Jázmin Hegedűs : Marketing & Tech
When I curated the questions for the conversation, I hadn't realized I was just scratching the surface. I thought I'd speak about what I think is the intersection of tech and marketing, and how I relate to it, and quickly jump into the conversation. This was until I heard the responses and had to take a step back to appreciate the depth of it all. The authenticity and vulnerability in her responses with regard to her journey were remarkable. It reminded me of an article I wrote a couple of month couple of months ago, a piece on the power of storytelling, and this felt like an extension of that. I felt I was taken on a journey of a career filled with passion, authenticity, and drive.
So, marketing, in the labyrinth of modern business, has evolved from a mere tool of persuasion into a captivating narrative that speaks to the heart of consumers. In a world where trends shift rapidly, marketing stands as a timeless testament to the power of human storytelling.
At the center of all this, I feel storytelling is a real star as well. Storytelling is not just limited to a written piece; it's the mere intricacies woven into a design. It's what binds the audience to the heart of the brand, turning products into chapters of an exciting story. It's not about winning writing awards but about sparking an emotional journey that pulls at wallets and heartstrings equally. Yet, without that relatable thread, even the most gripping tale falls flat. Just like at a party where jokes are the currency, in marketing, speaking the audience's language is the secret key that opens the door to a lasting connection. It takes quite a lot to be able to master this kind of skill, and I can't help but applaud the people who work in this.
Many people focus on sales, but the creators who invest in building strong relationships beyond their platforms are the ones driving innovation. Storytelling is a skill, but it takes courage and authenticity to use it to serve others. It's also about purpose—the purpose to connect, inspire, and uplift. The most successful entrepreneurs are the ones who use their stories to attract customers and create new ways of communicating and connecting.
I have rambled enough about my ideas, and with all this being said, I was excited to get into a conversation with Jázmin Hegedűs where she got to give us a broader narrative of how they uncovered an entrepreneurial spirit that drives innovation through the lens of their business.
What inspired you and your boyfriend to combine your expertise in marketing and IT to start your own business, and how has that dynamic played out in your company's success?
We both come from entrepreneurial families, so the will to create something of our own and be our own bosses is in our blood kinda. Over the years, while working exclusively in our own fields, we've noticed that there are a lot of companies that provide IT or marketing services, but once you combine the two, you always bleed somewhere when it comes to a more complex project. We wanted to create a company where team members could combine their different, in-depth IT and marketing experience to be able to offer something unique to our clients.
In a competitive industry like marketing and IT services, how do you differentiate your company and maintain a focus on delivering quality to clients?
To put it simply, we have developers who only build Shopify sites, but we also have developers who develop IT infrastructure for large enterprises on a global scale. In marketing, we range from social media gurus to Google data analysts or exclusive event coordinators. In summary, if a company, be it a small to large business or a sole trader, works with us, we can build and maintain anything from a simple Instagram page to market research, to your own booking system, within a single company. As they say, "The devil is in the details". This is very true in both the IT and marketing worlds. We like to get lost in the details and optimise our projects as much as possible.
You mentioned the importance of refreshing your career after working with well-known brands. How has your experience in Dubai and with your own business differed from your previous roles, and what have you found most fulfilling about it?
I have always been a globetrotter. As early as fourth grade in elementary school - after my first English class - I told my parents that I was going to live abroad, no matter what. Luckily I've been to many countries, thanks to my parents. They gave me the opportunity to experience life outside my little bubble in Hungary, which, while it was perfect, was often boring for me. That's how I ended up at university in Denmark, studying marketing. There I first experienced the beauty and the difficulty of working with different nations and cultures. I was convinced that I needed such a life, but somehow not in the windy Danish weather.
After university, I became a project manager in a Danish company and did freelance marketing projects in my spare time, but I felt that before I moved further away from my family, I wanted to move back home to Hungary for a while. I had planned to spend a year at home, but thanks to the pandemic, it turned out to be 3.5. During that time I worked with various international and Hungarian companies on small and large long-term marketing projects. Although I moved around in different industries (e.g. finance, food and beverage, automotive), I missed the multicultural feeling, meeting new people, positivity, and happiness.
I met my partner during Covid, we spent the whole quarantine thing together - at least we got to quickly test if we could live together, haha - and although our life was very good, the atmosphere around us (not the family, but the country) was negative and depressing. So we decided to move, the only question was: to where? I had never been to Dubai before, David had been many times, so he quickly convinced me that this was the place for us. He was right. This city reminds most people of luxury and money... For me, it’s the sea, the smiling people, the interesting "Dubai smell" in the air that made me feel at home after a few weeks. I feel motivated here, I find myself company, and I simply (I know it's a cliché) feel that I can do anything here.
Any regrets?
Maybe only one. During my first 9 months here I worked as a Marketing Manager at a well-known F&B e-commerce company. I felt that maybe it would be better if I relaxed a bit and worked for someone else instead of my own company. But as the months went by, I felt like I was losing myself, so I finally quit. I don't regret it, because I met great people there and I am incredibly grateful for them, but maybe I could have done it differently.
Managing a small team in both marketing and IT must come with its own set of challenges. How do you foster collaboration and synergy between these two teams to deliver cohesive solutions to your clients?
It's important to note that everyone in our company (except me and my partner) works freelance. Most of them are in Europe and a few are here, so because of the time differences and lack of face-to-face meetings, acceptance, flexibility, and patience are paramount. We are lucky because we have been working with most of the team members for more than 5 years, so we understand each other almost without speaking. Everyone has their own freedom, but also their own responsibilities. We're quite close-knit and new members are always welcome, we're open to new things, whether it's a project or a new team member. When a new trend comes up, like AI, we don't force any developer to learn as much as they can in as little time as possible, but rather hire someone with actual, quality experience. That's how we work in all areas.
Looking back at your journey from working with well-known brands to running your own business, what is the most valuable lesson you've learned about entrepreneurship, and how has it shaped your approach to leadership?
Maybe this one: No matter how much you think you know everything, there must be someone else who can show you something new. You shouldn't close yourself off to new opportunities, you shouldn't always be nervous (and I still often can), you should keep improving yourself, put your heart and soul into it, and then believe me, it will all work out, maybe even better than you thought. If something bumps me, my partner always tells me to think back to a year or two years ago, where I was, and how I felt… this helps me to calm down and move forward. Whether you are a leader or an employee, it is continuous improvement that keeps the body and soul awake. I always improve myself and give my team the opportunity to do the same.
Your website is a showcase of your team's creative capabilities. Can you share some insights into the creative process that went into designing and developing your own website from scratch?
Up front, it is important to point out that our website is currently under construction. We have fallen into the typical situation where other companies' websites are up before ours. However, here is an overview: The first step is always to clarify the exact objectives of the project so that we can see the needs through the eyes of the client. Of course, in the case of our own site this was given, the aim is to showcase our most exciting specialty: We cover two areas of specialized services within one company, which always overlap to some degree in the majority of projects. We wanted visitors to be able to quickly understand what our business does and like what they see.
Our designers used visually appealing colors that evoke the sea, waves, and sand. There are two reasons for this: One is that we're based in Dubai, a maritime city, and the other is that our slogan "Ride the digital wave with us" refers to the sea. We guarantee that all our customers will learn to surf the waves of the digital sea and can always count on us for a break on shore. Based on our current project load, our own site will be ready by the end of the year, complete with sub-pages and most of our references. So stay tuned!
With the fast pace of change in the marketing and IT industries, how do you encourage continuous learning and creative thinking among your team members to stay ahead of the curve?
As I mentioned before, everyone except me and my partner are freelancers, so they have their own freedom. They can work when and where they want. For us, it's important that the work is done on time and the quality is impeccable. If someone in the team is hiking in the mountains all day and feels inspired to work in the evening after clearing their head, no problem. The only exceptions are the fixed meetings, but apart from that we are completely flexible. It helps everyone not to feel overwhelmed. Even though they are freelancers, there is a team spirit. We go to trainings and conferences together, whether online or in person.
Looking back at your journey from working with established brands to running your own business, how has your perspective on creativity evolved, and how do you stay inspired to generate fresh ideas?
When I was a beginner, I often felt a feeling similar to envy when I saw a very cool marketing campaign or website that I hadn't created. That has now completely changed. I feel a sense of wonder, excitement, and motivation when I see something like this and I am open to learning and improving.
In Unscripted fashion, if we had 5 websites in front of us, how would we know which one is yours?
This is an interesting question, our websites focus on 3 things:
- We tailor the right underlying infrastructure for each project.
Even if users do not see what is happening in the background, their impression will immediately be influenced by the duration it takes to load the website. Each scenario might require a different setup to have the best performance possible. That's where our developers' infrastructure experience comes in, alongside their programming knowledge. They will ensure the websites will load in no time and stay robust even at high demand periods.
- Modern look and feel, using only and exclusively state-of-the-art frameworks.
The second most important factor is what users get to see once the website has loaded. Given current trends, a mobile view is just as important (if not more) as a desktop view, so we start with a mobile-first approach from the very beginning of the development and then scale that to create bigger screen optimized versions. All of that by using modern and well-performing frameworks in addition with customised graphics and animations to make the site as unique as possible.
- Our mission is to create websites that provide an intuitive, seamless user experience.
It is very important to give users the piece of information they need, while also presenting a call to action, without being too intrusive. With the help of our marketing analysts, we can evaluate the user sessions and fine-tune the sites to get as much value from the websites as possible.
Any final thoughts?
Everyone knows that Dubai is a great community for startups and many come here to start a new life.
We remember what it was like for us to start and we know exactly what it's like to lay the groundwork for something new, whether it's a business or a life. We also know that in both cases there are significant costs involved. That's why we decided to take a new approach to the end of 2023 and do it while our capacity allows: we want to help start-ups build their online strategy and then implement it in steps that their budget allows. What do I mean by that? We first ask them for their comfortable spend and build from there, we don't use our package fee with them. As their revenue grows, we add new elements to the strategy, creating a phased, stable, realistic, and profitable digital strategy. No matter if you have 1000 or 10000 dirhams to start with, you can count on us! As Bill Gates said, "If your business is not on the internet, then your business will be out of business."
