Enterprenuer
Jay Richards, founder of Imagen Insights, a qualitative and quantitative insight sourcing company from the global Gen Z community.
Imagen Insights is a Forbes 30under30 named company and a Mediatel’s Future Leader finalist for 2020.
He credits his Business Studies teacher from school for helping him find the right direction in entrepreneurship and now wants to offer opportunities to Gen Z.
What is the story of the idea for Insights?
In secondary school, I was a good student at being bad. I got into trouble quite often.
My entrepreneurial spirit and business mind were encouraging.
This inspired me to pursue a Business Studies degree.
I then started my career in sales in the City of London.
When I started working, I wanted to do more than work.
I wanted to be able to help students and give back to the community.
This is something I wish I had done when I was studying. Incubating business ideas for students was my first venture.
After speaking at a Facebook event, the National Football League (NFL) reached out to me and wanted to collaborate with me.
They were looking to leverage my connections with secondary school and university students to assist them in marketing.
We knew that we needed something to help us tackle this project of such magnitude, so Cat Agostinho, my co-founder, and I founded Imagen Insights!
How do you stay productive?
I start every day at the gym or Jiu-Jitsu for my mental and physical well-being.
I spend most of my day meeting new potential clients and attending meetings.
As a supporter of our app development, I also attend awards and events.
While it is a lot of work, I use my Trello to prioritize and encourage my team members to do the same.
How do you bring ideas to life?
I am most excited to see them become a reality. We often come up with great ideas, especially during team strategy meetings.
We all come up with great ideas, and then we work together to create the steps needed to make it happen. It is a team effort.
What’s your favorite trend?
As an insight business, we strive to keep up with current trends to stay on top of the latest developments.
We are excited about one thing: Brands realize that Gen Z consumers are the key to long-term success.
They are expected to spend 4.4 trillion dollars in 2030.
We can help by providing them with access to many young, brutally honest people willing to share their opinions with brands.
What habits make you productive?
I am a people person. I love people, and that shines through.
This means that I am productive in building relationships and relationships with people. That is really what it all boils down to.
What’s your advice for the Noob?
Don’t be too hard on yourself. Allow yourself to make mistakes, learn and be patient. It is not so difficult.
What is one thing we can all agree on?
Although brands hate research, it is essential for their business. Without it, they will make a lot of mistakes.
What do you recommend as an entrepreneur?
It’s funny you asked that. For me, consistency and repeating the same thing over and over have brought me success.
It’s about being present, staying focused, and working hard until you succeed or someone remembers.
What’s your rich strategy?
To add value to each person I can, I have found that even the smallest gestures and things I say have helped grow our business.
It doesn’t matter if they become a client or a friend.
How do you overcome Failure?
Yes, I have made a lot of mistakes. I tried to start my business, but I am not competent enough to manage all the details of growing a business.
It has been beneficial to have a co-founder who is exactly my opposite. It’s all about how you learn.
Can you share a business idea?
It would help if you wrote a book about something.
The QR code will allow you to join a community by scanning the QR code.
Each month, you can bring value to their lives by updating your book with new learnings and other information via a newsletter.
Upgrade their subscription to get an additional PS5-10 per month. They will have exclusive access to more content.
What’s your recent best buy?
That’s so easy. I love fashion, and I purchased some off-white dunks.
Since I am very self-assured, these trainers were on me when I spoke at SXSW in Austin, Texas.
What are your favorite Softwares or Apps?
Trello is my biggest fan. The entire team uses it, and it allows us to operate in a way that we don’t have without it.
It helps us keep track of progress and deadlines, and it also allows us to support our team’s workloads.
Which book would you recommend?
Will Smith’s book, “PHENOMENAL,” is a must-read!
What’s your favorite quote?
“Everybody has value” reminds me that regardless of what anyone does, everyone has intrinsic worth and should be treated accordingly.
TL;DR by Jay Richards
By 2030, Gen Z will have massive spending power.
Brands need to consider this in their plans. Imagen Insights can help.
Consistency is crucial when it comes down to winning new business.
Jay is a genuine investor in his employees and has built his business from scratch.
The company and its internal team have thrived using Trello to manage their day-to-day tasks.
Imagen Insights’ mission is to provide Gen Z with a platform for their voices and help them shape their futures.
The business employs Gen Z consultants from more than 20,000 countries.
This creates opportunities to work for paid jobs and creates a dialogue between agencies and brands, giving them access to our community.
Our community of 16-26-year-olds provides feedback, ideas, and insight to help our clients build their brand, marketing, and products.
