It is no secret that young people today (and lots of older people) are obsessed, and in some cases, even addicted to their phones. Studies show that the average American high school student spends from five to seven hours daily on their phone, mostly on social media platforms such as TikTok..

Why can’t these kids do something more useful? some of us curmudgeons think.

Then there is Asher Dahlgren, 16, of Wyndmoor, a junior at Springfield Township High School who is already a successful businessman, with his own team of teenage assistants. His one-year-old company, Dahlgren Social Media Services, has seven student team members and 10 paying clients.

What on earth would prompt a teenager to start a serious business? “Two years ago, I was walking down the street,” Dahlgren said, “and I noticed so many small businesses that I was sure were not taking advantage of social media. I thought I could help them, so I offered to help them. I believe our age is actually a strength, rather than a weakness, when it comes to this kind of work.” 

First, Dahlgren offered his social media services (for free) to Springfield Township Skatepark to build credibility. “That gave me the confidence to know I could do it,” he said. “So I then started charging low fees. My next clients were two local real estate firms. I charged by the hour, low prices to get started. At first there were no written contracts, just verbal agreements, but now I do have written contracts.”

As Dahlgren gains more experience, he acquires greater savvy, a process that requires taking risks and persevering, despite inevitable setbacks. 

“Once you get comfortable with being uncomfortable and try things you've never done before, that's where success comes from," he said. “It's important not to give up. You're not going to be successful the first time you try. You might not be successful the 10th time you try, but every single failure you have, you learn more. You get uncomfortable, but you grow because of it."

Dahlgren eventually had so much work that he couldn’t possibly do it all himself, so he recruited a team of seven other high school students who are adept at social media to work for him. Dahlgren insists that he could not be successful without his team — Matt Hay, Clara Farrell, Owen Quinn, Ava Pastore, Justin Whang, Daniel Gendron and Kaz Kiguchi, all of whom, except Pastore, are students at Springfield Township High School.

Together, this team offers extensive content creation and social media services, including graphics, videos, analytics, distribution, putting client profiles on social media, and more.  

The company's client list now includes Elfant Wissahickon Realtors, Fill A Bagel & Breads, Dan Helwig Realtors, Snyder School of Singing and Avant Apres Salon.

Since Dahlgren is a full-time student who obviously has to attend classes, study and take exams, how on earth can the teenager who is also the junior class president with a black belt in Taekwondo, run a business?  “I am busy 80 hours a week,” he said. “It helps that my parents are supportive.”

Louise Dalessandro, of the Dalessandro Manzi Group, credits Asher with helping her  real estate team increase its visibility on TikTok, Facebook and Twitter. “He is terrific! He is calm, responsible, patient and competent,” Dalessandro said. “It's rare to meet someone so young and so focused.”

Matt Hay, a content manager for Dahlgren, values the lessons he is learning as part of the team. “I am working with three or four clients in content management, scheduling meetings and deciding what to post and when,” he said  “I want to continue doing this as long as I can.” 

Clara Farrell, who also works as a content manager for the company, told us, “So far, it's been a really positive experience for me, and I'm learning a lot. I will be majoring in international business in college, so it's been really wonderful to work with clients and gain experience in the marketing world … I appreciate the sense of accomplishment from being treated as an equal among professionals.”

For more information, visit dahlgrensocial.com. Len Lear can be reached at lenlear@chestnuthilllocal.com