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Ibrahim2 and Rohan Saddy McLellan are trailblazing social media as Generation Z entrepreneurs.
I got the opportunity to sit down and learn more about them in depth.
As the founder of Leave Normal Behind and viral marketing partner behind fidget spinners, I have a lot of respect for the social media empire these two young entrepreneurs have built.
I like this mutually preferred quote that they shared:
“Brand is just a perception, and perception will match reality over time. Sometimes it will be ahead, other times it will be behind. But ‘brand’ is simply the collective impression some have about a product.”
– Elon Musk
These young entrepreneurs have done extraordinary things before their 18th birthday.
Growing in the age of social media these two have leveraged this technology to amass a network of tens of millions of users.
Below we highlight Ibrahim Ibrahim and Rohan Saddy McLellan:
Ibrahim2 is one of the youngest entrepreneurs in the Arab world, pioneering social media with his firm iBoostReach at the age of 16, and led its growth operations since his early teenage years.
He has been featured in HuffPost, NBC, BuzzFeed and FOX as the mastermind behind lifestyle accounts on Instagram adding up to a follower base of 38,000,000 people.
Ibrahim is strategic, tactical, and wise beyond his years.
His partner, Rohan Saddy McLellan, grew up on the other side of the world in Vancouver Canada. Him and Ibrahim met while attending the United World College of Costa Rica
Rohan (17), the COO of iBoostReach, is involved in the Canadian tech startup scene and has found success both with his own projects along with his involvement with larger companies. Previously working with startups including Sokanu (ed-tech), Rohan also handled outreach to major universities for other startup like Artery as a social media advisor connecting performers with their audiences.
Rohan was involved in STEM through the Future Science Leader Program at UBC for the top 20 science students in his region where he gained a passion for programming and cryptocurrency. He is now is looking to remodel traditional investing with automated stock selection models and sentiment analysis.
Check out this Future Sharks interview with Ibrahim and Rohan below.
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What are we working on now?
Ibrahim: I am serving as one of the presidents of the United World College of Costa Rica’s student council while continuing to accumulate numerous awards in debate. I am a Certified Google Media Partner and I confidently offer brand strategy curation, web design, development, and social media marketing.
I am dedicated to the hustle. I have a natural curiosity to learn new things and it’s enabled me to expand my knowledge and skill set for some of my clients like Lauren Drain, Branden Hampton, Charlie Puth, Tai Lopez, Yianni Charalambous, and Sommer Ray.
Rohan: As the Chief Operating Officer I am expanding the team at iBoostReach to include a dedicated staff. iBoostReach works with entrepreneurs and musicians to boost their social media performance. We are in the process of expanding our audience & network. We use social media influencers to endorse our services in order to gain new clients. I am focusing on branding, outreach, and customer acquisition while Ibrahim does what he does best and delivers value to his audience and customers in the form of a stronger brand and increased exposure.
How is your company different?
Rohan: Despite the fact that our combined age of 32 is still less than most of our competitors, it is a beneficial due to the tactical advantage of being born in the social media era and are privy to information and tendencies that our older counterparts do not have access to. We have a strong reputation for being reliable, effective, and available. Our social media network, including @thisisamans.world and @millionaire_mentor adds up to 38 million users, in luxury and lifestyle photography. Celebrities, entrepreneurs, and clients like Alex Mehr, Jason Stone, Akon, Ziad Nakad, and MAGIC! trust us to increase their audience and engagement. We earned our credibility by meeting clientele KPIs and having unprecedented successes at spreading trends like electric-wheel scooters, in shorter periods of time when compared to most marketing agencies who deliver services of the same nature.
How did you come up with this idea?
Ibrahim: At 14, I started my own social media business based solely on my passion for this industry. I analyzed areas social media to determine where there were gaps in the marketplace offering the most room to innovate. I conceptualized iBoostReach and took action. I became an autodidact and taught myself how to best navigate social media through tech forums and other self-learning resources. Within 5 months, I was fulfilling orders for over 30 clients worldwide. It was all done through offering social growth services for nothing in return, to clients, and having the media personnel return – hungry for more growth hacking tips and tricks; upon quantifying the blatant increase in sales and impressions.
How do you creatively market?
Rohan: iBoostReach benefits from word of mouth marketing because we deliver a high quality customer experience that delivers a positive ROI. This is marketing in its purest form. Do good work and let your results speak for themselves. We developed a brand that is synonymous with social media growth and are continuing to deliver positive results for our clients.
Give the readers the best entrepreneurship advice you have:
Rohan: I cannot speak for older, more experienced entrepreneurs yet I can speak for students and Future Sharks like myself who are struggling to balance school, social life, athletics and their business passions.
My advice is to not compare yourself to more experienced role models. You cannot compare your journey with theirs. Each man and woman has their own story. Your time will come when it is meant to be. Also I would share that most industries fundamentally change over time. Be a visionary and watch the trends. See where they are going and act first. Do not hesitate. Innovation is where money is made.
Learn what you want to learn. Mess around. Unbeknownst to you, you will attract the knowledge that you need to succeed. Take action. Thinking big is overrated. 99% of success is simply getting the work done.
What are your insights between video and text based social media posts?
Ibrahim: Señores y señoras, we live in a world of show, not tell. In today’s media people want to form a more intimate relationship with whatever and whomever they see. This happens visually through video, not text. Having said that, I urge content creators to focus on video making in order to develop the most authentic relationship with their target audience.
What’s something new you’ve learned in the past month?
Ibrahim: I expanded my understanding of market behavior and how these insights are important to predicting trends and reading patterns.
Consequently, I have shifted my sales strategy from finding needs to creating wants.
What are some of the best books you’ve ever read?
Ibrahim: Third Circle Theory: Purpose Through Observation – Pejman Ghadimi. The book cultivates the importance of our observations in day-to-day lives.
Rohan: “48 Laws of power” Robert Greene, how to gain and maintain power.
Why you?
Ibrahim: I have no Trump Towers but I have my education. I have no Michelle Obama, but I have a loving and supporting family in Jordan and at UWC. I have no royal blood, but I do have a kingdom of ideas that can make the world we live in a better place.
Get In Contact:
http://www.ibrahimsqua.red/
If you or someone you know is a Future Shark who is leaving normal behind contact me on Facebook – Rob Fajardo
or send me an email Rob@leavenormalbehind.com
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