Thanks to his multiple successes, Nicholas Brill is held in high regard in the marketing industry. Brill’s passion for marketing began during his formative years. It led him to pursue a degree in business administration with a major in marketing, followed by an MBA focusing on marketing and strategic planning. After graduation, Brill worked for a top marketing and P.R. firm in New York City, where his exceptional skills quickly propelled him up the ranks. In 2017, he founded Brill Marketing – a full-service agency that provides clients with comprehensive branding, marketing, and advertising solutions. Under his leadership, the agency has grown steadily and today counts over 50 corporate clients, including a Fortune 100 company. Besides running a successful company, Brill is also a philanthropist who believes in giving back to the community. He has worked with numerous charities and non-profit organizations and has donated his time and resources to many causes. Brill’s philanthropy is driven by his desire to make a difference. He has been instrumental in supporting numerous initiatives that have had a positive impact on the lives of others. From providing financial support to food banks and homeless shelters to helping fund medical research, Nicholas Brill’s philanthropy has made a lasting difference in many people’s lives. In addition to his work with charities, Nicholas Brill also volunteers his time to other worthy courses. He has served as a mentor for young people and has been involved in several environmental initiatives.Â
As an entrepreneur, you are involved in marketing consultancy for multiple companies, can you tell us a little about yourself and how you got to where you are today?
My name is Nicholas Brill, and I am the founder and CEO of Brill Marketing. I am the third born in a family of five, and I grew up in Brooklyn. I had a pretty normal childhood, and my family was always supportive, including supporting my decision to pursue a degree in business administration. To get to where I am is a result of hard work and a passion for marketing. I fell in love with marketing right from my first year in college, chose it as my major, and graduated among the top students in my class. I then did my MBA, focusing on marketing and strategic planning. My good academic credentials landed me a job at one of the best marketing consultancy firms in NYC. I worked there for five years and managed to reach top management. However, after five years at one company, I wanted a new experience which is how Brill Marketing was born.
How did your background in marketing set the stage for your expertise as a top marketing consultant? Â
My academic background in marketing has played a massive role in the person I am today. That’s because I learned the core principles of marketing, and most of them are what I apply in my company today. Through academics, I also learned key business principles such as customer acquisition and retention strategies, strategies that have been instrumental in my career, including in my current life as the CEO of a marketing consultancy firm. For you to excel in any field, you need to have the relevant skills for that industry. Otherwise, you won’t compete.
Was it difficult to get started?
Starting my business was not difficult. That’s because I started a business that was fully within my skill set. The only thing that changed is that I transitioned from working under someone to being the boss. That said, it was not all rosy. I learned that besides having the skills to get the job done, you need multiple skills to run a successful company. I struggled a bit, but I perfected my art over time, and here I am today.
What is your vision goal for Brill Marketing in 2023?
We have a lot planned for H2 of 2023. In H1, we implemented an A.I. system that we can use to make the most of big data and predict trends in their early stages. We hope to roll it across all our service offerings and give our customers better services than we have ever done in the past. It’s part of our vision to always remain on the cutting edge of technology, for the benefit of our customers.
We are also in the process of implementing technologies that can magnify the operational efficiency of our team. The goal is to ensure that we can take on even more jobs and deliver the same level of quality that we have in the past. We anticipate this to help us grow revenues by 25% by H2 of 2023.
What inspired you to start your career as a marketing consultant?Â
Growing up, I had two relatives that worked at some of the world’s best marketing and P.R. agencies. This motivated me to pursue a degree in business management, major in marketing, and then later land an excellent job at a top agency. However, the motivation to start my company was a little different. I simply wanted freedom. The freedom to make decisions and own my successes and failures. Thankfully, this has come true, and I love every bit of the career path I chose.
Were there any difficulties you had in the course of your journey?
The schooling part was fun, and so was the time I spent working at a marketing firm in New York. The difficulties came when I started my own company. At this point, I realized that my marketing prowess was just a small part of the equation. I now had to think about revenues, salaries, managing both employees and clients, among many other things. In the first year, it was hell, but being the resilient person I am, I soldiered on, and by year two, I was entirely on top of things.
The other challenge came during the COVID-19 lockdowns. This was an unprecedented event, and suddenly I had to choose between company survival and cutting costs by letting go of some of our employees.
Thankfully, it’s all over now, and we have recalled all the staff we had to let go. We are also better prepared should such an issue ever happen again.
As a director of Brill Marketing, what is the important takeaway (your goal) for the company that you want people to know about?
Our goal is to become the best marketing firm in the U.S. We take pride in helping our clients implement the most effective marketing strategies for their business needs and intend to keep doing so going into the future. Anyone reading this, whether a big corporate or just a small startup, should visit Brill Marketing for the best marketing services around.
You are actively involved with a charity event to help educate the local homeless children. Kindly tell us more about it.
I have always loved helping the needy in society, especially children. I believe children are the future and deserve to be given quality education to become the best versions of themselves in the future. You never know, maybe some poor kid somewhere could come up with a cure for cancer but is too poor to get the education needed.
What obstacles have you faced in the pursuit of being an entrepreneur, and how did you overcome them?
The biggest obstacle is convincing the big companies that we can serve their needs, just like the large marketing firms can do. We have managed to get most of our companies through creative cold pitching and a portfolio that speaks well of our prowess. We now have a Fortune 100 company in our portfolio, and having them in our portfolio is opening many doors for us.
Do you have a message you would like to share with our readers who are aspiring to get into entrepreneurship?
I would urge them to always have the latest information about industry trends. Unless you have in-depth knowledge of the ins and outs of your industry, it will be hard for you to compete. It’s even harder when you’re a startup. I would also urge upcoming entrepreneurs to be persistent in whatever endeavor they choose. Entrepreneurship is not easy, and if you are a quitter, the chances are that you won’t make it.
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