Today we’d like to introduce you to Trevor Rappleye.
Trevor, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
Well, it began at age 13. I picked up my dad’s VHS video camcorder and starting filming family events and fell in love with filming and storytelling. I had my first business soon after called DVDs2Remember.net where I converted VHS to DVD. I passed about a thousand flyers around my neighborhood in hopes of landing a ton of clients. I made about $47 from the total of my one client. I later started mowing lawns as well so I definitely feel as if I’ve been an entrepreneur since a very young age.
I’m a self-taught marketer, business owner, and salesperson and have always been in love with business names that tell you what they do, especially without having to ask. I bought the domain EventFilming.net for $8 at age 15 with the main focus of filming events. I started from filming family weddings and with no overhead, no advertising cost – I was definitely on top of the world for a kid. I also started reffing soccer at that same age, which built up my confidence (parents can be mean yelling at you!) and really taught me management skills and empathy at such a young age. I continued my passion for filming during my teenage years while attending Christian Brothers High School. We had the #1 rated high school news station in the country with KBFT TV so I was constantly filming, directing and editing. At age 17, I got offered a job at KCRA 3 in Sacramento and became their high school sports reporter and videographer.
For college, I went to Cal State Fullerton and majored in TV Film. Right after graduation, I continued working part-time on EventFilming and had a second job for a wedding film company. I learned so much on the dos and don’ts of business from working there and eventually ran away after two months to pursue EventFilming full-time.
I had a business partner for about two years after the full-time transition and eventually disbanded in 2015. I self-taught myself a ton of sales and marketing over tons of sleepless nights, brought on a team in 2016 and managed advertising and proper hard working work weeks to get to where we are today. Now, after rebranding to CorporateFilming.net, we solely seek to serve corporations and businesses that want to drive sales and profit through video. By creating on-going monthly videos, anywhere in the US for one simple annual price, my company has tripled our revenue in 2019 look to reach seven figures in this new year. The future is bright!
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
No, definitely not. If any entrepreneur or business owner says that their ride has been a smooth easy transition for growth, then they just haven’t peaked at their business yet. Growing and scaling a sustainable has been so difficult, but so rewarding. To be able to just reach the “rewarding,” tier without a few struggles would be insane! Still, I wouldn’t change it for the world though!
Personally, some of my struggles have been tracking expenses and hiring. If you don’t know your numbers as an owner, how will you know that you’re actually making money at the end of the year? Things ALWAYS cost more than what you budget them to. Hiring has been tough for me and I learn from every new hire that walks in and out of my office doors. One thing I have learned to ask my team: What are you passionate about? Where do you imagine being with us in 3-5 years? If you had complete autonomy in your role, what would you change? It’s their passion and hunger for growth that has helped me and my company grow with them.
Corporate Filming – what should we know? What do you do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
CorporateFilming.net specializes in on-going video creation for businesses that want to drive sales. We are different because we operate on a national P.O. basis: we film anywhere in the U.S. and create monthly video content to drive sales, recruitment and increase brand growth and awareness.
Specifically, CorporateFilming is known for our customer experience and customer service. We tend to create videos in only 15 days and never charge travel. This is what makes us different. We create engaging video content of your customers, staff, and story to drive sales. We handle it all and our clients really appreciate that.
What has been the proudest moment of your career so far?
My proudest moment is when we pulled us out of a debt hole of $80,000 and tripled our revenue soon afterward. I trusted my gut to keep this company afloat and it paid off! I made the simple decision to stop going where every videographer is and went solely corporate. The later decision to switch the company to a monthly subscription model and exhibit at expos also contributed to what really helped turn us around. If you have a product, but no one knows it exists- you have nothing! I am all about paying for advertising that works and our effective form of storytelling through video marketing works!
Pricing:
- Our corporate videos start at $9,999 and our monthly subscription model starts at $49,999 a year. That includes multiple days of filming and over 24-48 videos a year- all with ease and none of the worry from your company!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.corporatefilming.net
Suggest a story: VoyageLA is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
