After Root layoff, marketer sprouts new business getting brands like Scotts on TikTok

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Anthony Trimpe got Root Insurance Co. on TikTok. When his was among hundreds of jobs cut last year, he made TikTok his business.

After a month or so of zoom calls, interviews and playing with his 5-year-old, last March Trimpe co-founded Snack – "byte-sized" social media spots for brands on platforms such as TikTok, YouTube and Facebook.

At first a stopgap to bring in income, creating short videos gave the longtime advertising professional an outlet for energy and creativity, whether playing the "lawn dad" locked in an unspoken mowing competition with his neighbor for Scotts Lawn, or a slice-indecisive Sbarro customer.

"Out of necessity was born this side hustle business that I’m super passionate about," Trimpe said. "It carried me mentally, emotionally, financially, professionally, through the months where I was trying to figure out what I’m going to do next."

Over the summer Trimpe landed a new full-time job, and the side hustle became a lesson in time management.

"There’s only so much we can do," he said. "At night I go all in on this."

Trimpe had previous roles with Columbus digital agencies The Shipyard and the former Resource Interactive. As a consultant eight years ago, Trimpe came up with the name Root for the nascent digital insurer, before joining T-shirt designer Homage as creative director. He moved to Root in 2018, when it still had fewer than 100 employees, and rose to senior creative director.

Trimpe was part of the Root team that devised guerilla marketing campaigns, such as "ride with Root" free ride-sharing on St. Patrick's Day in Denver, a Land Grant root beer to promote safe driving during Red White and Boom in Columbus, and the "unfair slice" takeover of the Mikey's Late Night Slice across from the Greater Columbus Convention Center to criticize using credit scores to underwrite insurance.

In 2021, while expanding Root's social media presence, he hired A.J. Overstreet, who had not yet graduated from Ohio State University. The two had launched Root's TikTok account, which grew to 10,000 followers in six months.

Previously, as an intern, Overstreet set up a TikTok account for the Ohio Department of Transportation that attracted national media attention. (This year the entire account was erased because of a ban on the service on state devices.)

"I went to the ODOT TikTok and it floored me. He knows how to take boring topics and make it interesting," Trimpe said. "He has been a godsend."

Trimpe was "completely shocked" that he was part of the 20% staff reduction in January 2022.

"We were doing great work," he said. "It was crushing to me and very confusing I would be on that list."

A few weeks later Trimpe reconnected with Overstreet to launch Snack. Overstreet stayed with Root while working part-time shooting and editing for the startup – but was part of the subsequent round of job cuts in November. Snack lists Root videos as part of the founders' past experience, but has never done paid work for the insurer.

"We wish all former employees the best and are excited to see how their careers take shape after their time here," Kelly Ruoff, chief impact officer for Root Inc. (Nasdaq: ROOT), said via email. "In particular, it's been fun to see Trimpe and (Overstreet) build a business in the social space from a partnership and skill set that started at Root."

Snack's first client was Columbus-based Ootbox, which makes portable self-contained workspaces, ahead of a successful Shark Tank appearance.

Then came the Scotts Lawn brand of Marysville-based Scotts Miracle-Gro Co., including a viral spot with more than 2.7 million hits to date with a (profane) tip on using a screwdriver to determine when to water the grass. Trimpe's lawn dad ceaselessly battles moles (in a "Bishop Sycamore alumni" T-shirt) and cleans up kid toys. Snack also did TikToks for Aerogarden, Scotts' indoor plant-growing station.

The account went into hiatus as Midwest lawns went dormant for winter. In March, Overstreet joined Scotts full-time in e-commerce and content creation, according to his LinkedIn profile. He continues with Snack part-time, Trimpe said, but could not work on the Scotts account if it's renewed. A growing cadre of creators has joined the cast and production crew part-time.

Advice for turning your passion into a small business

To be sure, Scotts has not abandoned slickly produced humorous TV spots – recently introducing "Scott," played by Kristofer Hivju (Tormund on Game of Thrones), cursing weeds in a thick brogue. Citing March Madness and spring sales campaigns with big-box retailers, the company said it could not accommodate an interview request.

At the same time, Trimpe said, more brands will increase their presence on the social media platforms where Millennials and Gen Z spend their time – not to mention that short-form, rough-cut videos are a fraction of the cost.

TikTok's users "hate" when brands treat videos like just another commercial, Trimpe said, rather than weave a brand message with humor and of-the-moment trends.

"Our stuff is very, very intrinsically tied to the platform and how people make content and consume content," he said. "We found content that resonates and started to double down on that. ... A lot of brands don’t know how to do it, but we do."

In July, Trimpe started as creative director for Golden Reserve, a Dublin retirement-planning firm formed to protect assets of middle-income retirees.

"I love working there," he said. "I'm very drawn to brash, brazen, disruptive entrepreneurs who are going to change archaic industries."

As rounds of job cuts hit more companies around the country, professionals can do a lot to protect themselves or even build small businesses, Trimpe said. Keep up with networking, offer help, and outperform for first clients – all of which takes "insane hours."

"Whoever that first client is, they're going to pay money for your services," Trimpe said. "Make sure you end that contract with some great testimonials and great work."

Allowing for family time, that means pushing Snack to 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. – "every single night, even Christmas," he said. He shoots videos on weekends in his back yard.

"If you're worried about your job, and there's all these layoffs, and you have a skill or passion – quit wasting one or two hours a night flipping through Netflix or HBO or even TikTok," he said. "Don’t have the happy hour. Start to build something for yourself so you don’t place your faith in somebody else's business.

"That’s a pet peeve of mine, when people say, 'I don’t have time.'"