Today we’d like to introduce you to David Graham.
David, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
Back in 2023, I had been working for a marketing agency ever since I graduated with my Bachelors in Communications in summer of 2019. While i liked digital marketing, it was increasingly challenging to pursue that field when working for law firms and medical practices as clients. I looked for a way to use my professional skills to further something I believed in. I had already done some freelance marketing work for churches up to that point, so on Jan. 1st, 2024, I formally founded Five Loaves Marketing as an indicator to both myself and prospective clients that I was taking this career path seriously.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Before starting Five Loaves Marketing, my struggles were bad hours and pay and a lot of hard work toward marketing that didn’t have any purpose behind it aside from making the rich richer. I wanted to do marketing for something I believed in, and my faith is the paramount example of something I believe in.
However, running a marketing agency that serves churches has it’s own challenges. Some of those challenges include helping churches see the value and encouraging them to invest in marketing, as well as finding ways to generate good results on often limited budgets. It can be hard for church clients to find the funds for digital marketing efforts, even when there is a desire to.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
As a professional, I focus in SEO and web design and website management. I made my first ever website back in middle school, and have been doing freelance work since my senior year of high school.. When i graduated in 2019, I started working for a marketing agency in DC that specialized in law firm marketing with a strong focus on SEO. I worked there for a little over 5 years, and learned a ton about SEO, primarily with a focus in off-page and technical SEO. Now, in addition to running Five Loaves Marketing (currently as a side business), I work full time in SEO for Marriott International at their headquarters in Bethesda. My specialty both early in my career and now again at Marriott is link building , which is the process of acquiring links from other websites to your clients website, often through email outreach. In that work, I’m most proud of what I’ve achieved in the link building automation space while setting record breaking win rates for our email outreach initiatives.
In addition to that work, under Five Loaves Marketing, I have a network of ecumenical Christian communities as a client where I set up and run their website. I also lead their national young adult ministry efforts, and have spoken at conferences for young adult ministry within that network. That work has also been the fuel for a new initiative that Five Loaves Marketing is about to release, which is a course and other resources for young adult ministry leaders to use to further the success of their ministries. I completed the creation of the course as my capstone for my Masters in Business Administration with a focus in Digital Marketing from Messiah University.
Are there any apps, books, podcasts, blogs or other resources you think our readers should check out?
Youngadults.today is my podcast inspiration for my ministry work. I also have a few marketing books I’m a big fan of, such as Purple Cow: Transform Your Business by Being Remarkable, Every Good Endeavor: Connecting Your Work to God’s Work by Timothy Keller, and Mission Drift by Peter Greer. For SEO news, I like to check Search Engine Journal.
Pricing:
- As of writing, we are starting at $500 per month for annual website contracts
Contact Info:
- Website: https://fiveloavesmarketing.com/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-graham-819199b2/
