We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Jordan Henderson. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Jordan below.

Jordan, appreciate you joining us today. Looking back, do you think you started your business at the right time? Do you wish you had started sooner or later

From a young age, I always knew I wanted to start my own business. Both of my parents are entrepreneurs, so I grew up watching them pursue their endeavors and knew I wanted to follow in their footsteps. However, I wasn’t sure when that would happen. I always imagined it would be in my 30s or 40s.

When I graduated from college, the economic pressures, cost of living, and tough market for entrepreneurs led me to seek a corporate job for “security.” Fortunately, I didn’t go straight to a Fortune 500 company with thousands of employees; instead, I worked for a startup.

The key word here is startup, and they don’t always succeed. After my stint at the startup, I moved to a large corporation with over 1,000 employees. It was there that I began to seriously doubt whether working for someone else was right for me.

Then, the decision was made for me when I was laid off during a round of economic layoffs. I found myself at a crossroads: either apply to hundreds of corporate jobs again or start my own business.

I thankfully chose the latter. Although the journey has not been easy, I wholeheartedly wish I had done it sooner. Building my business to where it is now has been incredibly rewarding. I control my fate and decide how much or how little I want to grow. I truly believe everyone should consider entrepreneurship.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I started Lee Creative actually back in 2020 right before the pandemic hit in the US, but I began to pursue it full-time in March of 2023. I am originally from Birmingham, AL, and graduated from Mississippi State University in 2021 with a degree in Digital Marketing and Entrepreneurship (so quite literally what I am doing now).

Lee Creative, located in Denver, CO, is a female-owned and operated creative agency dedicated to empowering small businesses throughout the US through innovative creativity and meaningful connections. We offer comprehensive services in social media management, branding, content strategy, and more!

The biggest complaint I’ve heard across the board from when I started my business to now is the lack of personalization and genuine understanding in creating content for businesses online. Early on, I realized that many larger marketing agencies love to upsell. They promise to handle your website, ads, SEO, and throw in social media management for “free”.

While this might seem like a great deal, social media cannot be an afterthought. Often, these agencies schedule posts months in advance and never revisit them. They’re not actually logged into your account on a phone, which leaves little room for personalization, real-time updates, or using native tools effectively. My business model focuses on ensuring that everything is managed meticulously, with no missed opportunities to engage in real-time.

Moreover, these agencies often neglect a critical aspect of social media: engagement.

One of the key points I emphasize to potential clients is that we manage your accounts daily. We interact with others, respond to comments and messages, and add a personal touch—this is the essence of social media, connecting with others.

Recently, I’ve heard horror stories from business owners who hired low-cost “social media managers,” expecting their social media presence to flourish. It’s tough to see their disappointment when I explain that their current efforts might be doing more harm than good.

There’s a significant difference between posting on social media just to check a box and hiring someone who truly understands digital marketing. Investing in your digital marketing is worth it. You won’t have to worry about the quality of your content, what to post, or what the captions should say with Lee Creative. Our team is small, so we’ll never charge you the ridiculous rates these larger agencies demand for low-quality content. With us, you get high-quality, personalized service at a fair price.

You can see our services, portfolio, case studies, and more at www.leecreative.co

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

When I was little, my father always repeated one thing to me: “Jordan, it’s all about who you know and how you make them feel.”

I make sure to practice what I preach. I’m heavily involved in my own social media channels to establish credibility, but I also surround myself with other business owners and leaders who can help, teach, and guide me.

One of the biggest assets you have is the power of networking. We hear it all the time, but it’s so true. I’ve gained numerous new clients through referrals, networking groups, and simply by being kind. Even if someone doesn’t convert immediately, they often value the impression I leave and refer me to others who do convert.

Kindness and networking create a domino effect in my industry and align with my core values. It’s not hard to be a team player, be kind to everyone you meet regardless of the circumstances, and offer guidance and support through mentorship.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

I honestly think my whole life has been a case of resilience up until this point. I am an only child so I often had to stand up for myself, put myself out there a lot more growing up than others to make friends, and had to get creative spending a lot of time on my own. I was bullied in middle school but continued to work hard at my grades and focus on my sports.

All my life I played competitive soccer. I made the Varsity team as a freshman and was captain in my Senior year of high school. I also played club soccer at a high level and almost every weekend traveled to a new state for a tournament. In my freshman year of high school, I blew my right knee. I tore my ACL, MCL, and meniscus. I was young and healthy, so I completed physical therapy in 6 months and was back on the field!

Fast forward to my Junior year of high school, almost 2 years exactly to the day, I was away at a club tournament again, and I blew my left knee. Same scenario: ACL, MCL, and meniscus. I also completed physical therapy in 6 months, but the stakes were different this time around. Junior year marked the year when your collegiate recruiting journey picked up. After I returned to play, I began to realize that I had dedicated 15 years to this sport, but I began to wonder if this was what I wanted to do; play in college. I ultimately decided what was right for me was to end my recruiting journey and just apply to schools and be a “regular student”. During this time as well I began to hone in on another thing I always loved: marketing.

Luckily, my high school at the time had opportunities for students to take business classes before college so I did this for all 4 years in high school. The final class in my senior year of high school was an entrepreneurship course and you had to come up with a business idea to submit and then pitch to a statewide competition. The invention I created at the time was a direct result of blowing both knees. I created a medical device invention that helped patients post-knee surgery with their rehab. I submitted my invention to the statewide competition that thousands of students across the state enter and was selected out of about 7 students to pitch in front of a pane of judges.

Long story short, I won the high school competition and used the results to then take my idea to my college and began to enter pitch competitions there as well. I won several pitch competitions in college and ultimately it all worked out in my favor to not play soccer in college and pursue business because it all led me to where I am now.

After graduating college, I did, however, end up pursuing the corporate route. My role out of college relocated me to Denver, so that is actually how I got here. I had never even traveled to Colorado before I moved here, but I knew I wanted to work hard and work in marketing, so that is what I did. After living in Denver for 6 months working for the startup, I was let go. I was devasted, I was confused, and couldn’t believe I just uprooted my life to be let go. After a couple of months, I found a new role with another (larger) tech company. I was there for 8 months and then was also let go in early 2023 when this company did a round of economic layoffs.

This is what sparked me to tie in everything I had ever learned to start Lee Creative and lead me to where I am now. Fully self-funded. Fully operational. And I wouldn’t change my journey for the world.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.leecreative.co
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leecreativeco/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/leecreativeco.us
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jordan-h-908840115/
• Other: TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@leecreativeco

Image Credits

All rights are my own.