It’s easy to get caught up in the pursuit of speed in our businesses. We all want to enjoy the fruits of our success sooner and it seems logical that moving more quickly will get us there faster. In fact the whole language of business emphasises the importance of speed: “Act now” “Move fast” “No…
High up on my personal list of “Mistakes agency owners know they’re making (but just keep repeating)” is allowing things that are urgent to take priority over what is actually important. Whilst this is a pitfall for any type of business, the nature of the model makes it particularly common in agency world: Constant deadlines,…
There’s a word that I and others have been using to describe me over the last few months, that I think I am going to stop using. It’s not an entirely inaccurate description of me, but it’s a C word with problems. The word is, of course, “Coach”. When I exited my own agency in…
Interest in, and experimentation with, AI text generation systems has exploded in the last 2 years. The catalyst for this was undoubtedly OpenAI adding GPT-3 to their open beta. GPT-3 is 117 times as powerful as it’s predecessor*. This quantum leap in capability combined with an easy-access API created a gold-rush of interest in AI…
When a senior Google Exec suggested that nearly 40% of young people favour TikTok and Instagram over Google when searching for a place to have lunch, I was intrigued. TikTok’s rise has been incredible to watch and it was clear that a shift was happening, but 40% seemed a strong number. Whilst I am certainly…
One of my favourite questions to ask Agency Leaders is how they build new business. Together with questions around size and specialism, how an Agency brings in new business tells you a lot about how the business ticks. When I do ask, there is no source most Agency Leaders like to talk about more than…
I’m an inbound marketer at heart. The common thread of my online business career has been using content marketing and wider inbound marketing strategies to grow the business that I am involved with. The businesses have changed over the years, but the central philosophy of how I market has changed surprisingly little since I started…
Publishing a curated newsletter is a tried and tested way to build authority in your niche. For B2B businesses, a regular “news roundup” offers the chance to build a relationship with your audience, capture contact details and regular remind that audience that you are experts in your chosen field. Collating, curating and publishing that news…
Do you ever find yourself looking at an article on a business website and wondering why they bothered to publish it? I’m not talking about the moment or horror of finding something entirely inappropriate on a company website. I just mean that vague “Well yes, but what was the point?” feeling . I do. A…
If I asked who had a set of keys to your home, I suspect you would give me a short list of trusted people without having to think too hard. If I asked who knows your banking PIN I’d imagine the list would be shorter still; maybe a partner of spouse, but probably no-one outside…