Today we’d like to introduce you to Jim Ward and Sonja Fridell.
Jim and Sonja, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
Jim: I started BrainSell in 1994 in a one room office in Topsfield with the idea of building an innovative technology and consulting company – a sharp pivot from the family business that I had inherited. I wanted to build a business unencumbered from family expectations and restrictions. One that also didn’t follow the standards of corporate America. I had a few tenants that were important to me. I wanted people first as my priority. No partners. No loaned monies and thus bootstrapped.
Eight years ago, I met Sonja Fridell, now the president of BrainSell, while shopping for cowboy boots in Hampton, New Hampshire. As a recent journalism graduate from the University of New Hampshire, Sonja was doing what all young journalists do – building a portfolio and working a day job.
I’m a big book reader. Many of the ideas that I’ve used come from great business books and some unique readings like The Alchemist. At the time (2008) I met Sonja I had read Inbound Marketing by Dharmesh Shaw and Brian Halligan founders of Hubspot. From each of those readings I drew some basic conclusions. Inbound Marketing was how I purchased via internet research and from the Alchemist I became aware of my dreams and to recognize omens.
After Sonya sold me not one but four pairs of boots, I decided that I had stumbled upon a unicorn that could help my business grow: a journalist that understood content for inbound marketing efforts was hard-wired for sales and marketing. When she said “I’m graduated as a Journalist major that was the omen I needed to follow suggestions that Inbound Marketing spoke of. As a result, Sonja and I did an event and invited Dharmesh Shaw to speak and we fill a room with over 100 people. Seems we hit the mark.
Fast forward until today, we are a leading provider of unrivaled business process strategy, best-of-class software and implementation services. BrainSell has an impressive portfolio of local, national and a few international clients. We have built everything with a lean agile team of “entrepreneurs”, meaning that everyone on the BrainSell team is empowered and incented with no cap on earnings or potential.
We help businesses improve profitability, transform business processes and better manage customer relationships.
BrainSell is currently headquartered in Topsfield, Massachusetts with remote offices in Denver, Chicago, Minneapolis, Atlanta, Lexington (KY) and the Greater New York City area.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
The biggest challenge for every company is hiring. When you have a small team, hiring is especially important because there is no room for inefficiencies or lack of total commitment. We deliver exceptional service to our clients and only exceptional people can deliver that. We look for individuals that are excited by big challenges and are ready to meet them.
In addition, when you’re in the tech space things move at light speed. You must be able to adapt and stay ahead of the curve, all the while, looking at what technologies will help grow business. We are always vetting best in breed solutions to keep ahead of trends in the market.
BrainSell – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
In the most technical terms we are a “valued added reseller” (VAR) of business software and sell consulting and implementation services to drive user adoption and streamline processes. Our core portfolio of software offerings include CRM (Customer Relationship Management) software, Marketing Automation Software and ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning). BrainSell’s success is founded on our close alliances and partnerships with the world’s foremost developers of business software and technology in these core offerings.
Our specialty – and the reason we have enjoyed so much success – is providing business process strategy which relies heavily on identifying areas for improvement and automation before software is put into place. We would rather turn away business if we don’t think we can improve upon the existing processes and software already in use. Too many software companies are only interested in the sale rather than what will truly impact a company’s business.
We are extremely proud of the value we offer our clients. Our employees have worked in top roles at many organizations. They are experienced, innovative and extremely customer focused. We are also extremely proud of our culture. We like to say that BrainSell has a “West Coast culture with an East Coast attitude.” We are practicing yoga every Wednesday at lunch, and sprinting hard to our business targets the rest of the week. Of course, we also have excellent coffee and a full bar in our break room. We also have an unlimited vacation and sick day policy. I want people to take the time they need to make sure they are as productive as they can be to help BrainSell scale.
What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
It’s hard to identify just one proud moment as we are grateful and celebratory of every achievement but I guess the half a million dollar check we received from a major pharmaceutical company was evidence that we were on to something successful and proof that we weren’t just a small town company.
If I had to pick my most proud moment… It’s every year seeing how our people are making their dreams come true by providing a platform that allows income levels not thought possible all while helping clients grow their business. We hold dream meetings every year so team members can hear each other articulate what they dream for. By hearing each other, we help achieve those dreams together. That makes me so very proud. My team… they make me proud.
Contact Info:
- Address: 458 Boston Street, Suite 2-1
Topsfield, MA 01983 - Website: www.brainsell.net
- Phone: 978-887-3870
- Email: jward@brainsell.net
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BrainSellTechnologies/
- Twitter: @brainsell
Getting in touch: BostonVoyager is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
