Inspiring Conversations with Matt Yaroch of I-Ally & the Detroit Walk to End Alzheimer’s

Today we’d like to introduce you to Matt Yaroch. 

Hi Matt, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
In 2002, my mom opened a home care agency (caring for seniors in their home) which is where my story begins, I was 12 at the time. In 2003 my mom brought me to my first Detroit Walk to End Alzheimer’s; 18 years later and I am only getting more involved! From age 18-30 years old, I was heavily involved in the family home care business, and at 21 I was promoted to “Client Care Manager”, where I would spend the next 10 years visiting thousands of Metro Detroit families. Most of the families I visited were impacted by Alzheimer’s disease or another form of Dementia. Most summers I would participate in the Detroit Walk to End Alz, but I usually only raised $100 in donations. 

Then came the pandemic, and my life changed forever. I could no longer visit my clients in person. My entire life I wanted to be just like my mom and take over the family business…but when COVID hit I suddenly lost interest in-home care as I worried constantly for my patients/clients and their families. I decided I wanted to challenge myself and do something that “matters” and “make a difference”…but tbh I was scared and I figured the bigger the goal the less time I would worry. So, in 2020 my co-worker Ally Peugh & I raised $10,000 for the Detroit Walk!!! I also would leave home-care & start the Carenect website & an app, which would be acquired a few months later by i-Ally Inc.! The terms of the acquisition required me to shut down the self-developed app & website and join i-Ally as the Chief Marketing Officer. The i-Ally mobile app is in beta testing now & should launch before May! In 2021, I joined the Planning Committee for the Detroit Walk to End Alz, and was nominated/named Chair of the Marketing Committee. The 2021 Detroit Walk raised over $700,000!!! I also spent a few months in 2021 as the C.M.O. of National Alzheimer’s Buddies, a nonprofit that paired college students (at 30+ campus chapters) with Alzheimer’s patients at local memory care facilities. 

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
No, not at all… I left a safe, comfy, and stable career/future to “betting on myself”… however, I had very little confidence in myself. In the early days of designing my website and app, I was so confident in my idea but I had such little confidence in myself…so I spent many long nights second-guessing myselff. Then I truly committed to my dream. I put myself out there for everyone to judge, and made my brand synonymous with my name. Web traffic increased slowly over the first few months and would continue to grow & grow. During this time, I realized that I didn’t want to be the CEO… and that I couldn’t afford to launch my app, mostly because I COULD NOT talk about my site & app out loud to ANYONE! My anxiety would completely overcome me anytime I spoke about Carenect, and it gave whoever listened very little confidence in the idea. I could not confidently talk about my idea, so I was absolutely petrified at the idea of pitching to VCs or potential investors. I started working on my fear of rejection via social media “partnership” DMs to influencers, nonprofits, & a ton of accounts associated with caregiving. I decided to focus my anxious energy on Instagram and started posting content that stuck out, as well as engaging my IG community. It was rough, but I didn’t give up, and eventually, it paid off! My IG following grew and my website traffic skyrocketed! I realized my strength and passion was Marketing (which was truly shocking tbh)… and eventually found my happy place when Carenect was acquired by I-Ally. Also, asking people for donations was very, very scary. However, it was the (shocking) success of my 2020 Walk to end Alz fundraiser that inspired me to fully commit to my brand. 

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about I-Ally Inc. & the Detroit Walk to End Alzheimer’s?
I-Ally is an app (launching very soon) that provides family Caregivers resources, support, and community! Our new mobile app is set to launch around March, April 1 at the latest! Our brand & community really grew last year when I-Ally acquired my website/app, Carenect.net. We were both growing, both founded by millennials, and offered similar solutions. We were (and still are) the only ones offering caregivers more than just an app to track your loved one’s vitals. We recognized the importance of creating a virtual platform that especially catered to millennial caregivers, as the amount of millennials caring for an elderly loved one is drastically increasing annually. However, I’m most proud of the fact that my CEO, Lucinda, has been beyond supportive of me & my work with the Alzheimer’s Association Michigan Chapter & the Detroit Walk to End Alzheimer’s. My mom taught me that “it’s not about how much money you make, but how much good you do & how much you help those in need”, and that’s why I love working with nonprofits and always will. 

Do you have recommendations for books, apps, blogs, etc.?
Eric Thomas videos ~ he is a motivational speaker from Detroit and his YouTube channel got me through some rough times. I highly recommend checking him out! 

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: I-Ally.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/mattyaroch
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/myaroch
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/matthewyaroch
• Other: http://act.alz.org/goto/Matt