"If there is one thing that makes a resilient leader, I feel that being able to lead others by example."
Brice Gump is the CEO of Major Impact Media – a consulting company that focuses on helping entrepreneurs and online businesses grow their business with ROI-focused marketing. He has worked with dozens of companies over the years – from business coaches to international personal development gurus – to implement traffic systems that have acquired thousands of customers and generated millions of dollars in revenue.
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Table of Contents
Thank you so much for doing this with us! Can you tell us a story about what brought you to this specific career path?
Brice Gump: I started my business back in 2012 when I helped small businesses build their business websites. But getting traffic back to their sites was the main concern. That’s where I learned about SEO, content marketing, and link-building strategies. I also learned paid ads and that’s when my business really took off. I started my agency, Major Impact Media, in 2015.
Things have really flourished since. I never thought that SEO would lead me to all these opportunities, but it definitely did. Today, my agency helps businesses that are selling digital products and services succeed. We help our clients build their brand, grow their business, and move into high ticket sales with our data-driven sales funnel + paid ads + email marketing strategies. I love my job. I get to help clients succeed and grow their companies, all while doing something that I absolutely adore – which is helping people.
Can you tell us a story about the hard times that you faced when you first started your journey? Did you ever consider giving up?
Brice Gump: There were lots of hard times when I first started out. It took me a few years to really find the right market of people I loved waking up and working with every day. And that meant really having to trudge through a lot of work that wasn’t delivering the kind of results I dreamed about or creating the day-to-day life I wanted to create. But I always had this feeling like “I can make this work and I can make this into something great”.
And I’m really thankful that I stuck with it and never gave up through all of that. Because eventually, I found my groove. And I found a really great group of people I love working with. And when you wake up every day doing stuff you enjoy with people you enjoy doing it with I don’t know what more you can ask for.
Often leaders are asked to share the best advice they received. But let’s reverse the question. What’s the worst advice you received?
Brice Gump: I don’t think that I received a lot of bad advice, to be honest. The challenge for most people I find is that there are just so many different paths that lead to the same outcome. So it can be tough to know which way to go. There were a few times when I didn’t follow my gut feeling. And that always came back to bite me. I wish that I had trusted myself more often in the start, but sometimes you get caught up in peer pressure or other people’s opinions that influence your decisions. So it’s easy to get carried away and retreat from your original plan. What I should have done was be more confident in my decisions and stick to what I thought was right.
Resilience is critical in critical times like the ones we are going through now. How would you define resilience?
Brice Gump: I think resilience means having grit and never giving up. To push through and to keep going even when things get rough. It’s the ability to adapt well in the face of adversity or change. That means to recover quickly from mistakes, problems, or failures. I think it’s really important to remember why you started doing what you are doing in the first place. As an entrepreneur, you set out to solve a problem that already exists in the marketplace.
That’s what I did. I saw a need for businesses to have an online presence. But not having one was costing them money in lost sales every month. Resilience can be instilled by having a strong belief in yourself and the fact that you will never give up. If there is one thing that makes a resilient leader, I feel that being able to lead others by example. Your team needs someone to motivate them and show them how things are going to get done. When you can stand up day after day and lead the way, that’s what builds resilience.
What is most important to your organization—mission, vision, or values?
Brice Gump: I believe that values are most important to an organization. Without common values, mission and vision will lack meaning for all involved. Common values allow a team to rally together and work towards something that they truly believe in. That’s what Major Impact Media is all about. We share our passion for marketing, sales, and entrepreneurship with businesses and help them grow. We believe in what we do and that’s our core value.
You are a successful business leader. Which three character traits do you think were most instrumental to your success?
Brice Gump: I believe that a big part of my success comes from perseverance, ambition, and drive. I have always been self-motivated and that has driven me to keep going even when times get tough. I never accepted defeat and instead pushed myself to do better every single day. The most important thing to me is to have a strong vision. That’s what helps me keep going because I really believe in the direction our company is heading towards. While it can be scary to take the leap into entrepreneurship, I knew that if I didn’t do it now, I would always regret not trying.
Being a CEO of the company, do you think that your personal brand reflects your company’s values?
Brice Gump: I think my personal brand has some similarities with our company’s values, but they are different as well. When I think about what my personal values are, I would say that team building, resilience, and hard work are very important to me. That reflects well on our company because we value these things as well. I’m also quite ambitious and a quick learner. I would say that these two qualities also reflect well on our company because we always strive to remain one step ahead of the competition. That’s the formula for success – that’s what Major Impact Media is all about.
How would you define “leadership”?
Brice Gump: That’s a hard question! But I would say leadership is about bringing out the best in others. I always try to be a good example for my team. That’s why we do the best we can for our clients and aim to develop long-term relationships with them. That benefits everyone because if we succeed, they will succeed and we will succeed as well.
Do you think entrepreneurship is something that you’re born with or something that you can learn along the way?
Brice Gump: I think it’s more of an ability than anything else. You can learn how to be an entrepreneur. I don’t think you’re born with those skills. You need to learn how to be more resilient, how to motivate your team, and what your company’s core values are. That will help you grow as an entrepreneur. You learn how to be creative and come up with unique solutions. I don’t think it’s something that you learn in school.
What’s your favorite “leadership” quote and how has it affected the way you implement your leadership style?
Brice Gump: My favorite leadership quote is “Leadership isn’t about titles or position. It’s about one life influencing another.” – John C. Maxwell. I really like this quote because it’s about relationships. For me, leadership is all about helping people do their best. I try to create a friendly atmosphere at work and I always give my team the credit for it. They deserve it because they are the ones who do all of the hard work. It’s tough to follow someone you don’t like! So I think it’s important to build strong relationships with the people around you.
Jed Morley, VIP Contributor to ValiantCEO and the host of this interview would like to thank Brice Gump for taking the time to do this interview and share his knowledge and experience with our readers.
If you would like to get in touch with Brice Gump or his company, you can do it through his – Linkedin Page
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