We’re looking forward to introducing you to Sarah Iaione. Check out our conversation below.
Hi Sarah, thank you so much for taking time out of your busy day to share your story, experiences and insights with our readers. Let’s jump right in with an interesting one: What is a normal day like for you right now?
It’s funny you’re asking me that, because right now there’s really no such thing as a “normal” day for me. Every day looks different — especially when it comes to my self-care routine.
My whole world kind of revolves around social media. I’m the Director of Digital Marketing for a security company, I own a social media agency, and I also have my own personal following on TikTok — around 85,000 followers. Lately, I’ve been filming a new series called “Becoming a Baddie”, which is all about building better routines and taking care of myself before and after work, because it’s so easy to lose that balance when you’re always “on.”
On the work side, no two days ever look the same. Some days are super creative — whether that’s visually designing or conceptually strategizing — and other days are more about teaching, training, or digging into analytics. I wear a lot of different hats, which I love, because marketing isn’t just one lane. It’s creative, it’s strategic, it’s human — and that mix keeps me inspired every day.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
My name’s Sarah Iaione, and I’m a Digital Marketing and Campaign Strategy Leader — which is honestly a title I never imagined myself saying. Marketing wasn’t something I planned to do; it’s something that found me.
I’ve always been good at social media — even before I ever thought of it as a career. It was never something I studied or forced myself to learn; it just came naturally. I loved creating, sharing, and connecting online. It was fun for me — something I did because I genuinely enjoyed it, not because I thought it would become a job.
In college, I actually majored in Information Science, focusing on UX and cybersecurity. I never pictured myself in marketing. But during that time, I started growing my own following online, and through mutuals, someone asked if I could run social media for their med spa. I said yes — mostly just to make some extra money for groceries — and ended up blowing the account up. The client was thrilled, they told their friends, and before I knew it, I was in college managing five business accounts. I didn’t fully understand the business side yet, but I definitely knew what worked online.
When graduation came, I had a choice: go into cybersecurity or UX, or take the thing that was already working and see how far I could take it. I decided to bet on myself and built off what I’d started — that’s how Hype Up Marketing was born. I hired a business coach, restructured everything, and built real systems and workflows. That’s when things started to take off. I realized my formula for client success wasn’t about choosing between quality or quantity — it was about finding the balance between both.
Everyone told me I needed to pick a niche, but that never felt right. I’ve always believed that if I can see the vision, I can bring it to life — no matter the industry. So I took on brands I believed in, from fashion to hospitality to wellness, and I’m so glad I didn’t box myself in.
Then an opportunity came along that I never saw coming — a chance to work with Metro One Security, which eventually became part of Specialized, where I now serve as the Director of Digital Marketing. If you’d told me a few years ago that I’d be working in the security industry, I would’ve laughed. But Specialized isn’t like any other company in this space — it’s innovative, forward-thinking, and creative. It’s redefining what modern security looks like.
It’s been incredible to merge creativity and strategy on such a large scale, especially alongside leaders who inspire me every day. We just launched Specialized, along with our sub-brands — Metro One, M1 Global, and AURIX — and seeing it all come to life has been one of the proudest moments of my career.
It’s kind of surreal to think about — going from running one med spa account in college to leading digital marketing for a company that’s transforming an entire industry. It just proves that saying yes to what feels right, even when it’s not part of the plan, can lead you exactly where you’re supposed to be.
Amazing, so let’s take a moment to go back in time. Who taught you the most about work?
My dad taught me everything I know about work — not in terms of what I do, but how I do it. He’s a stonemason and owns his own company, American Brickwork, and he’s still the strongest man I know. Growing up, I’d hear him leave for work before the sun was up and come home long after I got back from school, covered in dust and dirt from the day. And he never complained. Not once. That’s what stayed with me — his consistency, his pride, and his complete lack of ego about hard work.
He built an incredible life for our family. He has four kids, and he made sure my mom could stay home with us when we were young. But what influenced me most wasn’t just his sacrifice — it was the way he cared about his craft. He never wanted to outsource anything because every detail mattered to him. I definitely inherited that. When I started my own business, I was the same way — I didn’t want anyone else touching my work because I took so much pride in it. Eventually, I learned that to grow, I had to teach others instead of trying to do everything myself. Now, training people to care about the work the way I do is one of my favorite parts of what I do.
My dad has nothing to do with marketing — he’s actually terrible with technology — but he taught me everything about work ethic. Whenever I feel overwhelmed, I think about him out there in the heat or the freezing cold, smiling, simply because he loves what he does. That perspective always grounds me.
A few months ago, he had a serious fall from a roof and nearly lost his life. Watching him fight his way through recovery and get back to work, purely out of love for his craft, reminded me of exactly where my own resilience comes from. He made one promise afterward: no more roofs. But of course, he’s still out there building — just like always.
What did suffering teach you that success never could?
Failure is the engine behind my growth. The truth is the difference between me and a lot of people my age is simple: I’ve failed more. You’d expect that to hold me back, but it does the opposite. Every failure has become fuel — it makes my next move smarter, bolder, and more strategic.
One moment that taught me everything was a nightmare client at Hype Up. They pushed my team to the brink — mentally, logistically, emotionally — and no amount of fixes helped. It got so bad I had to make a choice: keep the revenue and keep burning my people out, or cut it off and protect the business culture I was building. I chose my team. I ended the relationship. It hurt at first, but that pain forced me to build real rules: intake checklists, clear scopes, escalation processes, and red flags for client fit.
Those systems changed how we operate. We onboarded faster, churn dropped, and the quality of our work went up. More importantly, I learned to act earlier, not later — to see patterns, call the hard things, and build preventive structures instead of constant firefighting. That’s what suffering taught me: success never makes you retool the engine. Pain does. And because of that, I’m more decisive, kinder but firmer, and relentless about turning hard lessons into repeatable practices that scale.
I think our readers would appreciate hearing more about your values and what you think matters in life and career, etc. So our next question is along those lines. What are the biggest lies your industry tells itself?
There’s this myth that marketing is a recipe: follow these steps and you’ll get 10k followers, viral posts, or instant growth. That’s not real. What works is understanding your audience, testing relentlessly, and adapting. I’ve seen “growth hacks” blow up for one brand and utterly fail for another — the difference is context. Good marketing is experimentation plus craft, not copy-and-paste shortcuts.
Okay, we’ve made it essentially to the end. One last question before you go. What will you regret not doing?
I’d regret not taking opportunities — especially the ones that push you outside your comfort zone. Early in my agency journey, several business coaches told me to niche down; med spas were my obvious strength and it felt safe. Then a real estate client approached me. My coaches said “don’t,” but my gut said yes. That decision changed everything. That client became one of our OG accounts, and working with them forced me to learn an entirely new business inside and out. From that relationship I created new teams and divisions, learned how different operations run, and developed marketing playbooks that translate across industries. The real lesson: you can’t sell what you don’t understand, and the only way to truly understand is to jump in. I’d regret never saying yes — the stretch opportunities are the ones that teach you the most.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.hypeupmarketing.com/
- Instagram: sarahiaione_
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarah-iaione-ba0221254
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