Eric Jackson (’90) never imagined he would own his own business when he began pursuing an advertising degree at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. Today, he is the owner of Elements 47, LLC and a recipient of the 2025 Rocky Top Business Award.
As a first-generation college student who became a successful business owner, Jackson built a thriving agency by combining effective communication skills, strong leadership instincts, and a people-first mindset.
Early Inspirations and UT Experience
Jackson has always been driven and curious. In high school, he excelled in challenging subjects such as physics, chemistry, and calculus, but as his senior year approached, he realized those fields were not the career paths he wanted to pursue.
“When I chose UT, I was deciding between Vanderbilt and Navy ROTC with a major in nuclear engineering, or attending Tennessee to major in advertising,” he explained.
Jackson was the first person on his father’s side of the family to graduate from high school, let alone go to college. He knew he had to make the most of his experience.
“I quickly found that I belonged at UT. I had a work-study job at what was then called the University Center, which helped me connect with a community and discover my purpose,” he said.
Lessons from CCI
His drive and sense of community were fundamental in shaping his leadership qualities. While many faculty members influenced his experience at UT, one professor, DeForrest Jackson, made a lasting impact. He taught Jackson the importance of empathy, which has shaped how Jackson leads and communicates in the business world.
“He looked at us and said, ‘I can tell you one thing for sure: if you’re unable to put yourself in the shoes of others and understand their motivations, you will never succeed in this business.’ I realized later that this principle applies not only to advertising but also to leadership,” Jackson stated.
In addition to his coursework, Jackson’s role as a Student Orientation Assistant (SOA) honed his skills in motivation, culture-building, and teamwork. He learned about the position from a coworker at the University Center. It was a highly competitive role, with 600 to 700 applicants vying for just 22 spots.
“Not everyone who attends orientation will choose UT, but I truly believe that experience was transformational for me. To this day, it’s still the best job I’ve ever had. I loved it so much that I held the position for two years, which was somewhat unusual. However, the way they built the culture within that group and helped us connect with one another was incredible. It was exhausting and challenging, but it was absolutely the best experience,” he recalled.
Building Element 47
Jackson was introduced to entrepreneurship by a mentor named Fell Merwin while he was working in the printing industry after graduating from college.
“One day he asked me to go to lunch. He had an idea for a business and asked me, ‘Have you ever thought about owning your own business?’ I’m the first person in my family to graduate from high school on my dad’s side and then to graduate from college. I didn’t know anything about that world. So, we formulated a plan for me to gain more experience, and then, when the time was right, I would leave my job, and together we would start this business. And that’s exactly what we did,” Jackson explained.
Merwin served as a mentor to Jackson, teaching him how to think like a business owner.
“He understood concepts that I wasn’t familiar with, such as a profit and loss statement. We created a pro forma in Excel to outline our expenses and startup costs, including salaries. This allowed us to see a path toward profitability, which was something I had never experienced before,” Jackson shared.
With Merwin’s guidance and Jackson’s understanding of the importance of company culture and listening to their team, they successfully built a company that generated millions in revenue.
“It’s important for my team to understand the direction we’re headed and the decisions I’m making with my leadership team. They need to know where they fit into that vision because, without the people in the agency, we have nothing,” he said.
Fast forward several years, and Jackson was involved in starting several other successful businesses, which ultimately led him to establish Element 47.
“Our number one core value is to ‘Make it Better.’ The second is to ‘Be Bold.’ We have to acknowledge that the people we work with may not fully understand the methods and madness behind what we do. I encourage them to ask questions, to push back, and to tell us when they don’t understand or disagree. I can’t fix a problem that I don’t know exists. We also assure them that we will do the same,” Jackson stated.
Transparency, empathy, and storytelling are at the core of Element 47’s brand. Jackson emphasizes that internal communications are just as crucial as external communications in running a successful business.
“It’s vital to understand where people are in their careers, what they’re experiencing, and how it fits with the rest of their lives,” he said.
He continued, “I’m a people person, and I want everyone at the company to feel that they belong, that they understand their purpose, and that their work fulfills a certain need for them. I believe we’ve been able to achieve that at a very high level.”
Advice to Students and Staying Connected to UT
When asked what advice he would give to a College of Communication and Information student aspiring to start a business, Jackson stressed the importance of learning how to sell as well as understanding people’s needs.
“Everything in the world has been sold at some point. I remind my team that while they are doing their jobs they must also sell their ideas to their boss, teammates, and clients. Our team is trained to identify opportunities for clients and engage in conversations about them. It’s really not that complicated. Again, it’s about understanding needs and anticipating what the other person wants,” he said.
Jackson has maintained a strong connection with CCI and often speaks to students in introductory communication classes about advertising and the business side of communications. Notably, his first time speaking to a class was to encourage his daughter to attend the university.
At that time, his daughter Katie had not been admitted as quickly as she expected due to delays with a new admissions system. Meanwhile, she had already been accepted to the University of Mississippi, where Jackson’s wife attended school.
Coincidentally, a UT development officer who was visiting Nashville around that time asked to meet with Jackson and asked about Katie’s situation. After Jackson explained the circumstances, they devised a plan.
“He contacted the admissions director, and together they arranged for me to speak to a class at UT, where Katie would be in the audience,” he stated.
The talk was focused on life lessons beyond the classroom and what students need to know that they don’t always learn in college. Afterward, they met with the admissions director.
“I basically turned my daughter loose and said, ‘Here, this is my kid,’” Jackson said.
On the drive home, Katie received an email notifying her that she had been admitted to UT. This experience became a powerful lesson for both father and daughter.
“I told her, ‘You’ve got to understand that if you want something, you have to ask a person for it. Systems don’t make decisions, people do’,” he said.
Since then, Jackson has returned to CCI to speak on multiple occasions. One visit was especially meaningful, as Katie, who graduated with a degree in public relations in 2018 and earned a master’s in sport management in 2019, joined him as a co-presenter.
“She was working for another agency at the time and shared what it was like to be a couple of years into the business,” Jackson said. “It was really special.”
Today, Katie works alongside her father at Element 47, where she is one of several UT graduates on the team.
“Half of our team are Tennessee graduates,” Jackson said proudly. “It’s a real point of pride.”
Jackson learned quickly that owning a business comes with its challenges. However, he believes every crisis presents an opportunity for his team to learn and grow.
“Never let a crisis go to waste,” he said. “The idea is that, while there will be problems, we can position those problems as opportunities for the team. It’s important to communicate how to get the right message out and guide everyone toward a brighter future. Helping them understand what this means for both them and our clients is crucial, and I learned that at Tennessee.”
Resilience & Perspective
Looking back, Jackson credits his UT experience with preparing him not just to lead, but to lead well.
“Over the years, I’ve gotten better at understanding how to motivate teams and create culture,” he said. “Both my SOA experience and the advertising program supported that, especially the group work. It really forced me to learn how to work well with other people.”
For Jackson, the foundations laid in his college years continue to support him today.
“In the program, you’re tasked with understanding how the various aspects of advertising work, and there’s always some sort of goal,” he said. “Piecing those things together gave me all the tools I needed to build a business that doesn’t run me ragged, but instead, one that runs on purpose.”
You can learn more about all 64 of the 2025 winners of the Rocky Top Business Awards here.