Kimberly Hogate From Faceted Media
Kimberly Hogate is a creative marketer and the owner of Faceted Media, a boutique global SEO, tech and digital marketing agency based in Denver, Colorado. She might describe herself as a fun, and very resilient, nerd who loves to help others succeed in business.
Kimberly started her agency in 2011 and has experienced the many waves and generations of marketing approaches. She’s fascinated by technology and how to “crack the code” when it comes to search engine optimization (and the ever rising bar to reach on that).
She’s also a mom to a human and a dog, and a wife to a rock and roll husband. If she gets any free time, it has to be away from the office. Her favorite thing to do ever is travel. She’s been to many places near and far, some favorites being Morocco, Kauai, Portugal, and South Africa.
Please tell me all about your agency and what makes it unique?
Faceted Media marketing agency in Denver, Colorado sets itself apart from other agencies because flat-out - they are realistic. Their clients have been with them for years and years, building multiple businesses after the set-up and optimize cycles of one, creating many various “easy” streams of income for their clients.
They don’t focus on what’s trending. They focus on what works and makes money - in the marathon style of living - slow, steady, and for the long haul. And it absolutely works. Over and over and over.
Can you describe your journey to becoming an agency owner?
The owner of Faceted Media, Kimberly Hogate, started her journey by quitting. The end was the beginning, that’s right. She asked her boss for a raise, highlighting the income streams she had set up in-house and offering various reasons for her asking for an increase in pay.
That was flatly rejected the next day, but supplanted with a pineapple he and his wife had gotten for her at the farmer’s market.
The pineapple became the catalyst for the next changes, including leaving employment, starting a first beta business, selling that, starting another one, and then morphing that into the boutique global agency that Faceted Media is today. It continues to grow with side projects Business Therapy, a coaching and tech membership program, and Faceted Travel, a boutique travel agency.
What do your clients like most about your agency?
Clients that work with Faceted Media love our transparency. They have an amazing Dashboard that puts all the often confusing, cluttery, statistics, all in one place. It makes it very easy to see what words and phrases they are showing up for (and not) and which ones to put focus on.
They also love our social media. They make great content that’s also effective. Additionally, they are like a general contractor of marketing. They oversee the big picture, while attending to the minute details too.
Let’s face it, agencies are a dime a dozen. How do you make your agency standOut?
Faceted Media stands out from other agencies by being super weird and relatable to clients who don’t want a traditional marketing agency experience. They want a realistic and third-eye centered agency who “gets” it and doesn’t operate like a factory (they are absolutely not a dime a dozen).
They also love to incorporate bright colors, art, mindfulness, and throwbacks to the 90’s, the era the founder, Kimberly Hogate grew up in. Check out their Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead post for a bit of #nostalgia.
If you could pick your dream brand to become one of your clients, which brand would that be?
After over a decade of work with clients as diverse as doctors, counselors, coaches, physical therapists, dog trainers, pet groomers, lawyers, financial advisors, parent educators, and many more services providers, Faceted Media would love to work with a farm.
Yep, a farm. Preferably one with a petting zoo aspect and a children’s education piece. It could also be a non-profit farm/petting zoo/education center. That’s their dream client at the moment. Probably because it’s the owner, Kimberly Hogate’s dream to have one on the beach like one she has visited on the island of Maui.
What would you say are the top 3 strategies used by your agency to land new clients?
Faceted Media uses the top three strategies to land new clients:
Excellent quality work and word of mouth/referrals + networking
SEO strategies
Google Ads
What works best when it comes to retaining clients at your agency?
At Faceted Media, what works best when it comes to retaining clients is providing excellent service and results. They help their clients stabilize and optimize their main business, allowing for the creation of additional ones. The steady stream of income helps change their clients’ lives.
What are some of the pain points you experience as an agency owner?
Kimberly Hogate as the owner of the marketing agency, Faceted Media has experienced growing pains along the way. She has been able to quickly overcome any obstacles by hiring expert team members to help her growth and utilizing technology to streamline tasks.
Another area of pain lies in management. It lies in moving specialists and subject matter
experts into leadership positions. This comes naturally to many, but can be a steep
learning curve for others. And when you put as much emphasis on people and
happiness, the pressure compounds. This is a large area of growth for KPS3 and the
fruits of the labor are already starting to shine.
What advice do you have for someone who is just now starting their agency?
For new agency owners, Kimberly Hogate, owner of Faceted Media, offers this advice:
Give Yourself Extra Time.
Everything takes extra time in the beginning because you are learning. Try to leave spaces in your weekly calendar for personal time, self education, reading, or just to get places (because in the beginning, meetings run late, the task you thought would take 15 minutes will take an hour, etc. etc. etc.)
So, just try to give yourself extra time. It will really help make your life and work smoother.
Can you think of a time in your agency journey when you made a mistake and learned from it? Please explain.
In the past, agency owner Kimberly Hogate, would take a lot personally. Whether it was a rejection of a design, her own inability to draw boundaries with overly needy clients, or a slew of other rookie mistakes. It just took time and now she realizes that all of those “mistakes” were actually valuable lessons. Her advice to new agency owners is to just roll with the punches and be grateful for every lesson learned. It will propel you to new heights with your agency eventually!
Looking ahead, what do you think will change about the agency landscape in 2024?
I think the landscape will change by the more widespread use of an app for every business or service. Apps will be a transition (it’s already happening, but it will be even more widespread). I think touchless communication will be introduced. I’m not sure exactly what that looks like, but like ambient and sensory experiences at places like airports and shopping centers that are hybrid advertisements. Additionally, the Metaverse will continue to evolve into an everyday virtual marketplace. Put it in the time capsule, you heard it here folks.
