Emma Tessler is the founder and CEO of Ninety Five Media, a new-age Digital Marketing Agency. After discovering digital marketing at a college internship and falling in love with it, Emma put this on the back burner to pursue her major of Interior Design at the Fashion Institute of Technology. However, just a few years later, she left this career to form her own Digital Marketing business, Ninety Five Media. Today, Ninety Five Media works with scaling brands to monetize their online presence on social media platforms using strategic, current marketing strategies – this is their signature Ninety Five Media Method. This Method helps their clients connect with ideal customers, build community, and convert audience members into paying clients. As a former Designer, Emma brings both creativity and strategy to her clients accounts to exponentially scale their online brand awareness.
Digital Marketing Expert, Emma Tessler
Ninety-Five Media began with a summer internship now 26-year old CEO Emma Tessler took on in 2015 when a mentor had just started a new branch of their business. Emma had known nothing about social media or digital marketing at the time but was determined to learn. She continued to take on new clients and over five years later she’s now worked with over 50 businesses that are eager to transform their digital marketing approach organically.
Tell us about yourself and what inspired you to start Ninety Five Media.
I was introduced to the world of digital marketing in 2015 at a summer internship during college. At the time, I was in school working towards a degree in interior design and the mentor I was working for was expanding her design business. Being the youngest person on her team, she handed me her phone and asked me to figure out how to grow her brand on social media.
This was an entirely new concept to me because back in 2015 many businesses weren’t taking digital marketing seriously just yet. Many were still utilizing traditional marketing such as mailers, commercials, and radio ads.
As I began to explore the world of marketing on Instagram, it dawned on me how much exposure was available to brands that was being severely underutilized at the time. I knew then, THIS was the future of marketing.
As that summer came to a close, I began to make plans for how I could help more businesses expand their reach using this incredible new modem. Over the next 5 years, I continued taking on more clients while working as an Interior Designer in NYC. I built a small team and expanded our services to serve more brands who needed the work we offer.
Still, brands were hesitant to go all-in on their digital marketing. Many weren’t sure it was the best avenue to reach their target market. However, when COVID-19 hit in 2020, this all changed. All of a sudden, brands were forced to get online since they could no longer connect in person.
This was the year Ninety Five Media was truly born. With experience under our belt and the results to back our work, we grew as an agency that approached digital marketing uniquely, helping our clients monetize their online presence.
What makes the Ninety-Five Media approach different from other digital marketing agencies?
Ninety-Five Media is not your typical marketing agency. Based on our experience, we’ve developed our unique approach to digital marketing – the Ninety Five Media Method. Our method is broken into four parts: Goals, Strategy, Execution and Data. At a high level, we understand our clients Goals and then work backwards to create a custom Strategy. Once the Strategy is in place, we move into Execution where we see what sticks and begin the process of reviewing the Data, adjusting our plan along the way based on the analytics.
We also strive to offer transparency with all our clients and passion for their results through our data and analytical approach. We pride ourselves on being able to understand our clients’ brands in a way that they themselves might not even yet understand. For example, we’re currently working with a client on a partnership program that, when they came to me, they had only identified their end goal. Through our digital marketing expertise, we were able to help them identify the steps they needed to take in order to achieve this goal and bring it to life.
What are your top tips for a brand looking to make their organic social media marketing work for them and begin seeing conversions?
The first questions we ask are “what does your current marketing plan look like?” and “what are your goals for your future marketing campaigns?”. This information allows us to determine their starting point and end goal. Most commonly, we hear that business owners have tried all of the different methods but simply haven’t found the one that works for them. It is easy to allow this to make you feel like you’re not doing enough, and therefore, should stop all together.
If you are ready to dive into your organic marketing, the first step is getting consistent. Even if you’re not yet seeing results, and you feel like you’ve tried so many different methods, commit & begin consistently posting. Get in front of your audience daily and continuously remind them of your offer.
Secondly, be adaptable to new trends and platforms. There is nothing worse than seeing an incredible brand who simply can’t keep up with the ever changing landscape of digital marketing. Outsource to someone who is able to do this for you and be open to trying something that may seem foreign. For example, if you haven’t already gotten on TikTok, really dive into the “why” behind this. This platform is not just for Gen Z dancers. It’s for any brand who wants to stay current and reach a new demographic. Being adaptable will yield major success for your brand.
And lastly, don’t be afraid to outsource if marketing isn’t your strength! Your marketing is an investment that you will see a direct return from. This is who you get in front of your audience in 2022, it’s how you speak to your customers, and it’s how you expand your brand. You can’t afford to not be here – so hire someone who is able to do this for you, better than you would be able to do it yourself.
What numbers should you be looking for when you begin creating content to know if it’s actually working?
There are 2 main categories of analytics – vanity + conversion. The first are the numbers that are shiny and attractive; followers and likes. The second, conversion metrics, are the ones that truly matter. These are website clicks, profile visits, DM conversions, to name a few.
When you focus on vanity metrics instead of conversion metrics, you place value on the wrong analytics. Your conversion metrics are the ones that will truly tell you if your content is successfully converting your audience from follower to paying customer. These are the numbers that build trust with your audience which is directly correlated to your sales.
Take a deep dive into your numbers today and see what you find! All of the answers are waiting for you there.
