When Garrett Atkins was 22 he was broke hopping from job to job to pay the bills. Just about 3 years later he is the CEO of VIE Media and co-owner of StLouisPodcast.com. From $1.850 in revenue in 2016, Vie Media already generated more than $1.25 million of revenue in 2019. Garrett Atkins, his company is providing digital advertising and branding for household brands like Better Homes & Gardens, The UPS Store, Farmers Insurance and the Sansone Group. Even StLouisPodcast.com is already gaining traction, although it was just founded a few months ago.
StLouisPodcast.com already has more than 35 contracted clients. He can offer content to his clients on platforms like Spotify, Google Podcasts and Apple Podcasts. What makes it even better for his clients, is that Garrett Atkins can offer the full package to his clients because of his social media knowledge and the help of VIE Media.
The Major Invitation
One of the personal highlights of Garrett Atkins was his invitation to be one of the keynote speakers at a Live2Lead event. The events of Live2Lead from the John Maxwell Academy attracts many well-known names. Just take a look at their keynote speakers and you know this is a huge deal.
Garrett Atkins built up a successful business in just 3 years, with the second business gaining traction already. As a passionate speaker, he loves to inspire eager new entrepreneurs as well.
What are the best tips Garrett Atkins can give us?
- He believes he makes the difference every day because he has a true passion for his business and the services they provide. How can you ever attract big players from the market, if you don’t have a true passion for what you and your company are doing? The passion that drives Garrett Atkins every day attracts the big players every day.
- Find and maintain the right drive. One of the things that has made Garret Atkins so successful in his area of expertise is that he is willing to dive in to multiple different aspects of the environment that he’s in. Though they may seem like they are quite different, they actually tend to overlap each other quite a bit. By diving into multiple forms of social media marketing he is also expanding his knowledge of the space. Some might think it could be tiresome to do so many things at once but what keeps Atkins growing is the fact that he also has the drive to grow in his space.
- Consistency is the key. Keep working consistently towards your goals. Don’t wait until you finally have the perfect set-up to start making content. Just consistently make content and publish content even if it is not perfect. You learn from every new piece of content you make and publish, to create better content in the future. In the process, you create followers who will help you create your brand.
Which lessons in life helped Garrett Atkins build his success?
- Garrett Atkins was not happy with the eight different jobs he had at the start of his career. But it gave him the chance to learn at an accelerated pace about what he wants and definitely also what he doesn’t want. It motivated him to start VIE Media knowing how he wanted to build his company. Adverse events or periods in life are great motivators and can give direction to what you really want.
- Stop giving a damn about what other people are thinking. When he stopped caring about the opinion of others and just did what he wanted, his business started to flourish.
Any last advice from Garrett Atkins for eager entrepreneurs?
- Stay yourself when you build your business. Find out what your passion is and find a way to monetize your passion.