About us

Jeff Small founded Strategic Media Inc. in 2000, building the business into one of the country’s leading audio agencies helmed by experts. Personal and professional growth and active learning sit at the crux of Jeff’s leadership style at SMI; employees are encouraged to ask questions, think nimbly, and always go the extra mile.

A goal-oriented leader through and through, Jeff is engaged with all departments at SMI and is involved with client strategy—a testament to a company culture built around collaboration, communication, and comradery.

Jeff’s commitment to upholding the physical and mental well being of his employees comes to fruition with a balanced work culture based on responsibility, accountability, and respect.

For all who work with him, for his wife and grown children, Jeff tries to set an example of true generosity, kindness and love every single day. Over the past two decades, Jeff has led the charge by donating (and encouraging employees to donate) to such charities as The Travis Mills Foundation, The Barbara Bush Children’s Hospital, Preble Street Resource Center, as well as food pantries nationwide. Read more about how SMI gives back here.

An SMI team member for nearly 20 years, Christina leads the Client Services Team where her
repertoire of skills is put into practice managing client budgets, campaign testing, and strategy.

Empowered and inspired by the experts around her, Christina recommends what is best for each client’s marketing budget, employing a balance of proven forward-thinking strategies and customized tests.

Clients’ goals become her goals, which she will relentlessly pursue. In 2023, Christina added “VP” to her job title in a move cementing her expertise in the business of Audio Advertising. Find Christina posted at her laptop in sunny Key West, where she likes to spend her time traveling and enjoying the outdoors with her family.

Bob joined Strategic Media Inc. back in 2005, quickly becoming an indispensable part of the team. In his role as Director of Client Development, Bob’s intrinsic understanding of the audio landscape empowers brands to reach their full potential.

After nearly two decades into his career at SMI, he’s worked with hundreds of clients and overseen the production of thousands of ads. From chasing leads and securing new clients to directing the creative team to motivate listeners with high-quality ads, Bob’s days are rarely quiet – but his office is always open.

On the weekends, you can find Bob swimming, kayaking, lounging at the beach, or pursuing DIY projects with confidence, optimism, and an emergency tourniquet nearby – just in case.

As Controller at Strategic Media, Rhonda’s job comes down to the vital role of overseeing all client & vendor accounts for accuracy and completeness.

An industry expert with more than 15 years in audio advertising, Rhonda has been an integral part of the SMI team since 2007. Far and wide, her favorite part of the job is working with a team of smart, dedicated people.

Rhonda is also an extremely talented cross-stitcher, dedicated parent, and world traveler—turning up in the nooks and crannies of countries few people even know exist. When she’s not indulging her wanderlust, you can find Rhonda doing crossword puzzles and babysitting her grandkids.

Heather’s extensive knowledge, experience, logic, and no-nonsense planning in every campaign is the foundation of each client’s success at Strategic Media Inc., and has been since the early 2000s.

As the Media Director, Heather’s expertise and knowledge guides her team of buyers through every aspect of a campaign. From superior strategy to flawless implementation to rate negotiations, results review, and more. She maintains great relationships with our top media vendors, which puts SMI’s clients in the best position for the top media placements at the lowest remnant rates.

Heather loves her work, loves her life, loves her family, and is never afraid to speak her mind.

Brooke approaches her role as the Director of Strategic Growth with the same entrepreneurial spirit that once led her to start her own company. At SMI, she focuses primarily on attribution and strategy, and new business. She is at the forefront of innovation, always looking for new ways to advance strategic opportunities that help clients achieve growth and profitability.

She is a confident businesswoman, constantly collaborating with internal teams to ensure our campaigns are targeted in achieving and conveying actionable results that yield long-term growth.

She drives results here the way she drives golf balls on the course—straight to the goal. She does all this while working remotely from Georgia, where she lives with her husband and two young boys.

Ronnie joined the SMI team in the winter of 2007 and has played a pivotal role, in the nearly two decades since, leading the charge in dual roles as Executive Assistant and Head of Human Resources. Her day-to-day at the office is a balanced dichotomy of big-picture strategic endeavors and the necessary daily upkeep of the office.

With duties involving record keeping, policy development, risk management, and administrative support, Ronnie keeps this place running smoothly. Her favorite aspect of the job – besides working alongside some of her dearest friends – is Strategic Media’s strong emphasis on personal growth and professional development.

In the spring and summer, you can find her boating at the lake with her family. Come winter, the mountains and slopes of Maine are where she spends her time. She’s got style, class, sophistication, and never misses an opportunity to crack a joke. An exercise enthusiast and voracious reader, Ronnie’s rich social life makes her a constant source of knowledge and wit.

A dedicated data analyst with a talent for presenting information, Alex’s many years at Strategic Media can be attributed to his commitment to results.

Alex leads the Data & Analytics team with progressive reporting projects, as well as the implementation and streamlining of this company’s data visualization techniques.

In a role that has him constantly working through massive amounts of data points, Alex’s technical know-how and intrinsic understanding of numbers ensures clarity in a client’s advertising campaign.

Alex makes it a point to commune with nature every chance he gets, ferrying his family from campsite to kayak to mountain top.

Cameron joined the SMI team in 2024 as a Client Account Manager, where his various talents go towards providing campaign snapshots to clients, building presentations, and fine-tuning campaigns to optimize results.

While his move into audio advertising comes as a hard pivot from a prior career in finance, Cameron’s friendly demeanor and natural rapport with clients sets a golden standard for the industry.

He’s an avid runner, expert juggler, and loves Halloween more than most care to admit. If success is your goal, Cameron will get you there.

The first thing Kristy Martino wanted to be when she grew up was a garbage man. The second thing was a writer. Her path to the word, however, was winding. Spanning over two decades, she was a former textile designer, marketing director, lobbyist, and lead singer of an (objectively incredible) 80s New Wave cover band in NYC.

She’s owned a screen-printing business, and a successful design studio, but her greatest asset has always been the pen. Kristy has told stories on stages, on Capitol Hill, and in countless dimly lit cafes around the world. Words are her love language. Followed shortly thereafter by applause.

She has an insatiable curiosity, strong opinions on fruit, baseball, and Lyndon Baines Johnson, and an unwavering belief in the goodness of others. Kristy lives on the Seacoast of Maine with her husband and daughter.

Liz Iversen’s bond with audio began back in high school, when she worked as an audio producer for her local television news station. As an undergrad at the University of Missouri-Columbia, she hosted a late-night radio show on KCOU-Columbia 88.1FM while also serving as the station’s News Director. 

She has an MFA from Antioch University and has written for such publications as The New York Times, Cosmopolitan, and Creative Nonfiction. In 2024 Liz won the Asian American Writers’ Workshop’s “Pages in Progress” contest for her novel-in-progress set in Japanese-occupied Philippines—a project that’s also garnered support from the Aspen Institute, Tin House, the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts, and Monson Arts. 

Liz currently lives with her husband and two children in Maine, where she enjoys hiking, ocean dips, and reading in bed.

Lewis Gillies is an experienced audio engineer and producer with over ten years of live audio, studio recording, and production experience. Lewis has been working for SMI since 2022, producing effective audio ads for hundreds of brands under the company’s roster.

An audio expert and artist by nature, Lewis has a keen eye for producing everything from ambitious spoken word projects and live shows to the programmatic podcast and terrestrial radio ads heard by tens of thousands of listeners daily.

With Lewis on your team, you can rest assured knowing your brand’s voice is amplified and elevated.

With a tenure lasting more than two decades, Pam started at Strategic Media Inc. back in 2002 as a TV buyer before making the transition to radio four years later.

As far as basic duties, no two days are alike; from analyzing, strategizing, and advising clients to ample reporting. A master strategist, media buyer and negotiator, Pam has the most time and experience of any buyer at SMI, diligently using her time to always embark upon a new opportunity to learn something new, fine tune her craft, and bring her expertise to another level.

At home she’s raising chickens, growing her own fruits and vegetables, baking, sewing, building, and generally doing all she can to reduce everybody’s carbon footprints.

Packing more than twenty-five years of media buying and negotiating experience in his holster, Josh is who you call when you need to get things done.

A brilliant and dedicated Senior National Media Buyer, Josh’s role comes down to ensuring a client’s spot is heard by as many people as humanly possible. As a skilled, sharp mediator, he’s also able to attract the best prices, maximizing our clients’ reach and return—all while maintaining a humble sense of humor that puts everyone at ease.

At home, he has a wonderful wife who works as a Neurology Nurse Practitioner and a daughter he adores.

Nearly twenty years ago, Matt took a job as Traffic Director at Strategic Media Inc. in a move that brought his vast radio experience full circle. There’s more to Matt’s job than working tirelessly to ensure the correct ad is playing when and where it’s supposed to play.

Quality control is the name of the game, checking ads, ensuring their delivery to assigned stations around the country, and showing clients the results they pay to expect at SMI.

At home, Matt loves to spend time with his family, exercise, search out delicious restaurants, and watch movies.

In his 15+ years as Network Buyer for SMI, Jared’s role continues to be a paramount part of our unique media strategy. His responsibilities run the gamut from buying network media and space on SiriusXM to analyzing results for clients to optimize performance.

One of his favorite aspects of the job revolves around the piecing together of data points for clients. Think of Jared as a horse whisperer for media reps. A few words in their ears and prices drop precipitously. The spots find themselves in prime slots available. Jared is happy, our clients are overjoyed, and the media reps somehow feel they’ve come out better than anyone.

At home, you can find Jared playing hockey, coaching his kids’ sport teams, and chauffeuring around whoever needs a ride at home.

Now entering her tenth year at Strategic Media, Robin’s role as Podcast Media Buyer puts her in the pilot’s seat of podcast placements. Her duties include (but are not limited to) vetting and availing shows, negotiating rates and CPMs, confirming show level details, sending IOs, confirming placements, and tracking performance.

Robin owes her diverse and spanning knowledge of the company to the years she spent working across different departments at SMI, lending her talents to the Accounting and Legacy teams.

An art lover and appreciator of the great outdoors, most of Robin’s time is spent with her husband and three daughters. On the rare days she has enough time to pursue her hobbies, you can find Robin perusing exhibits at the museum or playing with art supplies.

When it comes to audio, Steve has done it all. From DJ-ing and sales, to years spent designing and implementing radio and podcast advertising campaigns—even managing direct response callers at call centers.

In 2021, Steve joined the team as Podcast Operations/Buyer, focusing his energy and skills on the development of media plans, managing podcast campaigns, and working across departments to put together winning campaign after winning campaign.

He prides himself in his ability to negotiate the best rates for brands, allowing clients to scale. You can find Steve collecting and listening to classic vinyl at home, and coaching his son throughout baseball, football, and basketball season.

When it comes to podcasting, Lee Syatt is a bit of a household name. A producer, co-host, and stand-up comedian, Lee has helped no less than a hundred podcasts lift off the ground.

In his role with the Podcast Operations department, Lee spends his days coordinating onboarding calls, verifying impressions, and air-checking spots for quality control.

If you’re looking to find your way through the world of podcasting and discover the pot of gold, you couldn’t ask for a better guide than Lee. Both on-duty and off, Lee is a lover of people, fan of fine dining, and seasoned world traveler.

An SMI employee for fifteen years (and counting) Sarah’s role is to consistently secure the line of communication between reps and stations to ensure media is running as ordered each week.

Knowing the media and accounting teams are dependent on her organizational skills keeps Sarah going, ensuring all systems are accurate and up-to-date in the ongoing battle to make everyone’s lives easier. As a Media Researcher, Sarah makes sure our clients always get what they pay for and come out on top.

She’s a lover of music, a devoted hockey Mom, and a wonderful host of get-togethers with her many friends. She’s all fun and games until you face her in ping pong—then it’s time for business.

Emily Holtzclaw’s prolific relationship with radio began in her teenage years when she helmed the boards on nights and weekends at the same stations her grandfather worked at for 45 years in Missouri.

As a Media Assistant at Strategic Media Inc., Emily assists the Media teams by gathering data for buyers and clients.

After majoring in Broadcast and Electronic Communications at Marquette University, Emily forged her illustrious path in audio by covering jobs in traffic, business, and sales for 20 years until landing a job as Program Director for 102.3 BXR, and hosting her own morning show, Good Mornings with Emily Larkin, on 101.5 KPLA.

Outside the office, Emily loves cooking, canning, fermenting, and experimenting with food in the kitchen.

As Accounts Payable, Brandon handles the billing and reconciling of vendor invoices. But If you ever need to know how many errors Marv Throneberry made during the Yankee’s 1955 season, he’s the one to ask.

While he may be one of the youngest SMI employees, Brandon is an old soul: easy to talk to, easy to work with, and skilled in active listening.

In his free time, Brandon enjoys live music, skiing, playing basketball and football. He also runs more than a human being ever should.

A vital part of the SMI team since she joined as a temp in 2019, Emily’s financial acumen has transformed the way Strategic Media Inc. does business. As Accounts Receivable, Emily sits at the helm of the office’s administrative sector, handling everything from preparing financial documents and reconciliations to directing broadcast invoices.

A proud Texan and trained coffee aficionado, Emily’s prior career at Starbucks took her on a humanitarian route with work directly impacting the lives of farmers along the Coffee Belt in Latin America, Africa and the South Pacific.

A brilliant musical theater actress, gifted photographer, and karaoke champion to boot, you can find Emily on most weekends spending quality time with her husband and dogs.