Carrie Kerpen didn’t set out to be an entrepreneur. She simply wanted to give her fiancé the wedding of his dreams– concocting a sponsored wedding concept where she and her husband were married on a baseball field in a giant event entitled “Our Field of Dreams”. The event captured major media attention, so much so that the sponsors asked the Kerpens to “do it again”. While they couldn’t get married again, they started a word-of-mouth marketing agency instead, which quickly morphed into one of the world’s first social media marketing agencies back in 2007.
Carrie went on to lead the agency to scale over the next 14 years, with an eye towards exit. She was able to sell the business in 2021 for 8-figures, but in the process, realized that she felt utterly alone. There were so few women that she could find who had been through the experience of a business transaction. It felt like no one understood the personal, professional, and business ramifications of exiting your business as a female founder.
After exiting, Carrie founded The Whisper Group. The Whisper Group matches women who have exited with women who are looking to exit– providing advisory services. In addition, she built The Whisper Collective, the only community dedicated to exited female founders. Her book: The Whisper Way: The Secret Formula for Women Entrepreneurs to Scale and Sell for Life-Changing Money.
Takeaways:
- Carrie is committed to closing the exit gap. Currently, 1% of exits have exclusively female founders, and less than 1% of exit revenue goes to women. Carrie will be measuring that data to ensure that it is closed.
Carrie Kerpen – Founder of The Whisper Group
I am Carrie Kerpen, the CEO and founder of The Whisper Group. After building and scaling one of the world’s first social media agencies together with my husband, I went to sell it and realized that I felt entirely alone in the process. There were no women before me that I knew that I could turn to who had been through this experience before. It was extremely isolating for me when I went to sell in 2021, and no one talks about the emotional, personal, and financial ramifications of the exit process. That is when I decided to launch The Whisper Group. The Whisper Group is a collective of exited female founders who advise other female founders who are looking to build, plan to exit, and have a pathway for business support, emotional support, and overall exit readiness support.
Can you tell us, in your own words, about your inspiring story?
I started Likeable, one of the world’s first social media marketing agencies, with my husband, Dave. Dave was a visionary, and I was more of an implementor. When Dave left the business in 2013 to launch a tech startup, I was left with a business that was no longer the new kid on the block. To add to that, everywhere I turned, I saw agency leaders who were loud, extroverted, and male. I was NONE of these things! I thought I was doomed.
Through the power of connection and building a network of strong, powerful women in leadership positions, I was able to double the size of the business. I started a podcast called All The Social Ladies. I thought maybe there were other women like me who might struggle to tell their own stories, so perhaps I could help them and, in turn, grow my network. That’s exactly how Likeable grew to 8 figures in revenue with a profitable margin.
In 2021, I was ready for a new chapter. I decided to sell the business, but felt under-prepared, under-educated, and under-resourced. I also felt like, despite my large network, there were so few women I could turn to who had had this experience. When I researched, I found that fewer than 1% of company exits are fully female-founded. After having such a life-changing exit, I knew I wanted to build a community of every exited female founder that I could find, and help educate and inspire women to do the same. My mission is to close The Exit Gap™
Can you start by introducing yourself and telling us in your own words about your inspiring story?
I am Carrie Kerpen, the CEO and founder of The Whisper Group. After building and scaling one of the world’s first social media agencies together with my husband, I went to sell it and realized that I felt entirely alone in the process. There were no women before me that I knew that I could turn to who had been through this experience before. It was extremely isolating for me when I went to sell in 2021, and no one talks about the emotional, personal, and financial ramifications of the exit process. That is when I decided to launch The Whisper Group. The Whisper Group is a collective of exited female founders who advise other female founders who are looking to build, plan to exit, and have a pathway for business support, emotional support, and overall exit readiness support.
What made you decide to go into business for yourself?
I originally decided to go into business for myself due to a 45-minute commute, my daughter being very young, and not getting home in time for bathtime and bedtime. It felt unmanageable to me, so there was no other option but to build from there.
How did you market your business when it was brand new?
When I started the Whisper Group, I was known as a social media marketer, not as an exit planner. I wanted to change that perception, so I invested in content. I used a videographer and started posting daily videos to really focus on honing my content across all social media and building my email list. That was the first thing that I had committed to investing in a meaningful way.
What is a typical day like for you?
A typical day for me is built around my priorities. I wake up in the morning, get the kids ready for school, and then have a little me-time. My me-time is usually spent working out and making some form of breakfast. After working out and having breakfast, I start my day with meetings from about 10 am to 4:30 pm, with a couple of small breaks here and there to get some fresh air. I, then, go back to me-time which includes prepping for the kids, so I’m cooking dinner and any kind of planning for the many activities my kids have. After cooking and planning, we eat dinner together as a family because that is what we prioritize. I often go back to work for a little bit after the kids go to bed and then try to get a good night’s sleep before 11 pm.
What are the three most important habits to be a successful entrepreneur?
First, to get used to hearing the word “no” and have the resilience to bounce back. Second is the discipline to set and stick to a routine. You have to be able to stick to doing the hard work and have the discipline to do the things that need to be done. So much of entrepreneurship is not sexy, and it is doing the work over and over again. The third is really adaptability. Understand that markets change, products change, and people change, and just really be able to adapt as needed to make the business successful.
If you had one piece of advice for someone just starting out, what would it be?
Take the jump and take the risk. Two things: 1. Take the risk because, in my experience, regretting that you didn’t start something is far worse than starting something and having it not work. 2. Have a good plan for longevity. It’s going to take you longer than you think to get “it” to be successful, so just really craft a roadmap for yourself that allows you the grace to build at the speed that it will probably take, which is a little bit longer than you think.
How do you prioritize self-care and well-being while managing the demands of your business?
By setting meeting-free times.
What would you consider your biggest accomplishment and why?
Building a business while raising 3 children successfully.
Every entrepreneur has a goal and a problem they are trying to solve. What was the inspiration that started your journey?
The problem I’m trying to solve is The Exit Gap. Today, fewer than 1% of businesses that end up going through a sale transaction are female-founded. We are capturing 0.8% of value at exit, so for every dollar that is spent on a merger or acquisition, women are capturing less than a penny. I discovered The Exit Gap when diving deep into research and feeling so alone. That is the number I knew I needed to solve. The other thing I wanted to solve was helping this community of exited female founders, who are very few and far between, find community and build community across our shared experience that very few other people have gone through.
We all face challenges. Looking back, what have been some of the biggest challenges and obstacles you’ve had to navigate?
Getting out of my own way, having the confidence to push forward, and not jumping ship because I was afraid. I think having the fortitude and resilience to push forward when things got hard was the hardest thing.
What challenges have you faced in the workplace, especially your experience in male-dominated environments?
If you look at my research at closetheexitgap.com you will see that most rooms when you walk into to be acquired are exclusively men. Very few women work in PE; there’s a stat in terms of the decision-maker you’re looking at about 12%, and generally, women are not acquiring businesses at the rate that men are. When you go to sell your business, you’re almost exclusively surrounded by men, and that’s not necessarily a horrible thing. It’s walking into a room where someone doesn’t necessarily understand what you’ve been through to get the business to where it is today, and also the idea that in that room, you have to be really tough and summon all of your male energy.
What initiatives or actions do you believe are crucial for fostering a more supportive and inclusive business environment for women?
Community community community! I think it’s very important if we want to foster a more supportive and inclusive business environment for women, we need to be able to talk to one another and find community in spaces with one another to understand what we’re going through collectively and have shared experiences. It’s so important to be able to just talk through some of the challenges with one another and learn from one another. To understand that we’re not alone.
How do you set your business apart from others in your industry?
I set my business apart by providing groundbreaking research on the disparity between male-founded company exits and female-founded company exits. Also, by focusing and speaking to women business owners in a way that resonates without pandering to them.
What are the three most important habits to be a successful high performer or leader?
- The habit of taking risks. Allowing yourself to take risks and building that muscle.
- Adaptability. Having the ability to navigate changes with ease.
- Discipline to keep going and stick to goals.
What are three websites or podcasts you can’t imagine your day without? Why those three?
The Exit Whisperer podcast
The Broadstreet by Fortune newsletter
How I Built This podcast
Which female leader do you admire, and why?
I admire so many, but I admire Sara Blakely from Spanx for how relatable she is and how she shares her whole life, and she’s built this behemoth company.
Do you have a favorite quote or motto that inspires you?
“Worry is a misuse of the imagination.” I’ve suffered from a lot of anxiety in my life, and this quote reminds me that I have the talent to dream up big things. If I use that talent spent on worrying in a negative space, that is likely where I’ll land.
Final Thoughts
I’m on a mission to close The Exit Gap. Go to closetheexitgap.com to download our report. After selling my social media agency, one of the world’s first, I had a very comfortable exit. I didn’t need to do anything else, but this was a real mission-driven business, and I’m thrilled to help close the exit gap.
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All of these and more are part of our interview series spotlighting successful women in business.
Melissa Stewart is the founder of SheOwnsIt.com. She is a Purveyor of Possibility, Entrepreneur Advocate and Coffee Addict. She believes that behind every successful woman is her story. What’s your story?