I don’t believe in doing anything halfway and I always try to be on top of everything to make sure this company is well-known around the world and that people know we are accessible, competitive and reliable in all of our business matters.
Joe Webster is the Director of Marketing for A-1 Auto Transport, Inc., one of the largest automobile transport companies in the United States. As part of his dedicated work with his company, his work expands far past his marketing duties as he helps implement green initiative programs within A-1 Auto Transport including working with the latest fuel-efficient technology for their fleet of trucks to help reduce the company’s carbon footprint and exploring creative ways to help office staff recycle in the office and at home. He also works with the company scholarship program. In his spare time, Joe enjoys catching a good ball game, spending time on the water and traveling to new, off the beaten path locations around the world.
Where did the idea for A-1 Auto Transport, Inc. come from?
The idea for A-1 Auto Transport, Inc. came from the owner and my personal mentor, Tony Taylor. He had many years of experience working in the transport industry as well as marketing and adverting and wanted to start a business that people could rely on for safe, affordable auto transport. I enjoy the fact that this company is family run and places a great deal of importance of being the best by taking action to know everything there is to know about the industry to provide top rated service at competitive rates.
What does your typical day look like and how do you make it productive?
My typical day begins well before dawn. I’m usually up by 5:00 AM and I check my emails to see if I’ve had any new proposals come in overnight and to see if my contractors have submitted their work. Responding to emails can easily take an hour or more of my morning. After that, I try to get in a morning jog. I usually jog three to five miles in the morning every morning and then I follow that with again checking email. After I wrap up my email time, I sit down to check into regulations for auto transport to make sure I’m current on things and I check around to see various promos our competitors may have going, if there are any.
In my position, I am always looking for new ideas to boost our sales, but I also try to come up with interesting ways to show people we don’t just haul cars from one place to another. We’re a people-oriented company and I want to know we do all that we can to educate the public on the automotive industry, transportation and other motor vehicle related concepts.
Once the work day is over, I always take time to unwind, either on the water or just relaxing at home or at a restaurant with friends. I believe that to be productive at work, a person needs to be able to take time to de-stress and relax after work as well.
How do you bring ideas to life?
I work with an exceptional group of people and together, we take time to listen to what our customers need and want, and we crate goals to make sure we not only meet those expectations, but that we exceed them. I don’t believe in doing anything halfway and I always try to be on top of everything to make sure this company is well-known around the world and that people know we are accessible, competitive and reliable in all of our business matters.
What’s one trend that excites you?
Since I work in the marketing industry, I am of course excited by working with websites and internet presence on a large scale. I love working with developers to create our transport apps and I enjoy directly working with our social media accounts. One of the biggest trends that I’ve found recently to be exciting is making sure our web presence is not just some dull and boring business presentation, but that we really connect with people in a human way.
I work hard to make sure we have valuable content that people can relate to and interact with, so they get a better understanding of exactly what we do and what they themselves need to do to contact us for service. I’ve seen too many companies out there that seem to see their audience as a business rather than a person, and I am excited to say that using trends to share anecdotes and real-world stories is an exciting way to connect with real people.
What is one habit of yours that makes you more productive as an entrepreneur?
I have always thought of myself as a very detail-oriented person, and I’m very hard on myself to get things right the first time. I think some of the lessons about hard work that I learned from my own Dad have always stuck with me through my life, and one of the most important he ever taught me was to set goals and then smash them! Every day when I wake up, I take a few minutes to think about what I need to accomplish that day, and I don’t stop working until I finish everything. I also set goals for each week and month to make sure I have precise things to work towards. I always try to take things a step or two ahead of my personal goals, so I can achieve more than planned. I think that goal setting, and then working ahead of your goals, is a great way to increase productivity whether you are an entrepreneur, or you are just someone who wants a better life.
What advice would you give your younger self?
I would have to say that the best advice I could give to my younger self would be to never be afraid to open up and show the world what you can do. I think so many younger people are worried about people will think about them that they never show their full potential. This was something that distracted my work flow when I was starting out in the workforce, but thankfully, I grew out of that and realized that the more I opened up, the more I was able to advance with my work and in my career.
Tell us something that’s true that almost nobody agrees with you on.
Every rejection that you experience is just a step closer to success. I see so many people worry about their work being rejected and they give up after the first person tells them no to something and I always try to tell them not to worry because even rejection can lead to something positive. For instance, in marketing especially, one person may not like something that you’ve worked hard on and they’ll tell you they don’t think you have what it takes, but the next person you speak to could possibly be that big client who loves the work you did. So, don’t look at rejection as a failure. Instead, look at it as a stepping stone to the next level of greatness you can achieve.
Connect:
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Steve (Stefan) Junge hails from Germany and helps with the day-to-day publishing of interviews on IdeaMensch. While he and Mario don’t share a favorite soccer club, their enthusiasm to help entrepreneurs is a shared passion.