We were lucky to catch up with Abbie Young recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Abbie thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Alright, let’s take a stroll on memory lane, back to when you were an apprentice or intern. What’s a memorable story from that time that you can share with us?

When I think back to my version of an “internship,” it was really when I first started my own business. I didn’t have the safety net of a structured program or guaranteed paycheck. I just KNEW I wanted to build something, so I took every job I could find, even if it paid little or nothing.

At that stage, it wasn’t about the money; it was about learning. I taught myself everything I could- SEO, social, ads, web design- by doing it hands-on for real businesses.

The turning point came when I started seeing results: clients ranking on Google, traffic growing, and sales climbing. That’s when I realized the value of my work and began charging accordingly. But I never forgot those early days where I had to “go and get it.”

Starting my business was a risk, and the only way forward was to adapt quickly and prove myself. Word of mouth grew from there, and that scrappy, figure-it-out mindset has shaped the way I lead teams and clients today. I value resourcefulness, resilience, and making things happen, even when the path isn’t clear. Pave your own path until you figure it out!

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I started in this industry the way a lot of entrepreneurs do- by rolling up my sleeves and figuring it out as I went. When I launched Young Media Agency, I didn’t have a long client list or a big marketing budget. What I did have was a willingness to take every job I could, whether it paid well, paid little, or even nothing at all, because I knew the experience would be priceless. In those early days, I treated every project like a classroom- learning SEO by ranking real businesses, learning social media strategy by building accounts from scratch, and learning paid media by testing campaigns until they produced real results.

That foundation shaped the way I run my business today. Now, I provide full-scale marketing strategy and execution for startups and growing businesses, with a focus on digital growth. My services include SEO, paid media, web design, content creation, and social media management, all tied together with a strategic framework that prioritizes measurable results.

The problems I solve for my clients are often the same ones I faced when I started: how to stand out in crowded markets, how to scale from zero visibility to strong revenue, and how to make marketing dollars stretch as far as possible.

What sets me apart is that I’ve lived the “from scratch” journey so many of my clients are on. I know what it’s like to build a brand with no playbook, no investors, and no safety net. That experience makes me scrappy, adaptable, and relentlessly focused on ROI. I’ve taken businesses like Nashville Experience Tours from nothing to becoming one of the top-ranked tour companies in the city, and helped local service businesses grow into six-figure operations through targeted strategies. I don’t just deliver campaigns; I build growth engines.

I’m most proud of the fact that so much of my business has grown through word of mouth. To me, that says I’m not just delivering results, I’m delivering trust and long-term value. The main thing I want potential clients to know is this: I understand where you are, and I know how to get you where you want to be. My brand is about building sustainable growth, creating opportunities, and giving businesses the tools to compete and win.

Can you tell us the story behind how you met your business partner?

I once read the advice to “hire carefully and fire quickly,” and that’s shaped how I’ve built my team. For me, the right partners aren’t just about skills on paper; they’re about energy, hunger, and fit. I actually met all of my team members on gig platforms like Upwork. To me, that was a positive sign right away: these were people who were active, motivated, and hungry for work.

When I identify potential candidates, I don’t rely on resumes alone. I review profiles, case studies, and then assign practice projects (real work, with real pay), but with the understanding that it’s a one-time project to see if we’re a good match. Watching how someone handles a project independently, then how they collaborate with me, tells me everything I need to know.

I need a team that’s fast-paced, results-driven, and eager to learn. Most importantly, they need to make my life and the client experience easier, not harder. That’s the measure I use, and it’s been a game-changer for my business. Today we’re a lean, five-person team that shares the same drive and commitment to results, and that process of careful selection is exactly how I found my business partners.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

Resilience, for me, has always meant betting on myself when the outcome wasn’t guaranteed. When I first launched Young Media Agency, I had no funding, no client pipeline, and no safety net. I took every job I could, sometimes free, sometimes for very little because I knew the experience would build both my skills and my reputation.

There were moments where it would have been easier to quit (especially as a single mom building my business), but I kept going, and that persistence is what changed everything.

Another example is Nashville Experience Tours. They started as a brand-new business with zero presence, and in a market packed with competitors, the odds were against us. I built their website, ran SEO, managed ads, and launched influencer campaigns. Within a year, they were ranking #1 on Google for competitive keywords, and by year two, the business had grown by 350%. That kind of growth doesn’t happen without resilience, testing, adapting, and staying the course when things get hard.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.youngmediaagency.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/youngmediaagency/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/abbieleigh1189/

Image Credits

Photos credit of Young Media Agency 2025