Monster executive refuels for mission
Steve Pogorzelski isn’t zipping around the world in a corporate jet anymore or kicking back in a huge office like he had as president of Monster.com, but he’s having a lot more fun.
He’s gone from running a company with a massive marketing budget and hundreds of employees to one that has just 20 employees locally and very little money for advertising – and he couldn’t be happier.
Pogorzelski is pouring his energy into building ClickFuel, a small business that helps other small and midsize businesses navigate the complex world of Internet marketing. It reminds him of the early days at Monster; shortly after, the Web site exploded into the public consciousness with an attention-grabbing Super Bowl ad.
Monster has become one of the top job-search sites in the world and one of the most recognizable brand names on the Internet. Pogorzelski has similar dreams for ClickFuel.
Pogorzelski left after more than a decade at Monster following management changes. He spent some time reconnecting with his family, working with charities and doing some consulting work.
Then he got bored. Real bored. Bored enough to hunt around for another corporate job. That was until he met Colby West.
West had a vision to set up a one-stop Internet marketing shop for small businesses. He envisioned a company that would provide Web sites, help companies get hooked up with online advertising and set up on the appropriate social-networking sites. There’s plenty of competition, but it’s fragmented and there are few recognizable names. “I liked his vision and his enthusiasm for the space,” Pogorzelski said. In fact, he liked it so much that he pulled out of his corporate job hunt to join the company. He brought over talent that helped build Monster and went to work on a plan to differentiate ClickFuel. The first step was to develop a sales team that would help get the word out about the service. The next step was to develop a separate team of account representatives who would be dedicated to individual clients. The intention is to offer the level of service of a larger corporation combined with the personal attention of a smaller shop.
Meanwhile, the company developed proprietary tools such as the “Fuel Station,” which allows customers to better monitor traffic and see where leads are coming from. The goal is to hang on to clients as they grow and need more services. The challenge is standing out in the crowd and getting the word out.
In some ways, the recession has made it harder because some companies are scaling back on all their advertising. Other companies, however, see the Internet as a way to use their advertising dollars more efficiently.
This time, it’s not about building a consumer brand like Monster. Instead, it’s more of a customer-centric approach that relies heavily on referrals.
The team is also working on developing partnerships with big companies, such as Intuit, that can help reach customers. Intuit has added a feature to QuickBooks that will allow users to integrate the information they get from ClickFuel’s Fuel Station.
It might be easier to get the word out with a big ad budget, but Pogorzelski said he likes it better this way. Everyone around him is invested in helping the company grow, and they’re excited about the possibilities.
That makes it more of a mission than just another job.
