Today we’d like to introduce you to Isaiah Mcswain
Hi Isaiah, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I have not experienced my proudest moment in business thus far. I hope that one day I can walk into the office, and a team member is just buying their first home or sending their children to college without being burdened by the cost. I have always worked in frameworks with an abundant creative spirit.
Since I was a young boy, I have configured solutions to my problems. Passion doesn’t at first pay the bills and I needed to find a solution to that; I may or may not still be working that out lol. I also wear the crown of “queer creative child” in my family as I did hair and nails, and was a self proclaimed multidisciplinary artist ( I had a few doodles laying around).
I have been in the advertising and marketing industry for just six years, and I’m still counting. What’s remarkable to me is that I worked on global accounts before the age of 21. After college in Mississippi, I moved to Houston in the summer of 2022. Prior to that, I spent two years modeling and building my first business, Zayam Designs (now known as Zayam Design). Those were exciting times in 2021 – 2022 amid the global COVID-19 crisis because I had to make drastic decisions to keep housing during those times. So I decided to chase my dreams, and that is an ever developing road.
Over the past three years, I have been chasing some of those same dreams with a fine line of reality. I have been blessed to serve on two prominent professional marketing Boards of Directors, AMA Houston & African American Marketing Association. I am entering my third year serving as the Director of Programs with the African American Marketing Association running our local Houston events and preparing AAMA to host national events for our non Texas members. I am also now leading the marketing initiative for Pride Houston 365 and gaining more room to develop their internal & external marketing.
I also closed Zayam Designs in 2023, legally that is, and got to work for Hearst Newspaper Division for 1 calendar year serving on two top strategic teams. While at Hearst, I led multimillion dollar ad accounts and consulted the 4 lead strategists from our top social team. This work was not done alone either, I got to meet some of the best marketing professionals in the industry.
Over the past 12 months, I have been rebuilding and regaining speed as a first generation entrepreneur in the advertising space. While I am a first generation everything, I am learning new life lessons that I will take with me going forward. I lost most of what I had built since the age of 20 last year. It hurt, but winning is my only option.
Zayam Design is my trojan horse back into a “good” life. I am becoming a media buying and advertising go to for many CPGs and B2B brands in & out of Houston.
I have a passion for media and the way it can shape our society. This passion led me to advertising and the art of advertising. I frequently throw myself in think tanks for campaigns and data strategies for cross channel campaigns. I bring this passion to each client account and the campaigns we create. I want to help my clients shape their brand image and drive business results. This practice also aims to community build with their audience growing their retention.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
First things first, nothing is ever easy.
For me, I have worked to simply get better and will learn to get better. I moved out at 17, which was a challenging and pivotal time in my life. During that period, I faced numerous obstacles that threatened my well-being and stability. However, I persevered and went on to become a first-generation entrepreneur, achieving success despite the odds. Notably, I accomplished this while being a first generation high school and college graduate.
The book, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective Teens, gave me a new perspective on my strive to survive. I felt I was “doing” the right thing when life was leading me to feel otherwise. I finished high school 36/ 202 students, even graduating college with high honors. I am now 25 and have since instilled these values into my life.
Some years passed by with a few highs and a few more lows. Now I am rebuilding after a financial shift near the end of 2024. I worked for a local company that decided to not pay me as I served as their marketing director. I used my savings to make it “shake” the last 6 months of 2024. All hope is not lost because Zayam Design is slowly gaining speed.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Zayam Design has a focus on advertising strategy, management, and planning. We build campaigns utilizing data that helps our clients effectively target their consumers. ZD aims to be your media buyer & strategist.
The problem we solve?
Small to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) and corporations invest significant resources in developing high-quality creative assets but often struggle to effectively distribute and optimize these assets to drive meaningful business outcomes and achieve their goals.
That’s where Zayam Design comes in to help make sense of these new assets and established business goals. We can help our clients manage up to 7+ figure marketing campaigns utilizing media buying to distribute their message.
I am proud that Zayam Design is already creating impact for our current clients. We serve JJLAW at both their Houston & Oklahoma locations. In December of 2024, we were able to surpass our lead goal! We gained 10 viable leads and 2 of those leads closed with an ad spend of just $750!
At Zayam Design, we understand that SMBs also need affordable advertising services and we have a product geared toward SMB’s growth. Growing to Scale is ZD’s new marketing & advertising consulting package geared to serve SMBs on the journey to scale their marketing operations. Our Growing To Scale consulting program is designed to provide small businesses with the strategic marketing & advertising guidance, expert support, and community connections needed to achieve sustainable business growth and success. Check out GTS: zayamdesign.com/growingtoscale
What are your plans for the future?
Yes, I have a few projects that I am a part of that will be shared as they hit the public. This is my year to chase my dreams with no acknowledgment of failure. My only option is to win!
I look forward to commercial modeling before the year closes and also ZD is blessed to be in two certification programs. All in all, I look forward to having an established life fully funded by my crafts & passions.
Pricing:
- Growing to Scale : Small Business Consulting Group – $499 Monthly
- Advertising/Media Buying : Prices range from $750 – $1MM+
- Social Media Marketing: Prices range from $750 – $1500+
Contact Info:
- Website: https://zayamdesign.com
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/zayamisaiah
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/isaiah-mcswain-zd/
Image Credits
Feed The Soul Foundation Media Team
Mississippi State University Media Team
Jerrell Truelove Studios Media Team
