Blue Ocean: Tell us about your professional life. Why did you choose to work in this industry? Brendan: I went to boarding school, which had a tremendous impact on me. This experience inspired me to work in schools to replicate my teachers and coaches’ positive impact on me. My early experiences teaching and coaching led to different administrator roles. Things took a turn during the 2008-2009 school year amid the financial crisis when I served as the Director of Admission and Financial Aid. We witnessed a decline in inquiries, mirroring the stock market’s trajectory. That’s when I discovered inbound marketing and implemented it at my school. The impact was significant — a positive change in inquiries that hooked me on the power of inbound marketing. I launched my blog, schneiderb.com, to share what I was learning with other schools, and I finally transitioned to making SchneiderB Media my full-time job during the summer of 2022. Blue Ocean: What does your typical day look like? Brendan: Now that I am working from home for the first time, I’m still trying to figure out the best way to optimize my day. My typical day includes periods of client calls, work sessions, and sales and marketing for my business. Blue Ocean: What is one trend in your industry that excites you? Brendan: A trend in the marketing industry that excites me the most is the use of AI to help marketers. School marketers offices tend to be overworked, understaffed, and underfunded, and the possibility of AI to help them do more excites me. Blue Ocean: How have you differentiated yourself, and what underpins your success? Brendan: I attribute my success to three key factors: Being helpful: I share my knowledge extensively on my blog to help other school marketers. This inclination stems from my background in teaching. Continuous learning: the older I get, the more I realize the less I know. I am committed to constant learning and am genuinely interested in exploring new technologies, ideas, and strategies. Strong work ethic: I enjoy working hard and don’t view my work as work. Blue Ocean: What is something unique you offer to your clients? Brendan: My unique quality is that I have been in their seat. I worked in private, independent schools for 28 years. I understand their challenges, I know their frustrations, and I understand the politics of schools. Blue Ocean: What advice would you give to your younger self? Brendan: My advice would be to go out on my own and start my business earlier in my career, said another way, to not be so scared. Blue Ocean: What is something you are grateful for? Brendan: I am grateful for my wife, who supported me and made sacrifices for me to start my business. She continues to support me to this day, and SchneiderB Media would not exist without her. Blue Ocean: What are your sources of happiness and inspiration? Brendan: I find happiness in helping clients be successful. For inspiration, I enjoy reading and listening to podcasts. Blue Ocean: Outside of work, what passions and interests do you pursue? Brendan: A passion of mine is cooking. I love to cook and find it a great release from using technology all day. I also enjoy reading. Blue Ocean: What is your favorite quote? Brendan: It’s a little long, but I love this quote from Theodore Roosevelt: “It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.” Do you have a personal or professional story that can inspire other people into becoming the best version of themselves? You are welcome to share your journey with our audience.
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