Meet Rising Star Businessman Joe Sanfilippo

From the inside looking out, who is Joe Sanfilippo?

If I had to describe myself, I’d say I’m a very intrinsically motivated and passionate person. I place high value on characteristics such as honesty, loyalty, organization, positivity, work ethic, and attention to detail. I’m very family-oriented. Pretty much every decision I make is revolved around how I can improve the future well-being of my family. I don’t just consider my blood relatives my family. Anybody who is close to me and is a part of my team is family. That’s why I love Today’s Business because that’s the type of culture we have. That’s also the beauty of entrepreneurship. As an entrepreneur you’re able to build families and help people succeed and achieve their dreams.

What was the defining moment that brought you into the entrepreneurial world?

It didn’t take long for me to realize that I wanted to be an entrepreneur and have an ownership interest in any businesses that I am involved with. About a year into my digital marketing career I set up my first LLC simply to learn what the process looked like so that hopefully in the future it would help me start my entrepreneurial journey. But the defining moment for me was in 2020 when I officially obtained ownership of my first successful business, Tomahawk Shades. I was responsible for putting together the letter of engagement and updating the Tomahawk Shades operating agreement. It was an amazing feeling finally getting the new operating agreement signed off on and knowing that I officially was a partner with a rapidly growing e-commerce brand.

You are multi-faceted in that you not only handle projects but individuals as well, how did you develop so many branches?

Honestly, it just came from experience and work ethic. When there is something I am passionate about it’s all I think about and I spend the majority of my free time trying to master my craft. This is how I was when playing football in college and I carried this same mindset into my professional career. By always putting in the extra effort I was able to impress the executives that I worked for which prompted them to put more work (or opportunities as I call it) on my plate that I never turned down. When you’re thrown into the fire you either quit and walk away or you work hard and figure things out through trial and error. Once things start clicking, it’s an awesome feeling.

Through you, we are learning about a few heavy movers, can you break down your roles at Today’s Business, Undrafted Ventures, and TeamMates?

My title at Today’s Business is Manager of Growth & Partnerships. As the Manager of Growth & Partnerships, I oversee multiple departments including business development, influencer marketing, and affiliate marketing. I am also a Co-Founder & Managing Partner for a private equity group called Undrafted Ventures. My role at Undrafted Ventures is to source partnership opportunities and perform the due diligence to determine if the partnership is worth our investment. Should we decide to move forward with a partnership, I am responsible for developing the documentation such as engagement letters, operating agreements, etc. Most of our partnerships at Undrafted Ventures involve our team providing consulting and marketing services in exchange for equity. In most cases, I take the lead on this and will act as an interim CMO. TeamMates Talent Management is another business where I am a Co-Founder & Managing Partner. My role is to provide talent management services in the form of endorsement procurement, marketing consulting, and concierge services for professional athletes, fitness experts, and influencers. In certain instances, I actually act as the agent negotiating on-field contracts too!

While of course in business, it’s about the money and relationships but to make it work you also have to care about your customers/clients. What’s your motivation to help the brands and personalities navigate the maze and take their rightful place within their respective industries?

As I mentioned earlier, I am a very family-oriented person. I view my clients not only as partners but as family. If we choose to work together then I’m going to do everything I can to improve your life in any way possible. It seems that so many people are overwhelmed and incredibly stressed out these days, so I strive to make our partner’s lives better by taking things off their plate and adding efficiencies to their lives. If you have a schedule that is packed with meetings and calls, I want to be the call that you always look forward to because you know you’re going to be talking with someone who seeks efficiencies and delivers positive results with a positive attitude every time!

How do you expand their footprints and cross-brand them within multiple industries?

I feel that I’ve developed great listening and storytelling skills. I’m very good at asking my clients the right questions so that I can fully understand who they are. From there, I help them position themselves appropriately so that they can get their story in front of the right audience in the right format. I’ve also learned to quickly identify potential challenges and pain points and to find creative solutions for overcoming these. For example, I’ve spent lots of time speaking with my clients John Shackleton and Marc Megna. Both of them are incredibly knowledgeable fitness and nutrition experts who have trained some of the world’s best athletes. In order to help them get featured in different media outlets or secure brand partnerships, I’ll use my knowledge of all of their different skills and experiences to craft a pitch that is tailored perfectly to what a particular media outlet or brand is looking for. I use a mixture of research and very specific questions so that I can create these tailored pitches and it typically helps get me the outcome that is desired.

What’s the most satisfying about what you do?

The most satisfying part of my job is seeing my team grow. It took me a lot of trial and error plus countless hours (which included many long nights and weekends) to learn what I know now. It’s such a great feeling being able to share this knowledge with our interns and our junior employees. I am able to teach them in a matter of just a few weeks things that took me many years to learn on my own. It’s a really rewarding feeling to see them grow in their careers whether at Today’s Business or elsewhere.

Your prediction: With continued advances in the digital world, how do you see digital media outlets faring down the line?

This industry moves so quickly it is mind-boggling at times. There are so many businesses that depend on platforms like Facebook and Google that can be absolutely demolished with an algorithm update. I think just like most industries you’re going to see a lot of consolidation in the forms of mergers and acquisitions. I think we’re going to see more digitally native brands start to take over traditional media brands like we saw in the Dotdash-Meredith merger.

Any general basic marketing guidance you might have for our readers?

If you’re trying to get into marketing you’ve got to get your feet wet and make sure you are passionate about it. The marketing space, especially at an agency, is fast-paced and can be a lot to handle but if you love it (like I do) then it won’t feel like a daunting job but rather an exciting career. If you’re trying to market or sell something my number one tip would be to take the time to truly understand your audience. Once you know what makes your audience tick, then you can work on getting them the right message at the right time and place.

Outside of business, what initiatives are dear to your heart?

Business is obviously a huge part of my life and something that I am very passionate about. But outside of business, I love playing sports, trying new restaurants, and traveling to new places.

What’s on the slate for 2022 as we begin to come back outside? Any seminars, etc., that you might be a part of?

I recently attended the Super Bowl and the Final Four to support a couple of my TeamMates clients and both of those events were a blast. Next thing on my list is the NFL Draft where I’m hoping a couple of my clients will get selected. Finally, I’m going to be hosting a happy hour for the American Alliance of Orthopaedic Executives which takes place in my hometown of Chicago so I’m super excited to see some of my friends in the orthopedic space!

Last question, what’s been your funniest WTF moment thus far in your career?

One of the funniest WTF moments was when we first signed a partnership agreement with Kevin Garnett. We were on a conference call pitching KG on our marketing services and he must have been loving everything that we were saying because out of nowhere he started yelling through the phone getting everyone fired up as if we were in the locker room about to take the court for the NBA finals. I don’t think anybody was prepared for it at all so it was pretty funny after he stopped talking trying to match his enthusiasm while also trying to compose our excitement hahaha. Definitely a moment I’ll never forget!

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