The Agency Accelerator Customer Spotlight: Sam Wright from BlinkSEO
In today’s show, I am chatting with Sam Wright, MD & Founder of Blink SEO.
It is the first Customer Spotlight, where I talk to one of my clients about some of the challenges they’re facing, the lessons learned & their goals, so that you can learn from their business experience.
Sam leads a team of 9 specialists at Blink, an eCommerce SEO digital agency.
Here’s a glance at this episode…
[01:37] Why did you start your agency?
Before starting Blink, Sam worked in B2B publishing, producing online content. His transition into agency work was almost accidental.
[06:37] Why did you decide to reach out to Rob?
A lack of direction & a lack of identity led Sam to work with Rob.
He had engaged with generalist advisors in the past but their advice tended to be too generic & therefore not all that useful.
Certain challenges need practical advice based on real experience.
[09:19] Having a lack of direction can lead to frustration. How did that influence Blink’s business?
A lack of direction influences day-to-day decision-making-from which people to hire, time management, and which projects take on.
[10:20] What is the benefit of being part of a group coaching programme?
Since everyone in the group is in the same boat, group coaching provides a great sounding board to hear different approaches and opinions.
Knowing that there are others in a similar position can also be reassuring, especially in a relatively isolated job.
[11:56] What are your goals & aspirations for 2021?
2020 wasn’t all terrible for Blink – we’ve managed to double in size and grow the team. So our goal for 2021 is to grow by another 50% & become a leader in our sector.
[13:00] What are some of the growing pains that Blink has gone through? And what do you attribute your rapid growth to?
Team organisation is a challenge - with hybrid roles across most of the team, so should we bring in specialists instead?
The hiring process is also can take many months. This means that you have to be able to predict where the business will be in 6 months.
Sam attributes the rapid growth to finding and focusing on clients that are the best fit - understand their pain points and focus on solving those. They also have several long-term clients, a good referral pipeline, and there’s an emphasis on quality and effective communication.
[17:11] What are some biz dev strategies that led to the 100% year-on-year growth?
Initially, our business development was based on referrals. Now we focus mainly on inbound marketing. We have also hired a marketing manager to work on Blink as a brand.
Sam has tried doing outsourced outbound sales but it has proven not to be anywhere near as effective as inbound.
[21:19] Looking 5 years ahead, what is the future for Blink?
Sam’s ambitions aren’t to grow too large. His goal is to become an industry leader in their niche whilst remaining a boutique agency.
[22:13] My program & book are called “The Self-Running Agency.” How close is Blink to becoming more autonomous than it is now?
The business is certainly closer to that than it was when it started thanks to you and your programme Rob!
Sam will be able to test out exactly how close it is in June when he takes some time off to welcome his new child into the world!
[23:43] What advice would you give your younger self?
Get yourself a mentor! Doing it on your own is possible, but having others around with expertise will make the process happen more quickly.
Useful Links:
· Sam Wright’s LinkedIn Profile
· The Self-Running Agency Coaching programme
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