Meet Ashley Werner | Founder and Owner of That Digital Rush, empowering businesses with digital marketing.

We had the good fortune of connecting with Ashley Werner and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Ashley, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
Picture this, you’ve spent precious time baking a pie. Researching recipes, gathering quality ingredients, setting the oven to the right temperature, you keep checking on it and then pull it out of the oven when it’s ready. While it’s cooling, you grab a plate and a fork.

When you get back with a plate in one hand and a fork in the other, you see a group of people wearing crisp-clean aprons and starched white chef hats, eating the pie, and patting each other on the back for how great it tastes. Congratulating each other for the quality of work that went into it.

The next day, you go through this entire process again. After a few days, you stop going to get your own plate and fork. You know there’s no reward for you in this kitchen.

That kitchen is corporate America. The pie is my hard work. Eating the pie would be the reward for the hard work.

Life has a way of making sure you’re prepared for big leaps … and usually it’s not a fun experience that prepares you. Being forced to watch upper management grow their careers off my labor while holding my career hostage, was my ah-ha moment.

I was done watching managers take credit for all of my hard work. I know that’s the name of the game when you work in a corporation. You rarely get credit for your own work. So, I’m not blaming those individual people who were playing by the rules of a game they were thrown into as well, but I am blaming the system that doesn’t reward quality work.

Those rules and this game were not a fit for me. I wanted rewarded for my work. If I do a good job, I want paid and I want referrals for more opportunities so I can keep getting paid. I don’t want to make the same pie and hand it over to the same people for the same outcome each day.

So thankfully, life shined a spotlight on where my next path should take me by making me so miserable, I had no choice but to move on and do my own thing. It was that or slowly die at my desk because I was burned out and not making much money.

However unsavory those years in corporate American were, it was a necessary step to guide me onto my path and into my confidence as a business owner.

I realized that I am the main ingredient in my own success.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
My creativity doesn’t come in the form of visual feasts for your eyes or musical treats for your ears. It comes in the form of amazing marketing campaigns, slogans, strategies, and content. I think this creativity often gets overlooked because it’s not visual and not something you’d see in an art gallery or on Instagram. However, if you’ve ever read ANYTHING online that caught your attention or moved you to buy something, you were affected by this form of creativity.

I came from a small town (grew up on a farm). I moved to the “big city” (as big as it can get in Iowa) for college and then to start my first “real life” job. I quickly realized I didn’t know anyone. Or anything. I was always embarrassed by how “small town” I felt. I worked in a corporation that had thousands of people – I’d smile and say “hi” to every single person in the hallway (they looked at me like I was CRAZY). I mean in a small town, if it’s just the two of you on the road, in the grocery isle, on the sidewalk – you make eye contact and say hi. It’s required!

I just felt stupid and like I was out of my depth pretty much all the time. Instead of quitting – or hiding in the bathroom all day – I went on a mission to learn as much as I could about EVERYTHING as fast as I could. I bet a lot of people can relate to this fish-of-water scenario and the scramble that takes place to gather as much knowledge as possible.

I signed up for every industry newsletter, every industry email, every free webinar I could attend. I paid attention to EVERYTHING around me. If someone said they went to see a good speaker, I’d look them up and watch all that I could. If someone said they received a funny email that made them buy a product, I’d go sign up for that company’s emails.

I honestly think that is what crafted me into a person who can quickly come up with ideas and solutions. I was always watching and learning. If I didn’t know the answer, I found it quickly. I was always aware, watching, and open to any new ideas. With this mindset, I was consuming a lot of information and with that, came inspiration and ideas.

I started being invited to “the table” more often to provide solutions and ideas. I was making myself known for my creativity.

I’ve kept this mindset throughout my 20s and 30s as well. I STILL have this mindset. I think it’s served me well in the world of digital marketing. Digital Marketing changes every day. Every. Single. Day. Watching, learning, testing, and being open to change is what makes me successful at what I do.

My clients pull me into planning meetings to help with marketing and advertising and to guide the creative process for messaging, blogs, landing pages, and ads. I was providing monthly content planning ideas for my clients and decided to take those same ideas and start a monthly subscription plan for others. The monthly subscription helps entrepreneurs, solopreneurs, small business owners, and even marketing managers who are overworked and too tired to think of ideas.

In a world that doesn’t necessarily reward this kind of creativity, I’ve carved a niche for myself and found people who are willing to pay for ideas. This subscription is called “Inspire-Starters” and is so much fun! It attracts other creatives, like me, who enjoy the hustle and molding amazing messages out of ideas. It’s been a great adventure!

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Eat: I’d recommend Proof Restaurant. The food tastes and amazing and always beautifully presented. It’s almost always booked, though. As a backup, I’d recommend Harbinger or Django.

Drink: Coa Cantina is in the East Village. It’s surrounded by fun places to visit but they also serve drinks that are worth the price. I recommend the blackberry margarita.

Visit: Walk along the Robert D. Ray Asian Gardens while visiting downtown Des Moines. The pagoda is gorgeous. So is the garden and plants. There are monuments along the walk that commemorate Asian countries our fellow Iowans came from.

Hang out: Up-Down DSM is a go-to spot for playing games and hanging out with friends.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
There’s a person I go to when I’m in need of advice. Since 2001! Her advice has ranged from “sit down, be quiet, and get through it” to “you put your finger in her face and tell her who’s boss”. She’s now retired from the corporate life and is an internationally known artist who specializes in abstract art so breathtaking it will bring you to your knees. She’s a strong woman who I admire the most. Kerry Fletcher (https://www.kerryfletcherart.com/) is my mentor and good friend. She’s helped me get to where I am today.

Website: http://www.thatdigitalrush.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thatdigitalrush/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/akwerner/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/thatdigitalrush

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thatdigitalrush/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC7dYx93RAJ5_OMKEVkTFSQA/featured

Other: https://www.patreon.com/inspirestarter