Jennifer Myers Ward Of ebove & beyond: Why We Need More Women Founders & Here Is What We Are Doing To Make That Happen
An Interview With Vanessa Ogle
Always challenge yourself and look for new angles. It’s easy to get caught in a rut doing thje same things the same way, day after day. Find some time every day to go for a walk or just allow yourself to think about things in a different light.
As a part of our series about “Why We Need More Women Founders”, I had the pleasure of interviewing Jennifer Myers Ward.
Jennifer Myers Ward is founder and CEO of ebove & beyond, a boutique online marketing agency specializing in personalized strategies for ecommerce brands to bring them more qualified traffic and increase revenue. Operating for more than 20 years, Ward began as a solopreneur and quickly grew her business to a lean-and-mean team of six serving clients nationwide. She has received various awards for her work, including Agency of the Year, Female Power Player, Top 10 Woman Leader and Top Digital Marketing Agency.
Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dig in, our readers would like to get to know you a bit more. Can you tell us a bit about your “backstory”? What led you to this particular career path?
Well, having studied journalism, marketing was a very natural career path for me to follow. I love traveling and was fortunate to land a job working for Amazon in the UK, first on their associates program, then in email marketing, and then in business/partner development. I loved my time at Amazon; it definitely helped me gain a greater understanding of ecommerce. After almost 4 years in Europe, my visa was not renewed so I had to head back to the States. I was offered a position at Amazon in Seattle; however after spending a few years in cold, rainy London, I desperately needed some sunshine and warmer weather, so I took a job in Florida. I worked for 2 years as a VP of ecommerce for a jewelry company, helping them develop and grow the online division of the company. We were very successful in a short period of time; however I kept getting inquiries from friends and business contacts asking if I could help them with their online initiatives. It was the end of 2002, and my online knowledge from Amazon appeared to be in demand and I was interested in going out on my own. So, I decided to trust my gut and branch out on my own to help retailers grow their online businesses. And as they say, the rest is history, ebove & beyond was born.
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began your career?
When I first started off on my own, I really had to be creative because funds were tight. I had no investors or a business loan; I just had the money I had saved from my time in Europe. I was lucky enough to land my first client in January 2003, but I knew I needed to get out there and meet more people to help build my network and continue to grow my business. Trade shows were the way to do just that; the only hang up was money. I had lots of points from hotels and airlines, so I used those to get myself to as many trade shows as I could find. But then, it got down to the ticket for the show and that’s where it got pricey for me. So, I was resourceful and little did I know I was doing “Lobby-con” before it was even a thing. I would book my room in the conference hotel and hang out in the lobby, restaurant, bar and all around the building where the show was being held. I made it my job to meet people, learn about their businesses and needs. In addition to having great conversations, I always got business cards from people I met and made notes on the back. Little reminders of what we had talked about, mostly non-business related things like sports teams, travel and so on. Then, on my plane ride home, I wrote handwritten thank-you notes to everyone I met and thanked them for their time. It was a great way to keep my name in front of them and really make a solid first impression. It worked out well; I made so many great contacts that led to further conversations and eventually new clients! Years later, an industry friend, who became a client, told me he still has the card he received from me on a bulletin board in his office. He said that he kept it to use as an example to his team to show them how important relationships are and how much of an impact a personal touch can have.
Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?
The funniest mistake I made was when I was first starting out. I had just finished a call with a guy that had been referred to me by another one of my clients. I was super excited, we were just finishing up the call, and as we were saying goodbye, I said, “Love you.” It’s how I end phone calls with my family and I had just gotten off a call with my dad prior to this call in which he had been wishing me luck. So the guy says, “Thanks again, bye,” and I say, “No problem, love you.” GULP. We both hung up, so I had to call him back immediately to explain why I had said what I said. We had a good laugh and, yes, I did end up getting that client and had him for many years 🙂
None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?
Ironically, it is not someone in my industry that helped me get where I am today. It goes back further than that, back to 1974. It’s my dad; I’m so grateful to my dad. He’s my motivation and has given me strength and guidance every step of the way as I’ve built my company over more than 20 years now. He’s a retired CIO and currently chairman of the board for a large credit union in Florida. But he started out working in a plant and taking on multiple jobs, working his way up the ladder. He taught me to always step up to challenges, give all you have to everything you do, and my go-getter attitude and business acumen come directly from him. I’m one of four girls, and he instilled in us all that we could be anything we wanted, no matter what, even if it involved some uncertainty or risk. How I do business today, my assurance and my tenacity, all comes from him.
Is there a particular book that made a significant impact on you? Can you share a story or explain why it resonated with you so much?
I’m not a big reader, but I did enjoy Seth Godin’s book “Purple Cow” back in the early 2000s. I actually met him at a conference he spoke at back in 2005 and he gave me a signed a copy of it (I had started ebove & beyond not too long before, in 2003). It’s a great resource for how to stand out and be noticed, be remarkable instead remaining invisible. I still use some of the nuggets that I learned from that book as I continue to navigate the business world today.
Do you have a favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Do you have a story about how that was relevant in your life or your work?
“Doing what you like is freedom. Liking what you do is happiness.” — Frank Tyger
I learned at a relatively young age, when I lost my mom, that things happen to us in life that can be devastating and are not in our control. So, I quickly realized that we should spend our time doing what we enjoy and liking what you do. I used this when I made the decision to go out on my own with ebove & beyond. I wanted to feel a greater sense of enjoyment and satisfaction from my job than I was getting at the time. So, I set off on my own to find joy and happiness in my work, in how my company was run, in the culture that I created and surrounded by people whom I loved working with.
How have you used your success to make the world a better place?
I believe I have used my success along the way to make small changes to improve the world, or, at least the lives of a few people along the way. I have donated money to organizations that matter to me, I have helped mentor recent college students along the way, and I take pride in the culture I have created at ebove & beyond. We currently work a 4-day workweek every week, so everyone has a “long” weekend every weekend to ensure they can spend time with friends and family and do the things that make them happy…and we have seen no drop-off whatsoever in our client management or success.
Ok, thank you for that. Let’s now jump to the primary focus of our interview. According to this EY report, only about 20 percent of funded companies have women founders. This reflects great historical progress, but it also shows that more work still has to be done to empower women to create companies. In your opinion and experience what is currently holding back women from founding companies?
I truly believe it’s about breaking society’s antiquated gender roles. Even today, there are still some who think women don’t need a career, that they’re wasting their time by trying and should “get back to the kitchen”, so to speak. This sort of mentality was woven into a college graduation speech from an athlete just this year, so I am not referring to the 1950s or 60s here. There’s still a subtext of sorts where females are not seen as being powerful, business owners or CEOs. I hear it all the time at conferences and trade shows, as well as conversations in my own personal life. I recently had one of my husband’s friends ask me who the boys high school lacrosse coach was; he said that someone had given him some lady’s name. I quickly confirmed the name he had received was indeed the coach. He only questioned it because it was a woman. It’s so ingrained in our culture that women are expected to take care of the house, the family, home life, etc. And who wouldn’t want to take care of their family, man or woman? But it is naturally assumed the women is the one responsible for those duties, which leaves us pulled in two directions (home and career). It can feel like we have to choose one thing over the other. We know we don’t. But it just takes more tenacity and determination to be amazing at both!
Can you share with our readers what you are doing to help empower women to become founders?
It starts at home for me. I have a 14-year-old daughter and I have had my business longer than she has been alive. It is important to me to show her she has options and that she can be a successful business woman while still also being a mom. I encourage her to trust her instincts and judgment in what she pursues. I remind her that she is capable of anything she sets her mind to. On the business front, I’ve hired brilliant women to be part of my team, putting them in positions of authority, knowing that they are capable of great things, which translates to success for our clients and the business.
This might be intuitive to you but I think it will be helpful to spell this out. Can you share a few reasons why more women should become founders?
It is absolutely imperative that more women step into leadership roles, whether those be in business, politics, their communities, etc. Becoming a founder is a unique way to be a part of something bigger than yourself and is very empowering. I believe women have a way of implementing ideas and creating new opportunities by incorporating the right balance between strength, intelligence and empathy.
Can you please share 5 things that can be done or should be done to help empower more women to become founders?
1. Remind them to get out there, don’t be afraid.
This is the biggest and most important thing I tell people. Don’t ever hesitate to step forward and take a risk. It will always pay off, even if the results aren’t immediate or what you expect. If it is important to you or you believe in something, fight for it…stand behind it.
2. Push the limits, think outside the box…get creative!
Always challenge yourself and look for new angles. It’s easy to get caught in a rut doing thje same things the same way, day after day. Find some time every day to go for a walk or just allow yourself to think about things in a different light.
3. Meet people, learn from them, and see if there’s anything you can do to help them in their business or in life.
Be sure to build true relationships, keep up with people and stay in touch. I pride myself on the relationships I have, they are true relationships. I keep in touch with people I met back in 2003, I have attended weddings of some of those people, met up with them on vacations and even been to their kids’ bar mitzvahs!
4. Surround yourself with people who scare you, meaning bring people to your team that you feel are smarter than you or know more than you do.
Be intimidated by them. It’s ok. You will learn from them and continue to grow as a leader and as a person. I have done this 100%, I hire people who know more than me, people I can learn from and people who will be able to do things I can’t do as well.
5. Create a true work-life balance.
This is a must for true success. Don’t miss out on your kids growing up or your own personal well-being by immersing yourself in business all the time. Create time to be both a career woman in the business world and a Mom in your own family world.
You are a person of great influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good for the greatest number of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger.
Because I have a daughter, I want her to have opportunities. I would start a movement to promote and encourage women in leadership. I would look to increase the number of women in leadership roles across various sectors and in a variety of businesses, especially those typically dominated by men. I would introduce mentoring programs with women in a variety of career fields, leadership training, and advocacy for policies that support women in leadership. I would like to see more of a focus on this type of education within our colleges and universities as well as our military.
We are very blessed that some very prominent names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US with whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this if we tag them.
That would have to be Ruth Bader Ginsberg (who, of course, will not see this). She argued landmark cases in the Supreme Court, worked tirelessly to advance women’s rights, and led in the fight against gender discrimination in her field. It would be so interesting to talk to her, because of her powerful manner, how she made things happen, the way she didn’t take anything from anyone. I’d love to hear the stories that pushed her to the point of taking on her position, as a woman justice, when that wasn’t the thing for women to do. It would be amazing.
How can our readers further follow your work online?
They can visit eboveandbeyond.com or follow me on social media: LinkedIn in/jennifermyersward, Facebook and Instagram @eboveandbeyond
Thank you for these fantastic insights. We greatly appreciate the time you spent on this.
About The Interviewer: Vanessa Ogle is a mom, entrepreneur, inventor, writer, and singer/songwriter. Vanessa’s talent in building world-class leadership teams focused on diversity, a culture of service, and innovation through inclusion allowed her to be one of the most acclaimed Latina CEO’s in the last 30 years. She collaborated with the world’s leading technology and content companies such as Netflix, Amazon, HBO, and Broadcom to bring innovative solutions to travelers and hotels around the world. Vanessa is the lead inventor on 120+ U.S. Patents. Accolades include: FAST 100, Entrepreneur 360 Best Companies, Inc. 500 and then another six times on the Inc. 5000. Vanessa was personally honored with Inc. 100 Female Founder’s Award, Ernst and Young’s Entrepreneur of the Year Award, and Enterprising Women of the Year among others. Vanessa now spends her time sharing stories to inspire and give hope through articles, speaking engagements and music. In her spare time she writes and plays music in the Amazon best selling new band HigherHill, teaches surfing clinics, trains dogs, and cheers on her children.
Please connect with Vanessa here on linkedin and subscribe to her newsletter Unplugged as well as follow her on Substack, Instagram, Facebook, and X and of course on her website VanessaOgle.
Jennifer Myers Ward Of ebove & beyond: Why We Need More Women Founders & Here Is What We Are Doing… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.