Laurel Mintz founded her own LA-based marketing agency called Elevate My Brand in 2009, and has been finding consistent success for herself and her clients since then. Her unique background and education, a JD and MBA from Rutgers University, have given her the tools and habits to run an excellent agency.
At Elevate My Brand, Laurel Mintz applies a “unique offline and online marketing methodology,” providing “innovative, creative solutions for new, emerging brands and well-established companies.” The company works with B2B and B2C clients who want to establish themselves in their industries by gaining the attention of their customer base and receiving exposure in the market to attract new customers. They also work with all companies that want to collaborate, “regardless of their size or stage of operational growth.” From startups to global brands like Facebook and Zendesk, Elevate My Brand helps them all do just that.
Since 2009, hundreds of clients have turned to Laurel Mintz and her agency because they trust the agency’s approach to resolving issues and growing their brand. The company focuses on “developing and executing perfectly tailored strategic marketing initiatives to elevate their brands.”
Laurel Mintz is also a business columnist whose writing can be found in major publications across the country. She is also a public speaker who delivers keynote presentations, workshops/seminars/webinars, and trainings.
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Jerome Knyszewski: What do you think makes your company stand out? Can you share a story?
Laurel Mintz: Our approach to marketing is incredibly data driven. We have created a strategic and linear process that truly works. Most marketing agencies focus only on 1 thing or are hyper-creative but that doesn’t translate to conversion or a KPI.
Recently we had a company try to break that process which is always a red flag. I know that if someone is trying to tell us how to do our job then they either don’t trust us or don’t believe we are the experts. Either way not a good starting point.
Having a data driven process allows us to make decisions that have numerical/scientific reasoning behind them which is NOT how most agencies work, and it works!!
Jerome Knyszewski: Which tips would you recommend to your colleagues in your industry to help them to thrive and not “burn out”?
Laurel Mintz: Working longer and harder does not mean you’re working more efficiently. In fact, there are studies that show that at a point there is a diminishing return or burn out. In order to ensure our team doesn’t face that we track hours internally and on client work so I can watch the team and where their time is spent. It also helps us understand when it’s time to hire.
We also take time to play together as a team so it’s not always about work.
Finally, I make sure my team takes their vacation days because that’s what they’re there for especially when we are WFH and there’s a lack of separation between work and personal life.
Jerome Knyszewski: None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story?
Laurel Mintz: My husband also runs an agency and actually dropped out of college 22 years ago to start his company. Because of that he has about 10 years of experience in a similar field. I often turn to him for advice and he’s been pivotal in helping us operationalize our business.
Jerome Knyszewski: Ok thank you for all that. Now let’s shift to the main focus of this interview. Delegating effectively is a challenge for many leaders. Let’s put first things first. Can you help articulate to our readers a few reasons why delegating is such an important skill for a leader or a business owner to develop?
Laurel Mintz: No one is good at everything and the bigger the company gets the more the team is required to execute. It’s critical as a good leader to first, define what it is that they are good at and second, find other team members who are good at the things that they themselves are not good at. It’s truly the only way to scale up any company.
Jerome Knyszewski: Can you help articulate a few of the reasons why delegating is such a challenge for so many people?
Laurel Mintz: 2 words, control freak. It’s a natural sentiment especially for founders because it’s how they’ve gotten to the level of success they are currently at. It’s hard when you’re in that state to realize that to get to the next level you have to take some things off your plate.
Jerome Knyszewski: In your opinion, what pivots need to be made, either in perspective or in work habits, to help alleviate some of the challenges you mentioned?
Laurel Mintz: I think in general there needs to be a shift socially in how people look at the work/life balance. As a leader it’s important to instill balance in their team and lead by example.
Jerome Knyszewski: Thank you for all of that. We are nearly done. You are a person of great influence. If you could start a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. 🙂
Laurel Mintz: I’d love to start a global movement requiring companies to host weekly mediation sessions. I think that would make mental space that would help a lot of people.
Jerome Knyszewski: How can our readers further follow you online?
Laurel Mintz: You can find me on:
My personal Instagram and Elevate My Brand’s Instagram
Jerome Knyszewski: This was very inspiring. Thank you so much for the time you spent with this!
