N U T E C-H dot.