This past year Media+ celebrated our 41st anniversary as a business – a lifetime in agency land! 2024 also marked seven years since we (Lauren Ramaska and Mary Ann Grajek) bought the company and took over as leaders of Media+. Guiding Media+ through a period of significant growth, onboarding new clients, new team members and services, and navigating the complexities of a global pandemic has been no small feat. As we reflect on the past seven years, we would describe this time using many words – exciting, challenging, eye-opening, but most importantly, rewarding. We’ve both grown in ways that we never could’ve imagined and have learned a lot over these past seven years:
The power of a strong business partnership.
In business, as in life, partnerships thrive when built on a foundation of mutual trust and respect. Our journey began over 17 years ago — we started as colleagues, grew into friends, and eventually transitioned into business partners. By the time we formalized our partnership, we knew that we shared the same values both in and out of work. We understood each other’s motivations, passions and frustrations, as well as how to address conflict and actively work together to find solutions. We see our partnership as a living, breathing entity, and just like any important relationship, one that requires ongoing effort, open communication and evolution. We believe our partnership is the foundation to our success and will continue to drive our future growth.
Be agile and expect the unexpected.
Most business owners know to have a rainy-day fund for any unexpected challenges that may arise. While we agree with this strategy, we also believe in always being agile and expecting the unexpected. The last seven years have included a global pandemic, recessions and other challenges, and we navigated those through our ability to be nimble and shift quickly to do what’s in the best interest of the agency and team. Sometimes this included taking calculated risks, and other times it meant being more conservative, but what’s most important was being able to be flexible during challenging times.
Look to advisors for inspiration, but don’t lose your gut instincts.
Since we both “grew up at Media+” we learned the M+ way, which means being confident and leaning into our experience and knowledge when making decisions. At the same time, when we took over the business we wanted to make sure that we were seeking outside counsel with differing points of view for alternative perspectives. We believe “You don’t know what you don’t know” and outside counsel can help ensure we’re financially sound to spur growth and run effective teams. We like to balance both lines of thinking at Media+ and while advisors have their place, it’s equally important to always trust your gut.
Build and foster the culture you want.
The first thing we did when we took over Media+ was to take an introspective look at our culture and determine that this is a place we both want to work at and also feel proud of. Our culture is our foundation. As you spend so much time together, it’s essential to create a safe and inclusive space where everyone can be their authentic selves. We made it a point to diversify our team and continue to encourage everyone to have a voice and seat at the table when making decisions. This way of thinking helps with retention but also leads to more fulfilling work.
Hire based on character and values vs. solely experience.
We can teach people to do the job, but we cannot teach character, values and grit – you either have those characteristics or you don’t. And when hiring, take your time. An agency is built on its people and ideas. Make sure you’re bringing in a diverse group of people that understand the collective goal and align with the company’s purpose, vision and values.
Failure is inevitable, learn and grow from it.
We are human. We’re not perfect, so when mistakes or even failure happens, think about what opportunity that failure provides. What did you take away from it and what can you improve upon for next time? We always think this way and encourage it with our team as well. We don’t want anyone paralyzed by fear; this will prevent you from taking risks which can lead to great work. If a mistake occurs, take accountability, bring it forward and let’s figure out as a team how we can do better in the future.
Client relationships are fundamental to success.
Client service is one of our biggest strengths. We are fortunate to have clients who value the services that Media+ offers and this has allowed us to have long-lasting client relationships we are deeply grateful and proud of. Plus, it’s important to work with nice people. Great people make great work. We believe that you must develop personal relationships with clients or else you run the risk of becoming a commodity. We often hear from clients that they love working with us because they don’t see us as an outside vendor, but as true partners that consistently bring forward innovative ideas.
We are fortunate to be part of such a wonderful organization for the last few decades, and are thrilled about our next chapter as we have many exciting things on the horizon, including new offerings, as well as continuing to grow our incredibly brilliant team and client base.
