Not keen on a run-of-the-mill degree? Neither was Fabio Steiner.
After finishing school, one thing was clear to him: a traditional degree with lecture-style teaching and rigid timetables? No, thank you. It took a brief stint at university for him to realise what he really wanted — and, more importantly, what he didn’t. When he came across the Marketing and Sales degree programme at FH CAMPUS 02, it marked the beginning of a journey that would ultimately lead to the founding of his own agency, Conversion Club. In our “Graduate of the Month” interview series, Fabio shares what he learned along the way, who he works with today, and why — looking back — he’s glad he had to wait a year.

What motivated you to choose the Marketing & Sales programme at Campus 02 University of Applied Sciences?

After finishing school and my time at the football academy of SV Kapfenberg, one thing was clear to me: fixed timetables, compulsory attendance, lecture-style teaching? Not really my thing!

So, during my civilian service, I started a business studies degree at university — and after a year and a half, I quickly realised: a lecture hall with 500 people, where you're just an anonymous student ID number, and mostly “boring” monologues? Not really my thing. Suddenly, universities of applied sciences were back in the running, and during my research I came across FH CAMPUS 02 and the Marketing & Sales degree programme. At the time, I’d already had the idea of starting my own agency one day with my very good friend Robert Haidl (now founder of the agency Zeitgeist). Marketing & Sales sounded like the perfect match.

Application submitted, entrance test smashed, interview done — and full of confidence and excitement for the course, I “only” made it onto the waiting list. A year later, it finally worked out. Looking back: the best thing that could have happened to me. Because it was in that very cohort that I met my future co-founders Dominik and Konrad (also known as JD and Q) from Conversion Club. Without that, our agency might not even exist today.

Can you share a special memory or highlight from your time studying?

It’s hard to pick out a single highlight – there were so many great moments, some so good I can barely even remember them. What made FH CAMPUS 02 special for me was my close group of friends. I’m still very good friends with most of the people from my old crew and stay in regular contact. We motivated and supported each other, studied together, and pushed one another along.

A real highlight was studying with JD in the run-up to the Bachelor’s exam. During those two to three weeks, everything suddenly clicked for me – I finally understood what integrated marketing thinking really means. We studied every morning, had lunch together, and then continued with the material in the afternoon. That was the first time I thought: wow, something really has stuck from the last six semesters.

The three committee exams were also memorable moments for me. What sticks especially in my mind is the look of disappointment on Professor Dr Eva Koban-Röß’s face after I only briefly glanced at the materials on my second attempt — assuming that would be enough. It wasn’t. A real heartbreaking moment. She gave me a proper kick up the backside back then. At this point: thanks for that — otherwise, I probably wouldn’t have even passed my Bachelor’s.

Which aspects of your studies were particularly formative for your entrepreneurial journey today?

Online marketing these days is something pretty much anyone can teach themselves. There are plenty of resources and videos on how to create content, set up campaigns, or manage social media accounts professionally. What sets us apart from many other agencies, however, is the broad understanding of marketing we bring thanks to our training. We start every project with the basics and, above all, we question what actually makes sense instead of just talking a load of nonsense. You want to start a TikTok account to generate more leads, but you’re a real estate company whose clients are all over 50 and have high incomes? For what? Does that make sense, or do you just want it because it’s “cool” right now?

Of course, you get taught a wide range of subjects during your studies. Some were more relevant to me, others I’ve probably already forgotten. What really shaped me, though, was learning to think like a marketer. Seeing things from a marketing perspective helps enormously. So it’s not individual subjects or courses that made the difference, but the whole package. And naturally: the FH CAMPUS 02 network is incredible. Anyone who has graduated from there instantly has a connection to other alumni, and if you look at the local business landscape, you’ll find someone almost everywhere who has also been to FH CAMPUS 02.

Oh yes, and as I’ve already mentioned: I met my two co-founders during my studies — looking back, not exactly unimportant for my career path.

Fabio, how did the founding of Conversion Club come about — what was your motivation and the original idea behind it?

When I was four or five years old, I used to paint pictures and make crafts — then “sell” them to family members. At 15 or 16, I had a small fashion label with a mate. I think it was called “Nimz”. We designed and sold T-shirts, beanies, and hoodies. During my Bachelor’s degree, I organised over 50 concerts under the name LifeLovesYou and handled booking and management for musicians.

For me, it was always clear: if professional football didn’t work out, I wanted to run my own business. I just find it hard working under other people — even though my (few) previous bosses were great. Shout-out to Paul from teamazing, Jakob from Joinpoints, and of course Lukas and Stefan from Guest Room!

After my Bachelor’s, I actually wanted to get LifeLovesYou off the ground. I had just been on tour in Austria and Germany for nearly three weeks as a booker with three musicians for the first time. One week later, I organised a concert with 250 attendees at the Postgarage (Second Floor), and two days after that, the first lockdown hit. All the work — gone overnight.

So, during the Corona period, we first had to get ourselves organised. And after the first lockdown was over, my colleague Konrad said he was keen to start an agency and asked if we wanted to do it together. We had no idea exactly what we wanted to do — just that it should be something in the online marketing world. So, we took on some small jobs to start with. Managed some social media accounts, ran our first Meta ads, and bought a camera to create our own content. At the same time, we had to learn how it all works and how to do it properly. A few months later, JD joined us, and at that moment it became clear: now we could really get going.

Since August 2020, Conversion Club has officially been established.

What exactly does Conversion Club do, and how do you differentiate yourselves from other providers in the online marketing sector?

Everything we do, we do from a marketing perspective and without any nonsense. That’s what sets us apart from many other agencies who promise you the moon. For example, we might be hired for social media management — but we immediately think further: What else could the company do to become even more successful? We constantly bring new ideas and suggestions to the table and don’t think in silos.

Für das Lagerhaus Graz-Land haben wir z. B. eine App umgesetzt, obwohl wir ursprünglich „nur“ für Social Media beauftragt wurden. Beim LANDWIRT haben wir den Award für den „beliebtesten LANDWIRT / die beliebteste LANDWIRTIN“ ins Leben gerufen, um eine jüngere Zielgruppe anzusprechen und Influencer*innen aufzubauen.
Unsere Kernkompetenz liegt im Online Marketing, aber grundsätzlich unterstützen und beraten wir unsere Kund*innen n allen Bereichen des Marketings. Wir haben uns mittlerweile auf drei Schwerpunkte spezialisiert:

• Social Media Marketing
• Performance Marketing
• Content Creation

In the area of Social Media Marketing (my specialism), we manage our clients’ channels long-term and take care of strategy, concept, and implementation. We usually produce the content ourselves or prepare it, handle community management, and run targeted social media ad campaigns.

A few examples:

• For the trade magazine LANDWIRT, we established “LANDWIRT Peter.”
• We created the “Forsti” for Forstinger.
• And for Lagerhaus, we brought the “Lagerhaus Familie” in front of the camera.

Performance Marketing is led by my colleague Dominik together with Konrad as campaign manager. Their goal: to find the best advertising channels and run campaigns cost-effectively — whether Google Ads, social media ads, banner advertising, or Spotify spots. This area has grown significantly in recent years, which is why we have also increased staffing here.

Content Creation is a central part of all areas. You need high-quality content for social media just as much as for campaigns of all kinds. In the past, we did much of it ourselves or worked with a good friend who is a brilliant graphic designer.

What started small has steadily grown over the years: today, we’re proud to be a team of nine creative minds.

What are Conversion Club’s next big goals?

We want to be among the top agencies in Graz. When people think of the best online marketing agency in Graz, Conversion Club should always be top of mind.

Are there specific trends or developments in the field of Marketing & Sales that students should keep an eye on?

Everything around the topic of AI is probably the biggest change to keep an eye on right now. Students should continuously engage with it, find out what different AI programmes can do, and how to use them effectively. Those who can’t leverage AI to their advantage later on as marketers will likely find things quite difficult eventually. For everyone interested in Social Media Marketing, it’s important to note that Content Creation is an incredibly important area. Social media managers now also need to be skilled content creators.

And: Social Media Livestream Shopping could become a big thing.

What role does lifelong learning play in your entrepreneurial journey — and how do you stay sharp both professionally and personally?

Good question.

I believe lifelong learning is hugely important beyond just the entrepreneurial journey — especially regularly engaging with new topics to boost creativity and keep mentally sharp. In the online marketing field, things are constantly changing. It’s crucial to recognise whether something is just a short-lived hype or a genuine trend. You don’t have to jump on every hype train, but you should keep a keen eye on the new opportunities that might arise from them.

For example, every week at our regular team meeting, we hold so-called Nerdy Talks, where someone from the team briefly presents a new topic — like AI influencers, emotion design, social media livestream shopping, or zero-click marketing. And my role as a part-time lecturer at FH CAMPUS 02 helps me dive deeper into certain subjects and engage with them more intensively.

What advice would you give to our students who are just starting out but have big ambitions?

What we’ve done — and continue to live by — is: Trial and Error. Sometimes you just have to try things out and see if and how they work. Gaining your own experience and learnings is the most important part of it.

Try out different things until you find something you really enjoy and that sparks your passion. Don’t let yourself be unsettled and make the most of your time at FH CAMPUS 02. Dare to ask questions — without fear of sounding “stupid.” And if you ever have problems or need to overcome a difficult situation: be open and talk to your lecturers. They were students once too and know exactly how it feels.

How important were your network and contacts from university for your success today?

Incredibly important. Aside from the fact that my two co-founders studied with me, we still receive a lot of support from our former lecturers today. We can always seek their advice, and they even recommend us to other companies. It certainly makes things easier when you enter conversations with a bit of goodwill already behind you.

Graduates of FH CAMPUS 02 immediately have a connection with each other — after all, they’ve experienced and been through the same things.

And in most companies, there’s someone in marketing or sales who also attended FH CAMPUS 02. I love that and am a big fan of the campus network — I’m glad to be part of it. So, it’s definitely not a disadvantage to have studied at FH CAMPUS 02 and seen it through.

A few words with Fabio:

I still have from my time at university...

• A CAMPUS 02 T-shirt that I borrowed and never returned.

Who has inspired you?

• My older sister, who is a passionate teacher and the reason I wanted to become a lecturer myself.

If I were to study again, I would...

• … stress less at the start, pay better attention in class, and do a semester or internship abroad.

My studies in 4 words:

Grey and Pink Clouds