Today we’d like to introduce you to Evan O’Brien.
Hi Evan, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I am the founder of Slake, a boutique marketing agency here in LA. I help solopreneurs and purpose-driven businesses launch and thrive online by combining intuitive design with thoughtful strategy. I love it, and it’s a long way from where I started.
I was born in San Francisco, adopted by my family in New York, and lived most of my formative years in New England (Darien, CT) before graduating from Northeastern in Boston. I have been around in the Arts & Entertainment industry all my life. I started acting around eight, landing my first TV comedy gig at only thirteen on Late Night with Conan O’Brien. By the time I had graduated high school, I had been in over 80 commercials and voiceovers. Before long, I was working in theater, TV, and film in Boston, Connecticut, New York, and Los Angeles.
As most artists know, the space between gigs can be a struggle. Between bookings, I filled my time learning where I could use the skills and training of being an actor to my advantage outside of Entertainment. For a while, I bounced around as a studio manager for a celebrity photographer in New York City, along with other random jobs: bike messenger, pet sitter, cater-waiter, event photographer, and event designer. I even worked at a creperie until 5 am in the Lower East Side. You name it, I did it. It was no secret that I was an overly helpful employee, often offering advice far beyond my pay grade. I was throwing out ideas daily to improve our marketing tactics alongside unsolicited insights about pricing and operations. Some employers loved this, and others totally hated it.
After working a bit too hard and having little to show for it, I moved home to Connecticut and ended up sleeping under the kitchen table in my mom’s one-bedroom apartment. While desperately looking for a job, my rule was this: I want to be paid for my ideas, not just how hard I work. As you can imagine, this ended up ruling out another low-paying side hustle.
I started a job that would eventually teach me new skills, leading me to where I am today. I saw an ad (on Craigslist, of all places) for a Sales Executive in the Fashion District in NYC, selling lunches to corporate workers in offices all over Manhattan. It might sound fancy, but it was exhausting, sometimes dangerous, and quite intense. The company I worked for only hired actors, so the office was like being backstage for a show where everyone was playing the part of businesspeople. Some of those same actors/salespeople later won Tony Awards or became huge at Comic-Con. It was a crazy time, but I learned so much. Ultimately, I ended up being the top salesman in the company, paying off my college debt in one year and netting over $1.2 million in sales in just over two – all by selling sandwiches to workers in New York City. There are so many insights from those crazy years that I still learn from today.
These were the building blocks that would enable me, little by little, to partner with the website design company WIX in Isreal and become the West Coast Director of the community arts organization Slideluck. That position gave me the experience to become a co-founder of a thriving startup (Capturely, Inc.) and eventually grow an agency & consultancy of my own, Slake Marketing, into what it is today.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
It’s been a very smooth road with almost no struggles.
Of course, I’m kidding. Honestly, there have been very few days that come and go without challenges. In the entertainment industry, cycling trends change the roles available and the type of stories being told every few years. There have been times I’ve felt like I was invincible, but then the industry changes and the phone stops ringing. Couple an uncertain paycheck with my evolution as an actor, and suddenly everything can be hard to grapple with and adapt to. All of these moving targets can feel like juggling cats.
It’s a supremely challenging road to be in the entertainment industry, but that makes the wins so much more fulfilling when they do happen. I’ve had times when I was backed by top-tier agencies that presented very few opportunities and others with so-so reps bringing in tons of auditions. There is also a huge amount of luck that plays into everything. The key is never to take it personally and remember that Entertainment is an industry. Do your thing just for you and leave the rest on the table.
My business career has had its struggles as well. Thankfully, every challenge has led to equally meaningful insights, giving me the tools and growth needed for my next endeavor. For instance, just before I turned 30, alcohol kind of took over my life. As it often goes, confronting a struggle like that was not something I’d made space for on my calendar. I had so many other things I wanted to achieve during that time. It ended up affecting every aspect of my life and my ability to be of service to anyone but myself. I am proud that over a decade of recovery has made me much more fulfilled and present in my personal and professional life.
My lastest hurdle was during the lockdown days of the pandemic when I was the Chief Creative Officer at a newly funded startup here in LA. Work and life became totally out of sync, and instead of working to live, I was living to work.
The world was shutting down, we were boarding up our studios because people were breaking into offices and storefronts every night, and the company direction kept changing by the hour because of all the fear in the economy. The pressure was crushing. Then I had what Maria Bamford calls a mental health event—also known as a nervous breakdown. If you’re in the market for a way to reevaluate everything in your life and completely reset your relationship with work, life, and being a human, I highly recommend having one.
But seriously, it was one of the best things that ever happened to me. Once I saw my relationship with work was so off balance, I got the help I needed. I began my own company, built from the ground up with intentional work/life balance instilled into every process we have. I also make a point to laugh and enjoy my day-to-day much more. As I worked to build this incredible business, things began to fall into place.
Now I’m engaged, own a home, and a rescue kitten, and get to live a life I’m truly proud of.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Slake has one overarching mission: to help our clients feel confident in their marketing. We want our clients to work to live, not live to work. I think that’s why we have had such an awesome success rate.
Sure, marketing is imperative to every business. But no matter what –if you’re a small business owner and your website, branding, or marketing strategy has you caught in a spin cycle of playing catchup, then at some point, you’re going to find yourself burnt out and resenting your success. We help you avoid that outcome completely by defining a holistic vision for success. Then, we help you instill those values into your website, email campaign, social media, or whatever else you use to tell your story and sell your product or service.
Marketing is a moving target that’s constantly evolving, so we frequently pivot our clients toward whatever gets the most impact for their niche. For many right now, that’s Instagram, TikTok, and Personal Brand Strategy. The thing is, every six months or so, the best strategies will change again. Whatever happens, we’ll be ready to utilize the newest tools to help you succeed.
What sets Slake apart from other boutique agencies is that we start from our client’s vision or goals and work backward from there. It’s a collaboration and a partnership that is grounded and thoughtful. We also try to laugh as much as we can because running a business can be really overwhelming, most marketing is gross & we want to avoid that, and also because the world is all too serious and a bit of a scary place most of the time.
I want our time together to feel as creative and collaborative as possible.
There’s nothing quite as fulfilling as watching clients and their small businesses grow over the years. It’s so rewarding to hear the confidence in their voice when we finish a project together. That confidence is why so many people have worked with us for so long.
Risk-taking is a topic that people have widely differing views on – we’d love to hear your thoughts.
All the best things that have ever happened in my life came from leaping when there was no net. Many people end up blinded by risk and that feeling that if they’re not successful right away, they’ll be voted off the island of life or something. The thing to remember is that each person gets to define success for themselves.
Every leap I’ve taken that didn’t turn out the way I wanted has given me the tools and insight needed to be successful at the next turn. Typically, if I’m overthinking, researching, or talking about something with friends and family, it’s a clear sign that I have to go in that direction. I work really hard not to let perfect be the enemy of good.
I do my best to follow the breadcrumbs in life, and I feel blessed to have the perspective I do from being on both sides of success. I’ve had huge wins where I swung for the fences, and it worked out. I’ve also had crushing defeats that made me question ever risking anything again. As time goes on, the wounds heal, and you get back up and continue to tackle the next thing in front of you. It’s how we grow.
Contact Info:
- Website: slakemarketing.com
Image Credits
Kristyna Archer
