Helping Small Businesses Grow: UNH’s Voice Z Digital Reaches 100 Clients

Like many Granite State small business owners, Erika Halaby wears multiple hats.  

As co-owner of Rooted Rose Recreation and Wellness — a business built around nature therapy, guided outdoor experiences, and retreats — Halaby served as outdoor educator, mountain guide, marketer, strategist, and administrator, all while attending graduate school.  

As Rooted Rose began planning future on-site yurt rentals and an education center in the White Mountains, Halaby and business co-owner Domenic Larosa knew they needed support to grow — the kind of support that would soon mark a milestone for UNH students. 

“It just felt like we reached a point where I had been on my own for so long and invested too much in social media marketing or website development that didn’t accomplish the goals that I wanted,” Halaby says.  

That’s when her mentor at the New Hampshire Small Business Development Center (NH SBDC) connected her with Voice Z Digital, a student-run digital marketing agency at the UNH Peter T. Paul College of Business and Economics.  

“I filled out the application in about 90 seconds,” Halaby says. “I remember thinking, 'I need this now. I can’t believe this exists.'” 

Rooted Rose became the agency’s 100th client through its collaboration with NH SBDC. Halaby and other small business owners gathered at Paul College on Feb. 12 to celebrate the students’ impact on the small business community.  

100 Small Businesses Served Across New Hampshire 

When an NH SBDC client needs digital marketing support — such as website audits and builds, digital content creation and production, social media strategy, or SEO optimization — they are referred to Voice Z, where they work directly with student teams. 

“These aren’t class exercises. Students are working on real deliverables with real deadlines and real expectations, and clients hold them accountable,” says Alex LaBrecque, assistant professor of marketing and Voice Z faculty advisor. 

With funding from the NH SBDC and additional grants, the work is fully subsidized. LaBrecque notes that a typical digital marketing project can cost $10,000 or more, meaning Voice Z students have provided more than $1 million in support across 100 projects.  

“Reaching 100 clients represents 100 businesses that trusted students with their brand — and students earned that trust,” LaBrecque says. “Students become better aligned with New Hampshire small businesses, and those businesses become better aligned with UNH students.” 

For Halaby, the students audited and restructured Rooted Rose’s website, improved SEO, clarified messaging, and built pages that reflected the business’s evolving mission and booking model. They are now working with her on content creation.  

 “They helped me clean things up strategically, expanding beyond Instagram to LinkedIn and TikTok, and strengthening our website and SEO so more people could actually find us as we entered a new phase of the business,” Halaby says. “Sometimes entrepreneurship feels lonely. The Voice Z team came in and said, ‘Let us help carry some of that weight.’” 

Other business owners echoed Halaby’s sentiments, noting they didn’t have the time or expertise to address some of their digital challenges. 

Prior to working with the students, Nelson Tractor owner Maury Collins had a 1980s video he used at trade shows to showcase his WORKALL tractor in action. The grainy video didn’t do his product justice, leaving him to fill in the gaps. 

Erika Halaby, Voice Z's 100th client.

Voice Z students produced an updated video of the tractor, with informative and easily digestible narration.  

“There would be no new video if it weren’t for the students, it’s as simple as that,” Collins says. “Now I don’t have to try to explain everything the tractor does; the video speaks for itself. The students did a great job.”  

Max Ahmad, founder and CEO of Rydelinx, needed a clearer way to explain his company’s concept to potential users when he connected with Voice Z.

Rydelinx is a ride-sharing platform designed to solve “deadhead” trips, when drivers return home empty after dropping off a passenger. The app connects independent drivers, including black car, Uber, and Lyft drivers, with passengers traveling in the same direction.  

“The students basically filmed us a commercial,” Ahmad says. “We’ve played the video on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok, and it has made a difference. People watch the video and understand how the app works.”  

Experiential Learning in Action  

Other recent projects recognized at the event included a website build for Bennett Freedom Farms in Ossipee and multiple projects with Paragon Digital, which has since hired multiple UNH grads from Voice Z.  

Jenna Smith '26

Jenna Smith ’26, internal managing director of Voice Z, says working on the Bennett Freedom Farms website build taught her the hard skills of the job, along with the soft skills for client interaction.  

“Running Voice Z as a student isn't like managing a class project — it's running a business. That means leading teams, managing client expectations, making decisions, and sometimes learning the hard way that things don't always go as planned. There are deadlines, and there are consequences,” Smith says. “Most importantly, there’s accountability — to our clients, our advisor, and one another. We're not just students; we're marketing strategists working with clients. This gives us the opportunity to accomplish things that many students don't get to experience until they start their first job.”  

Laura Carpenito ’26, external managing director of Voice Z, says she’s grateful for the many businesses willing to work with the students, and that the program’s strong job placement outcomes reflect its value. 

“This program exists because partners are willing to invest their time, trust, and support in student leadership. And when that belief is given to students, they rise to meet it. They take ownership, they problem solve, and they deliver real value to the businesses and communities they serve,” Carpenito says.  

Paul College Dean Lucy Gilson says the milestone reflects UNH’s broader commitment to supporting the state’s small business community. 

“How do we have an impact as the flagship institution on the success of the state? What does that impact look like? It looks like all of you,” Gilson says. “Universities are always updating their vision, mission statements, and strategic plans, and we’re no different. But one thing has remained the same: the first four words of our mission statement: we are a community. Community means students, faculty, staff, alumni, and business partners — all of us working together. And when we work together, this is what happens.”