Keith Heavilin Interview – Helping Small Businesses Survive and Thrive during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Today we have selected Keith Heavilin To to take his Interview. He is The President & Founder of YellowFin Digital.

First of all, how are you and your team doing in these COVID-19 times?

We are thriving luckily! We have been focused on eCommerce clients for years and with the pandemic, they need a strong digital presence now more than ever to get in front of customers actively looking for their products. Our team has stayed healthy and we are very thankful for that.

Tell us about you, your career, how you founded or joined this company?

Frustration from a lack of communication and flexibility when working with other digital agencies servicing businesses that I was managing is what led me to start my own digital marketing company. Most digital agencies hide behind smoke and mirrors, never being completely honest about what they are doing and when they will be done. They take your money and tell you to trust them. We offer full transparency, meet our deadlines, and offer measurable results. I am personally available to my clients, oftentimes after hours. Our client’s success is our success, so we work passionately to help them reach their goals. ALWAYS.

How does your company innovate?

We call people back! We hear over and over from potential clients that others in our industry often offer poor communications leading to confusion and frustration. We pride ourselves on our accessibility and next-level communication. That shouldn’t be an innovation, but with the world leaning towards less and less personal contact, we deliver more.

How the coronavirus pandemic affects your business, and how are you coping?

We have continued to thrive throughout the pandemic, but we know it has hit small businesses hardest. We use our successful digital strategies to continue to help our clients survive and thrive. We thank God for his blessings and pray that we are able to continue generously help other small businesses around us.

Did you have to make difficult choices, and what are the lessons learned?

Fortunately, we haven’t had to make many difficult choices, aside from who we were going to hire as we continue to grow. That said, all business owners make tough choices, not just during a pandemic, we learn and grow from them daily. The reason we are able to help other small businesses is that we understand how hard owning a small business can be.

What specific tools, software, and management skills are you using to navigate this crisis?

YellowFin Digital has always operated with an all-remote team (even before it was cool). We use Slack and Monday.com to manage our projects and communication. Our clients have dedicated project managers to ensure they have the main point of the contact person to contact to help when they have any questions.

Who are your competitors? And how do you plan to stay in the game?

There are dozens and dozens of digital agencies throughout every city in the country. They are competing in that they offer the same services we do, but oftentimes, we find that our “competitors” simply don’t have the same offering for the same clients as we do and we can actually refer business to one other based on our strengths.  We are a bit picky when it comes to partnering with new clients. We make sure that the partnership is beneficial for both the client and YellowFin Digital. If a potential client doesn’t seem like the best fit because of their industry, budget, or size of the company, we will refer them to another agency that is better suited to help this client find success.  We truly believe that a rising tide lifts all boats and when we work together with our “competition” everyone wins.

Your Final Thoughts

Our goal is to help other small businesses grow by taking advantage of the digital tools available to them. Partnering with business owners/managers that share our core values of Honesty, Integrity, Excellent Communication, Flexibility and Grit, have helped us succeed in this goal. We hope to have continued success for years to come.

• Spokesperson: Keith Heavilin
• Company: YellowFin Digital
• Website: https://www.yellowfindigital.com/