Small Business of the Year Finalist: Intuitive Digital

Kelly Rosenblatt
Former Senior Manager, Small Business Policy, U.S. Chamber of Commerce

Published

October 09, 2019

Nick Footer, CEO of Intuitive Digital

To better highlight the impressive members of the small business community, we sat down with the 2019 Dream Big Award finalists to learn more about their startup stories, the challenges they have faced, and what the future of business looks like to them. We talked with Nick Footer, CEO of Oregon-based Intuitive Digital, a full-service digital marketing agency that develops effective digital marketing strategies for forward-thinking partners. Here is what he had to say (what follows has been lightly edited for length and clarity):

Q: What inspired the creation of your business? What problem does it help to solve?

After working for a couple of organizations that were great but didn’t always line up with my personal brand of business ethics, I wanted to build an organization that was based on purpose, core values, and transparency. Intuitive attempts to solve the problem many businesses have: how to utilize their budgets most effectively to drive growth and profits from their marketing dollars.

Q: What gets you up in the morning?

Getting to work with the team we’ve built. Our culture and people really make the office fun.

Q: What is the greatest challenge you faced while building your company and how did you overcome it?

The greatest challenge we face is hiring the right people. Over the past four years, we have made many changes to our hiring and selection process, all based on our value of continuous improvement, and it is paying off on the caliber and fit of our current team. We now have culture interviews attended by 50% of our staff, a half-day working session, and technical interviews for qualified applicants. It takes a lot of internal time but its worth the investment to get the right people. We also listen a lot during these interviews and record fun offer videos specific to each hire that goes along with our offer letters.

Q: When it comes to your business, what has been your proudest moment to date?

Most recently I was brought to tears at our seven-year anniversary toast when multiple team members explained how much they loved working together, the positive impact Intuitive has had on their lives, and they themselves wept happy tears. I can’t say I’ve had one specific moment – as we have these types of experiences regularly – but it’s the knowledge that we’ve built a safe place for people to grow, learn, and live happily.

Q: What does American entrepreneurship mean to you?

American entrepreneurship gives people with limited resources and a big idea the ability to test out their business plan, ideas, or products and find out if there is a market for them to enter. With hard work and some luck, entrepreneurs can not only support their family, but give others a place to earn a good living as well.

To learn more about the 2019 Dream Big Award finalists, click here.