Stephanie Sprayregen Of Spray Marketing On How We Can Increase Women’s Engagement in Leadership and Management
An Interview With Vanessa Ogle
Invest time in confidence-building programs or tools. Part of the reason why we see fewer women engage in leadership is that they don’t believe they can. I think it’s important to manifest what you want, which also means believing you are capable. In my own career, I’ve always strived for more (perhaps to my detriment), but it’s the saying of “shoot for the stars, aim for the moon”. Confidence helps generate ideas, positively affect your presence in a boardroom, and helps earn people’s respect.
Despite strides towards equality, women remain underrepresented in leadership and management roles across various sectors. In this series, we would like to discuss the barriers to female advancement in these areas and explore actionable strategies for change. We are talking with accomplished women leaders, executives, and pioneers who have navigated these challenges successfully, to hear their experiences, tactics, and advice to inspire and guide the next generation of women toward achieving their full potential in leadership and management roles. As part of this series, we had the pleasure of interviewing Stephanie Sprayregen.
Stephanie Sprayregen is a digital marketing expert with over 13 years of experience as well as the Founder, CEO of Spray Marketing, a direct-to-expert agency that helps growth stage companies, go-to-market startups, and small to medium size businesses achieve their online goals. She leads a team of expert paid acquisition specialists who provide data-driven solutions in social media marketing, online advertising, SEO, email marketing, and web design. They have worked with brands such as Mielle, Candid, Hampton Water, SuitShop, Ceremonia, Urban Skin Rx, Ever/Body, Chillhouse, Folia Health, and Uplift, and have been recognized by Forbes as one of the top 10 ecommerce marketing agencies in the US. Her mission is to deliver high-quality results and value to her clients, while creating a collaborative and innovative culture within the 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?
I started off my career as a social media manager at a large PR & advertising agency. Shortly after, I realized I wasn’t utilizing the skills I enjoyed — there must be more to digital marketing than writing social captions and responding to brand followers. I wanted to accelerate my digital marketing career and truly understand the data, the performance, and the “why” in strategy. I’ve always had this innate drive to continue to learn, so I ventured off to become a digital marketing manager, where I was a part of the paid media, social, email, and website teams. This is where I got a better grasp of how each of these sectors works together to build a cohesive marketing strategy.
At one point in my career, I did feel like I had imposter syndrome, where I had this large marketing title and responsibility, but I didn’t have the technical knowledge to deeply understand the mechanics of performance marketing. I knew in order to overcome this feeling, I had to become an expert and so I started honing in on my skills and acquiring certifications in marketing channels. From my passion for learning digital marketing to always wanting to be a leader in the field, it’s no real surprise that I started a performance marketing agency.
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began your career?
As an agency owner, I am always looking at ways to operationally improve the efficiency and effectiveness of our team, as well as how to maximize returns. So, I decided to speak with a few other agency owners who have gone through acquisitions and mergers as well as seasoned agency owners who now help grow other agencies. Through my search, I had a very difficult time finding other female-founded agency owners with only 1 in 20 from my anecdotal search. Print Mag states that only 0.1% of ad agency owners are female, so it looks like I got lucky in my search with the one. During my quest to gain industry knowledge from agency leaders, I asked one of the agency owners why the majority of their leadership team were men and if they plan on diversifying their team. It was then that he said, they are actively thinking about this as well, which is why their newest hire was a female who they proceeded to introduce me to on our call. She was their new admin assistant. This is just one example of where I realized that it’s not good enough to just hire women to diversify a workforce, but where there is a real deficit and also understanding, is the lack of women in decision-making roles.
Can you share a pivotal moment in your career that significantly influenced your path to leadership?
To start, I’ve always been extremely driven and dedicated to my work from the get-go. So there wasn’t something that influenced my path to leadership, but there have been smaller experiences that helped fuel the drive even more. One example is when I was a VP of Marketing at a hospitality tech startup, where I reported directly to the Founder, CEO as well as the COO. I remember distinctly when leadership and I were casually speaking, and one of them in the room called out how small in stature I was, as well as how high my voice was, which must made it difficult to command a room. It was a joke that didn’t land with me. At the time, I hadn’t started my agency yet, and was relatively early on in my performance marketing career, so I wasn’t equipped to handle the offhand comment, but the comment stuck with me until now, almost 10 years later. It reminded me of the bias on women in the workplace, and how I needed to work harder, gain more knowledge, and hone my skill set so that I would be the “smartest” person in the room for my specialty. This was the only way for me to get to a leadership role where I would be respected for what I had to say and not how I looked or the sound of my voice.
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?
My late father is really the person that I am most grateful for when it comes to my success. He didn’t help me financially, or through his network, since he was in a completely different industry, living a completely different lifestyle than me. His help came in the form of guidance. He was an entrepreneur, started with $3,000 in his bank account, and built an 8-figure commercial real estate business from the ground up. Whenever there was a setback in my career or a conflict I wasn’t able to resolve at work, he always knew how to approach the situation or share his own experiences to help me formulate my next steps. He taught me that perseverance is half the battle when you’re running your own business or in a leadership role and that every failure gets you one step closer to your end goal.
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?
“How to win friends and influence people” by Dale Carnegie. It essentially teaches you to listen and understand other people versus trying to be heard. This is how you gain respect and trust with your peers and colleagues. In my personal relationships and at work, I realized that me trying to be heard resulted in talking at the person instead of talking to the person and letting myself understand where they were coming from. Once I realized this, I made an effort to change this reactive way of interacting and opened myself up to truly listening with empathy.
Do you have a favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Do you have a story about how that was relevant in your life or your work?
“A jack of all trades is a master of none.” This quote essentially helped define how I envisioned Spray Marketing, as well as my own career development. Although there is value in being a generalist, superficial knowledge is nowhere near as powerful as being an expert in a particular field or category. Traditional ad agencies stack teams with senior-level specialists on accounts, but they aren’t the ones actively managing campaigns on a day-to-day basis — junior-level marketing managers are the ones pulling the levers. This model favors recruitment for “doers” since it saves an agency money, but their level of industry knowledge by channel or media is not extensive. Senior-level experts have the experience to make quick decisions based on real-time performance and have the foresight to predict certain outcomes — helping to avoid any missteps or setbacks in a campaign. Spray Marketing teams are built with experts only, where we aren’t only looking at the years of experience, but also industry expertise and qualitative strengths that would be compatible with the brand. It’s not a one-size-fits-all model.
How have you used your success to make the world a better place?
At the agency, we are particular with the kind of clients we take on, which is why there is a heavy focus on consumer healthcare brands and their work to break down the obstacles for better healthcare. If they are not in consumer healthcare, we only work with brands that we believe in, which are companies that show that they are sustainable and are taking steps to reduce their carbon footprint. As a team, we try to incorporate team-building exercises that incorporate directly giving back to the community.
Ok, thank you for that. Let’s now jump to the primary focus of our interview. According to this report, only about 31.7% of top executive positions across industries are held by women. This reflects great historical progress, but it also shows that more work still has to be done to empower women. In your opinion and experience what is currently holding back women from leadership and management?
There is a lack of confidence in companies for women leadership and management, which directly impacts hiring decisions. We see it in Fortune 500 companies pretty clearly: only 10.6% of women are CEOs at Fortune 500 companies, and inversely almost 90% are men, which is an all-time low for men. We also see it in who VCs invest in, where only 2% of venture dollars go to women. Once a woman is in a leadership role, I do think that there is also more pressure for them to perform compared to a man in the same role, and less patience for failures. I don’t necessarily think women are holding themselves back, but the bias that is so deeply ingrained in professional culture is what is holding women back.
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 leaders and managers?
Outside of right-sizing the gender gap in management roles, which is an important step toward gender equality, women tend to approach challenges and conflict differently — lending to a different type of leadership style. I believe women have a more empathic perspective, which can cultivate better work-life relationships and culture. Women leaders can bring about more transformational ideas merely from the fact that their experiences and challenges are different from those of men. Women leaders can also help promote a more diverse workplace, helping to fuel creative ideas, increase productivity, and helping to improve the performance of their team.
I think the list is pretty exhaustive as to why there should be more women leaders and managers, but one that is close to my heart as a mother is to build a better future for our children — both boys and girls. I want young boys to see strong women in leadership roles and young girls to know that they can one day choose to be leaders without the challenges of gender bias.
Can you please share “5 Things We Need To Increase Women’s Engagement in Leadership and Management?”
- A strong community of inspiring women leaders as well as women aspiring to become leaders. It’s important to have mentorship when you’re starting your career, as well as to volunteer your time when you do become a leader in your industry. Mentorship can help women overcome the challenges of gender bias, provide leadership skills, and tools to build your career plan. Unfortunately, I didn’t have a female mentor, I am a part of a growing network of female professional groups on Linkedin, where we can share our ideas, challenges, and connect with one another. It’s also an outlet where I can offer guidance for those in need.
- Invest time in confidence-building programs or tools. Part of the reason why we see fewer women engage in leadership is that they don’t believe they can. I think it’s important to manifest what you want, which also means believing you are capable. In my own career, I’ve always strived for more (perhaps to my detriment), but it’s the saying of “shoot for the stars, aim for the moon”. Confidence helps generate ideas, positively affect your presence in a boardroom, and helps earn people’s respect.
- Better harmony between work and life. The traditional notion of domestic roles of men and women needs to shift, where there is a better support system in place for women in the workplace. There is still this bias that once you become a mother, you’re distracted or less motivated to work. Instead of inflicting this bias, companies need to cultivate a workplace that supports new mothers — Johnson and Johnson is a good example of a company embracing this with childcare services and paid opportunities for people to return to work after a sabbatical. As for women in the household, finding a partner that supports your career goals, and has the same life vision as you is just as important.
- Many of the challenges women face in getting leadership roles, also comes down to the gender wage gap. We know that women in leadership roles make significantly less than men. Better pay transparency and compensation can help acquire and retain women in management or leadership roles. We can also see that more and more states now require pay equity and transparency.
- Step outside your comfort zone. Building leadership skills takes practice, which means finding opportunities at work or volunteer positions where you can actively lead a project. Throughout my career, I tried to volunteer for as many strategic or leadership opportunities as possible, not only to hone my leadership skills but also to be recognized as an important asset to the team. Now, as a CEO, I notice when someone on my team takes the extra initiative to go above and beyond what is expected in their role.
In your opinion, what systemic changes are needed to facilitate more equitable access for women to leadership roles?
Pay transparency on a federal level will help standardize the salary differences by gender and ethnicity. It’s not enough that only some states have adopted pay transparency. Additionally, companies should support mothers and working parents through partnerships with insurance providers that cater to families and HSAs, as well as build a culture where women can balance their family life with their work life because this ultimately leads to better work output. Companies also need to reassess their hiring strategy, retention practices, and redefine how they assess performance. From my experience, it’s pretty common for companies to say they intend to reduce the gender gap, but acting on it is a different thing.
What strategies have you found most effective in mentoring and supporting other women to pursue leadership positions?
The most effective strategy in mentoring women has been to tap into the team I have at Spray Marketing. Because I have a better understanding of their capabilities, strengths, and challenges, I’m better able to help mentor and guide them. We have quarterly check-ins with every team member, as well as ad-hoc check-ins when appropriate. This is the time to discuss their career plans, what they’re happy with in their role, what they are frustrated with, and an opportunity for us as management to alleviate a lot of their roadblocks.
How would you advise a woman leader about how to navigate the challenges of being a woman in a leadership role within a male-dominated industry?
Be confident in your ability and your thoughts. There will be instances where you start questioning your value, so it’s important to remember how you got to where you are and believe in yourself. Confidence also goes hand in hand with building thick skin in the workplace. I also think it’s important to build a network of women in leadership who can help support you and truly understand the challenges women face in male-dominated industries. They can be your sounding board.
How do you balance the demand for authoritative leadership with the stereotypical expectations of female behavior in professional settings?
The stereotypical expectation of female behavior in a professional setting is just that — a stereotype. My advice is to avoid the stereotype of women being over-emotional, but let those emotions empower you. Being in touch with your emotions also means that women tend to be more empathetic. Empathy and sympathy are powerful in leadership. Leadership is about understanding the problem, putting yourself in someone else’s shoes, and then solving the problem. This also helps to foster trust with your team and can help inspire your team to work harder.
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.
This has little to do with my area of expertise, but I would love to change the political system, which is currently polarized in the U.S. A movement around collaboration of both majority parties, where we push for policies that complement both sides. A lot of times, I feel like our current system is stunted, and we need new ideas and quicker execution of policies that help the greater good.
How can our readers further follow your work online?
Visit my LinkedIn page at https://www.linkedin.com/in/ssprayregen/
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.
Stephanie Sprayregen Of Spray Marketing On How We Can Increase Women’s Engagement in Leadership and… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.