Episode 030: Kieran O'Brien - SMMA, Luxury Cars, And Working With Top Brands At 18

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This is the Rise of the Young podcast, bringing you insights from the most innovative entrepreneurs and influencers of this era. Hosted by 17 year old entrepreneur, author, public speaker and branding expert, Casey Adams. Now let's get right into the show.

What's up everyone? Casey Adams here. Welcome to the Rise of the Young podcast. Today we have episode 30 and we got the homie Kieran O' Brien here with us today. Kieran, he's 18 years old, he's a serial entrepreneur. He specializes in social media marketing and online marketing and he works with tons and tons of the top influencers in the game. And he specializes in the luxury automobile industry. So that being said, Kieran, for everyone listening that may not know who is Kieran, Go ahead. Who are you, bro? Let's hear it guys.

So as Casey said, I've been, I've been an entrepreneur for a couple years now. Just been doing my own thing, making my own money. 18. So I just recently graduated high school and I've really just been, just been trying to expand as much as possible now that I have a lot more time, freedom. And so as Casey said, my social media agency actually specializes in the high end luxury and exotic automotive industry. So I work a lot with luxury and exotic cars and I also do a good amount of influencer marketing. Now I've been working with some of the top influencers on social media like Jake Paul and Summer Ray and a lot of models and big people like that. And you know, from there I've just been kind of branching out and trying to just try a bunch of new things. I'm into, I'm big into cryptocurrency now as well. So it's exciting, exciting stuff, man.

For sure, man. For sure. So regarding, like your story, man, I know that we met Through Instagram, social media marketing in general. That's how we kind of clicked. So how did you get started in social media marketing? Or what was like the initiation to get in there, Involved with that?

Yeah. So funny story, I'll make it short. My junior year of high school, I was kind of down. I didn't really know where I was headed. It was about time for me to start thinking about college. And I wasn't really making any money. I was working a normal job and I really just wanted to change things up. I wanted to do something better. So I actually contacted a local entrepreneur who had a local business chain, but it was a franchise, so he had multiple locations. He was a multi, multi millionaire. And I contacted him and he got back to me and basically he kind of took me under his wing. And a couple months later he asked me if I knew how to do social media. And I was like, I mean, I've never, I'm young, I'm, you know, I'm like 17 years old or just turned 17 at the time. And I said, yeah, sure, like, I'm sure I could figure it out. So I worked for him for free and I ran his social media for his personal brand for two or three months. And one day I went to him. His name was Matt. I went to him, I was like, hey, Matt, quick question, if you don't mind me asking. How much were you paying the person who was doing what I'm doing now before I was doing it, basically? And he was like, oh, I was paying them like $1,200 a month. And I was like, damn, that's a lot of money. And I thought, you know, I was like, damn, like, that's so much money. And I just. Literally within a couple months, I filed for an llc and I started really going out and trying to figure out what my ideal client was. I actually jumped into the Tai Lopez SMMA course a couple months after that, and I already had a couple CL then. And then what really ramped up my game and my. My kind of career in social media marketing and online marketing was meeting Joe Soto. And a lot of you might know him from Tai's course, but he actually lives here locally, not too far away from me. And I contacted him and I was able to link up with him and he taught me basically everything I know about agency sales and how to run and scale an agency. And here I am.

So that's the subra. So regarding, like your agency, I know that you specialize in cars. That's how the first time we Met up is at a car show. How did you get involved with the car industry itself?

Yeah, so my agencies and cars and I'm also involved in a YouTube channel that my buddy Jeffrey owns called JR Garage and it's one of the largest automotive YouTube channels in the world. So I do a lot with, with that channel as well. So my whole life kind of life revolves around cars. I love it. But really for me, and this is a lesson that I think can go out to any like young entrepreneurs and people who are just getting started out there. It's like my passion was cars and my, the way that I knew I wanted to make money was like Internet marketing. So I'm like, I'll just combine the two. I'll do Internet marketing for automotive companies. I'm like, okay, well now do I go work out with the like the boring brands like the Honda Civics? I'm like, no, I want to mess with the high end, the luxury stuff.

Yeah.

So I just, I really put a focus on that and, and you know, it just kind of manifested itself into reality. When I decided I wanted to work with high end brands, I ended up getting in contact with high end brands and it just kind of worked that way for sure.

Man, that's badass, man. So I know that at the beginning and recently you've been working with a lot of influencers regarding combining whether that be the automotive industry with influencers that, whether that be are interested in cars. So when it comes to working with influencers, like how did that all come about with you as well as what would you suggest with people that may want to start working with influencers in general?

Yeah, so I think there's kind of a two part answer to this. And that's the first thing is you got to figure out like what kind of influencers you're trying to work with. Because I help a lot of people who have local small business clients and the influencers that they're wanting to work with are local bloggers and people with, you know, a couple thousand, maybe even a couple, you know, tens of thousands of followers. Meanwhile, then you get into the realm of these guys like Jake, Paul and people like that. And that's just a completely different game in terms of influencer marketing. That's really big brands and multiple six figure deals. So it really depends. You gotta, gotta figure out if you're doing influencer marketing for your own business. Be realistic, what kind of influencer are you looking for? You gotta kind of niche that down and figure out who you're looking for. Before you start looking for them, if that makes sense. And then from there it's just about finding the right one. You got to find one with good engagement that has the same morals and the same beliefs and your business or your client's business if you're doing it for somebody else. And it really just comes down to doing your research. And then eventually the final step is reaching out to that influencer. And this is your whole game, Casey. This is how you personal brand so big. It's the power of Instagram dm, man. You just got to message these people. It's literally that simple.

It is. For real? For real. See, I mean, this is, I think regarding how me and you even met, man, you were on my live stream, I think you said, yo, like hit me in the DMs, we connected. Long story short, we ended up, I came up to Northern Virginia, we met up and then now we've been able to travel all over together, host events together with amazing people. But regarding this is, this is a question that I'm gonna be asking a lot of my guests now, just something kind of off topic that's interesting, but when it comes to money in general, what's been the best purchase with $100 or less that you've been able to spend?

Well, I just made it last night. It actually wasn't $100. Does like $150 count?

That's cool.

Okay, dope. So I made a purchase last night of a cryptocurrency and I spent I think $150 on it. And my portfolio is now worth over $2000 or $1800 literally in like 24 hours. That's insane. That is by far the best $150 purchase I've ever made. But I mean, I guess also like in terms of value, I've spent $150 on a one way plane ticket to meet some of the most influential people in my life. So, you know, it really just, you know, money is a container of value and that's kind of my what I preach. So, you know, and when I say that, I mean, you got to figure out like, okay, I'm about to spend this money and maybe I don't want to spend this money, or maybe it's for a mastermind or an event or you know, a course or whatever the case is. You know, you really just got to think about what the opportunities that could arise. Like, you never know what's going to happen when you, when you invest in yourself and you spend some money on moving Forward with whatever you're trying to do 100%.

And I think even for me, like, going to these events or traveling out to Cali, like, you never know the outcome when it comes to spending. Like, for example, going to an event, like, you know it's valuable, but you don't really know, like, what can come from it unless you actually go out and do it, you know? But regarding overall, your entire journey so far, if you. This is something I also like asking people. When it comes to. When you think about your first person, if you think about the word success, who comes to mind? As soon as you think about, man.

I got to say, hmm. You know what? I'm gonna be. I'm gonna be a little emotional here. I think I'm gonna say my best friend Jeffrey. I'm gonna say it because if you ask me, like, the most influential, like, billionaire or, like, very, very successful entrepreneur, I'm gonna say Richard Branson. But just in terms of the word success, I'm gonna have to say Jeffrey. And for those of you who don't know Jeffrey, he's a very, very good friend of mine. He's also 18. He graduated high school the same year that I did. He lives here locally. He's got one of the biggest automotive YouTube channels in the world. He's the number one cryptocurrency influencer currently on the Internet. He's grossed millions and millions of dollars in sales for his other. His main business and among many other accomplishments. So he's one of my inspirations. And he's like. He's a good friend of mine, and he is one of the most successful people I know is, like, the success to age ratio beating everybody, man. So I'm telling you, he's crushing it, bro.

I remember the first time I met him when we went to the warehouse, bro. It's like, not even just the cars, but, like, the mentality of, like, for everyone that doesn't know, like, he was wearing a shirt that said, like, London. I'm like, oh, you've been to London? He's like, no, I got it from Goodwill. But, like, you know, but he has a Ferrari or a Lamborghini. Like I said, the mentality that he has just for me. And now I've been able to meet him a couple of times. Like, it's just super badass, you know?

Yeah. He wear. All of his clothes are from Goodwill. It's the funniest thing ever.

Jeffrey, if you're listening to this, bro, you gotta hop on.

Yeah, yeah.

So, I mean, when it comes to, I know, like regards of your journey so far when it comes to all the success and accomplishments that people are hearing throughout, whether it be the podcast or who follow you on social media, what's been the biggest setback that's happened in your life that maybe you haven't said before, but it's just something that, you know, it's been a huge like setback in your life that helped you bounce back.

Give me, give me a couple seconds because I know, I know there's something here. I'm gonna be, I'll be raw. I'm gonna be straight up right now. I think it's procrastination. I really do. And I still struggle with was something that I really struggled with especially in high school. And when I started my own business, it kind of rolled over into that and just procrastinating on tasks and you know, and follow ups and all these, these things just in my day to day life as an entrepreneur, procrastination really got in my way, as I know it does for a lot of people. And sometimes, you know, I'll sit back and I'll be like, damn, like, I really shouldn't be doing this. I shouldn't be procrastinating. I got to get this done. And I think the fact that I'm aware that I procrastinate is a good step in the right direction for me. I'm never going to be perfect. I'm probably always going to procrastinate. But I think for me, in terms of growing as a person and growing as an entrepreneur, I think procrastinating to the least amount possible is the goal. And so I think that was a setback. But I also think the fact that I'm aware of it is kind of something that's helped me succeed even more now that I've been able to figure out how to overcome it for myself.

For sure, for sure. That's badass. So when it comes to overall, I know me and you, we've hosted a bunch of events now all over the US Pretty much like in a lot of major cities. But when it comes to your take on how events, whether it be hosting them or going to them, how mastermind events or networking events have helped you or helped you grow or introduce new opportunities, what's been like the biggest thing you've learned from hosting events, man.

Well, man, Casey, don't be so humble, bro. We've thrown some badass events, killer events. So for those of you that don't know if you've been following Casey For a while, you know that he and I co hosted two big like mansion influencer parties and it inspired some of our friends to host their own events. And we're co hosting another one here coming up. So. Events are so crucial, guys. And when I told you earlier that I'm doing influencer deals with some of these big social media celebrities and all these people, it's because of these events 100%. And Casey, I know a lot of stuff you're doing today because of these events really changed both of our lives and all of the people that were attending in their lives as well. So these events, they bring people together. And I think the fact that we just literally. How many times were we on the phone?

Every single day, daily, four or five times a day, easily.

It was insane. Casey and I were on the phone four or five times a day for like three, four weeks leading up to these events and just stressing about every little thing. And when the day came and we started, you know, seeing people rolling up and people's lives were changing in front of our eyes, like, you guys got to realize this, like with the speakers that we had and the influencers that we had that were, that were there inspiring people and everyone was networking and closing business deals in the room and we literally just saw this kind of the atmosphere of these events just shifted right in front of us and everyone just became like family. It was the craziest thing. Some of the best friends that I have to this day, I met at that event in La Jolla. And some of the best connections that I have to this day, I met at that event in Beverly Hills and La Jolla as well. And you know, it's just truly incredible, like events, whether you're, again, whether you're hosting them or you're attending them, they're some of the best things that you can do. Because nothing beats as. As awesome as Instagram are. Nothing. Face to face interaction.

And I actually, I actually got interviewed today from my buddy Adam Lennig, and he was telling he we were just talking about Instagram in general and I feel like regarding from what you just said is like, I use my Instagram platform and I'm sure you can relate to this. Not to just DM someone to get a DM back, but to turn networking on social media to real life interaction. Like, that's my main objective of to turn like people that I meet on social media to real life connections that we do real life things, whether it be traveling, hosting events or business deals. And I feel like a lot of People just don't try to have that outlook about, like, social media is like an instant gateway to like me and you, bro. It's not like we're just still never met before. Like we've traveled around the country from like a DM or a phone call, you know, it's like little things like that just regarding sending a message on Instagram that a lot of people hear, whether it be from my podcast or other people. But I just feel like a lot of people don't execute it and really see the advantage, you know, and we.

Actually talked about this when we were on our, on our dual live the other day. We literally were talking about how crap lost my train of thought there. We were literally talking about how important it is to direct message people and to network with people on Instagram. And it literally is one of the simplest things that you can do with your personal brand. And it's something that has an absolutely massive ROI and you really just can't even measure it. The relationships that you have and that you build with others people through this platform is incredible. And, you know, people just aren't doing it. They don't understand. They're like asking like, I'm sure in your DMs all the time, Casey, they're asking like, how do I do this? How do I meet Tai Lopez? How do I do all these things influence your deal with Jake Paul? It's like, dude, it literally is just a relationship with somebody and you just got to talk to them and make sure it's just a relationship. It's all it is and it's all done through. Yeah, it's all expedited now with this technology.

So for sure, for sure. So when it comes to events, back on the topic real quick. So I know that we've hosted events. I actually had a podcast on like my intake on hosting events. What I've learned, because we've had successful events, but we've also had stressful moments. But when it comes to people, whether that be attending events or even trying to host them, what would you say are like the most three, like critical things of hosting an event that you want someone to know?

Let me think about this one for a second. I think one big thing when it comes to hosting an event, you have the resources to get people there. One of the things that I preach is that failure is going to happen and you have to learn from failure. So if you try to throw an event and no one shows up or it doesn't have the outcome that you want, then learn from that for sure. But try to minimize failure in your life. And so my point with your question is if you're going to throw an event before you start announcing things, you need to have an awesome team in place, which we did. Like, we had some of the top social media influencers in the world talking about our event and promoting it for us. And we set them up as affiliates or whatever the case was, to get people in the door and to get people there to network and have a good time. So that's one big tip. I think the second big tip is create an atmosphere that people enjoy being in. No one wants to go to a lame event. No one wants to go to a lame party. No one wants to go to a lame conference or anything. Have good speakers, have good music, have good people, have a good vibe. Have a dope location too, like the houses that we've thrown our events in. Crazy. Every single time. So that's another big one. And I think lastly is you just need to believe in yourself that you can do it. You know, never once when I was planning the first two events did I not believe that it was going to be good. I totally under. I underestimated for sure. I didn't think it was going to be as good as it ended up being, but I knew it was going to be good from day one because I knew that I had the ability to bring these people together for sure.

Especially with the team, especially. I think that's a critical aspect of just like having team itself. But regarding the events itself for everyone listening, if you are interested in whether becoming to an event or learning from the people that are in Kieran and I's network. So we have, we have a bunch of different events coming up, but the most recent one that's happening is February 17th and 18th is happening in Washington State. It's going to be something different. It's a snowboard slash skiing mastermind. We have a huge lodge that sleeps 50 people. You buy tickets and literally you get three nights stay, two days included, snowboarding your skiing passes, as well as breakfast, lunch and dinner daily. So for everyone listening, if you are interested, if you have not heard about the event, make sure to hit me up on instagram @casey adams1 and I'll be able to send you more information on it. But last thing, Karen, regarding. I know that you said regarding the $150 investment you made into crypto and when it comes to the whole crypto space in general, I know that you've been kind of touching on that recently. You have A few things that you've been working on. But regarding the crypto, just you want to drop some knowledge or kind of your experience in that area because I'm sure a lot of people would find that interesting.

Yeah, guys, cryptocurrency is so, so interesting to me. And it literally like every time I open my computers I get adrenaline rush. Like I'm addicted to it. Guys, I swear it's something great that you can do with, with any extra money that you have. I would definitely recommend getting involved. My little brother is 14 years old, he's in cryptocurrency. He made like a couple hundred dollars yesterday alone. And anybody can do it, any age. If you're underage, you can use your parents account or even teach your parents how to do it, which is the crazy part because it's digital currency. So some of these young people literally know more about it than seasoned Wall street investors. It's crazy to see. So get involved in cryptocurrency. It really is the future, I think that we're actually going to be using it in our day to day lives on a pretty consistent basis not that long from now. Get involved, do your research, make sure you understand it. Even if you don't want to put money into the markets, at least understand what the blockchain technology does and why it's so beneficial. And the last thing is if you want to learn more about cryptocurrency or maybe you don't have time to do the research to figure out what coin is the best to put your money into. You can hit me up on Instagram's life L, Y, F, E, so life with a Y and you can ask me about my cryptocurrency group chat. And we literally have, it's a chat group and alert group. So what happens in there is we have very experienced five and even six and seven figure earners within the cryptocurrency space that are all literally sitting in a group chat day in and day out saying, okay, you should buy this, you should buy this. Here's a good call. You know, tron is down 10% and now's a good time to buy whatever the case is. It's an awesome community that we've built there. So again, if you want to get in it, just DM me on Instagram and I can get you a link.

For sure, for sure. Even because I'm in that group chat, everyone that's listening. And it's definitely been a huge game changer for me as well. Just from like when it comes to the timeframe of literally, you'll open your phone and the group chat will be flooded and you'll be like, you'll see all these different calls, you'll see the coins, you'll see people making money and then that. Even I feel like that just like entices me to want to be more invested into it when it comes to my time, because everyone's making more money and just crushing it. But regarding the entire I know of this podcast, when it comes to Kieran, your story, your experience, I'm sure a lot of people listening. I may already follow you, but for the people that don't already drop some. Where can people follow you at, bro?

Yeah, so I'm most active on Instagram. I don't really do anything personal like on Facebook or Twitter, but my Instagram is at Kieran's life. Why? As I said, L, Y, F, E. And I'm actually, I just bought two domain names today, so my websites gonna be live soon, so that's exciting. But yeah, for now, just hit me up on Instagram. That's where you can find me. I respond to every single DM that I get. I know you do too, Casey. So, guys, again, as we said earlier in the podcast, don't be afraid to reach out to people that you look up to or people that you want to network with. Like, everyone is trying to do the same thing in life. They're trying to level up and be successful. So if building their network is how they're gonna do it, then they're gonna respond to you.

For sure. For sure, man. Well, that being said, everyone make sure to go check out Kieran on Instagram. His information will be down in the description. And for that being said, everyone make sure to hit me up if you are interested in the event. Like I said, February 17th and 18th in Washington state, there's tons and tons of speakers and you'll be able to find out more about them and if you reach out to me. But thanks again for tuning in to the Rise of the Young podcast. Make sure you subscribe, make sure you drop a review, a rating, and let me know who you want me to bring on to the Rise of the Young podcast. We have tons and tons of guests coming soon that are very, very influential in their industry. But that being said, I will see you on the next episode.

Monarch Legacy of Monsters An Apple Original Series the world is on fire. I decided to do something about it on November 17th. This place, it's not ours. Believe me, the most massive event of the year arrives. If you come with me, you'll know everything. I promise. Legacy of Monsters streaming November 17th only on Apple TV Plus.