Agency Bytes

Featuring: Liz Young, StudioLabs In this episode, I had the pleasure of conversing with Liz Young, the founder of StudioLabs, a 20-year-old custom software development agency with 45 dedicated team members. Liz's journey began in a unique way when, at the age of 25, she launched her agency on the spot in her first client's lobby. At that time, she was among the few women in the industry. In this episode, she shares the intriguing story of StudioLabs' inception and how she now leads the agency. Liz delves into the day-to-day operations of the agency, highlighting the systems that keep everything running smoothly. She emphasizes the agency's deliberate efforts to cultivate strong leaders and maintain a vibrant company culture. Tune in to gain insights into how Liz has transformed StudioLabs from a trusted resource for other agencies into a powerhouse that develops software solutions for some of the world's most prominent brands. After graduating from the University of Hartford as a two-sport D1 athlete, majoring in graphic design and minoring in illustration, Liz started her career in New York City with work ranging from digital design to illustration and storyboarding. Along the way, she learned frontend web development technologies and began building the things she designed. Liz’s passion for technology grew and began to change the way she approached creative conception and execution. From 2000 until 2003, Liz was fortunate enough to have been part of an incredibly talented, visionary team of creative and engineering professionals who hopped from the agency world, to the publishing world, and back to the agency world again, creating award-winning digital products for Fortune 500 companies and some of the world’s most recognizable brands. It was as part of this team that Liz had the opportunity to help design and build the world’s first-ever live webcast of an international sporting event - the 2000 Paralympic Games in Sydney, Australia. In 2003, at the age of 25, Liz founded StudioLabs, a product design and development studio that focuses on creative technology. Through her work at StudioLabs, she has helped create software applications, mobile applications, websites, games, and other digital products for clients such as Estee Lauder and ESPN, and she’s partnered with some of the world’s most talented creative teams at agencies like Ogilvy & Mather and RG/A. Liz’s current responsibilities as CEO and Creative Director have her tasked with leading both creative strategy and business operations. She works hand-in-hand with the StudioLabs internal team and the client-side stakeholders, ensuring that the team is delivering well-designed, smart, engaging digital products that resonate with the end user. Liz is also a co-founder, board member, and investor in multiple other companies and startups, predominantly in the SaaS (Software as a Service) industry. Contact Liz.

Featuring: Claire Hutchings, Chime Agency In this episode, I had the pleasure of conversing with Claire Hutchings from Chime Agency in the UK, renowned as the marketing agency for agencies. Claire and her team have developed a remarkable agency benchmark, showcasing how an agency can effectively create content for thought leadership and pipeline development. At the time of this recording, Chime had witnessed an astounding 100X increase in revenue in its pipeline. Furthermore, they secured speaking engagements and other opportunities, all stemming from this thought leadership initiative. Claire delves into the investment her agency made in this project and reveals the remarkable return on investment (ROI) it yielded. Spoiler alert: It's a no-brainer! Claire is on a mission to solve the challenge all agencies face – their own marketing. She has 15 years of experience spanning boutique independents like We Are Collider, HLabs, Climbing Trees, and Quickfire Digital to global networked agencies Publicis Groupe, Hotwire, and Fleishman Hillard. She has a passion for content, bridging strategy and delivery seamlessly bringing her extensive agency knowledge to all of Chime Agency’s clients. Claire won Best New Business at the 2022 Women’s Business Awards and was Commended at the Global Women in Marketing Awards 2022. Contact Claire on Linkedin, the Chime Agency website, the Chime Agency LinkedIn page, or grab your copy of the Agency Marketing Report.

Featuring: Danielle Fauteaux, Momentum Marketing In this engaging episode, I'm joined by fellow agency coach Danielle Fauteaux for an insightful conversation about the world of agencies. We dive deep into the importance of niche specialization and how it can transform agency dynamics. Danielle shares valuable insights on how agencies can harness their niches to establish a stronger position, and effectively direct their marketing efforts within that space. We explore how this strategic niche focus can steer agencies away from the common "new business plateau" and optimize their overall operations. Danielle also reveals her approach to helping agencies not only grow but also cultivate resilience and stability. Much like my philosophy, she empowers agency owners to define their unique vision of success and lets that vision guide their strategic efforts. Tune in for a rich discussion on agency dynamics and how to chart a course for lasting success. Danielle is passionate about helping creatives recognize their value and place in this world; passionate about helping leaders regain control over their responsibilities; passionate about encouraging others to live more meaningful lives; and passionate about doing more with less. While serving in support, client-facing, and leadership roles at multiple agencies, Danielle realized nobody really knows what they are doing; everyone’s just doing the best that they know how. From there, she became determined to participate in the iterative building and optimization of various agencies to “level up” the entire ecosystems they likewise service through their own books of business. A fellow agency coach, Danielle guides agencies through the Momentum Framework to achieve their revenue and profit goals while falling back in love with the mission they originally set out with. Contact Danielle and listen to her podcast on her website.

Featuring: Ben Guttmann, Author In this episode, I had a fascinating conversation with Ben Guttmann, the author of "Simply Put: Why Clear Messages Win – and How to Design Them." We delved into Ben's journey of founding, managing, and eventually selling his agency, Digital Natives. He discussed the strategic steps they took during the agency's exit, including segmenting sales with different partners to ensure every employee found a new job and every client had a smooth transition. Ben also shared valuable insights into the reasons and goals behind exiting and acquisitions, offering guidance for those considering a similar path. Additionally, we explored Ben's role as a professor at Baruch College, discovering why it's more than just a paycheck for him – it's a fulfilling passion. He discussed his aspiration to become an author and what drove him to write his book. Furthermore, Ben emphasized how his agency experience equipped him with the necessary tools for a successful writing endeavor. Tune in for the full story and gain valuable insights from our conversation. Ben Guttmann is a marketing and communications expert and author of Simply Put: Why Clear Messages Win — and How to Design Them. He’s an experienced marketing executive and educator on a mission to get leaders to more effectively connect by simplifying their message. Ben is a former co-founder and managing partner at Digital Natives Group, an award-winning agency that worked with the NFL, I Love NY, Comcast NBCUniversal, Hachette Book Group, The Nature Conservancy, and other major clients. Ben teaches digital marketing at Baruch College in New York City and consults with a range of thought leaders, venture-backed startups, and other brands. Contact Ben on LinkedIn or grab his book or sample chapter.

Featuring: Steve Jeffreys - Make Your Shift In this episode I got to speak to Steve Jeffreys from Your Shift from across the pond. We dug into how his big agency experience led to his big shift and why he made the life changing shift of focus into helping develop people into breakthrough leaders. He outlines some of the aspects that define a true breakthrough leader - in and out of the agency space. Steve believes that everyone on the team has the ability to be a creative force for good and how that can help a recruitment team can lean into raw talent of candidates. He believes there’s no better way to build the leaders of tomorrow than by asking them to “give things a think” and encourage them to be curious so they can learn to be brave. Steve Jeffreys spent 18 years in marketing agencies leading client relationships across Financial Services, Telecoms, Retail, and Not-for-profit. Through this, he found that his passion lay with connecting with and developing people - something he now does full time in his work helping people in their first step up into leadership - in the marketing industry and beyond. Contact Steve on his website or LinkedIn.

Featuring: Traci Schubert Barrett, Navigate the Journey In this episode, Traci and I talk a lot about what drives people to make life-changing shifts in their lives, whether being personal or professional. And how people can look at their lives to see if they’re living them with intention and significance. Traci shares about the ups and downs of being part of the launch of a billion-dollar media empire and what her driving force to suddenly leave that life to live one of more significance is. We talked about how success is different for everyone and how Traci’s program and book help people find better paths forward than being driven by success. Traci Schubert Barrett is an author, speaker, business owner, and podcast host. She is the President and founder of Navigate the Journey, a business consulting firm that comes alongside entrepreneurial companies helping them scale their businesses and build healthy teams and leaders. She was also one of the founders of the national cable television network HGTV. She enjoyed the amazing ride of taking a fledgling idea and turning it into a billion-dollar media empire. She spent over 20 years in the television industry before taking the leap of faith to create a new path. She writes about that journey in her new book, What If There’s More? Finding Significance Beyond Success. Contact Traci on their websites, tracischubertbarrett.com, and navigatethejourney.com.

Featuring: Owen Williams, Founder, Managing Partner of Outside Lines In this episode, I got to speak with Owen Williams from Outside Lines, a creative industry talent strategy and recruitment company. We spent time talking about how Outside Lines helps transform agencies with their experience in building solid and nimble teams. Owen shares how important it is to focus on roles that develop skills in rising stars and how lessons can be learned from all experiences, no matter how good or bad they seem to be. He breaks down how vital it is to approach recruitment from a strategy standpoint, to dig under the hood of the shop, and to get a deeper understanding of the day-to-day and long-term goals and how recruitment can help accomplish them. We also dug into the need for more diverse leadership in the industry and how we’re already seeing a shift in the lower third of the teams being developed now. Owen has led global organizations in attracting, hiring, and retaining talent. He has restructured and opened new offices in the United States, EMEA, LATAM and APAC regions, and has built recruiting departments from the ground up. His career has been driven by his passion for cultivating great teams who go on to make things that affect and change the modern culture. Before founding Outside Lines, Owen had the privilege of working for some of the world’s best creative agencies, including TBWA\Media Arts Lab, Mother, and 72andSunny. It was in those leading organizations that he honed his craft for identifying unique, divergent talent, in and out of the advertising industry, shaping teams that would go on to create world-class work. When not working, you can find him spending time with family and friends, introducing his son to art and design, golfing (whenever possible…), and eating his way through cities across the globe. Contact Own on his website or on Instagram.

Featuring: Matt Wolach, Ringbot.io In this episode, I got to speak to Matt Wolach from Ringbot. We dug into the benefits of SMS marketing and outreach and how it dovetails into bigger picture marketing strategies. Matt breaksdown how consumers interact with SMS vs. email, web chats, and other communication tools that brands are using. He leans into conversational vendor lead generation for building funnels and how to continue the one-to-one conversation. Meet Matt, CEO of RingBot (a texting tool that helps agencies get better results for their clients), and personal Coach to business owners. With 3 startup exits, he has a lot of experience to share. His focus is primarily on growth including sales, marketing, and specific tactics for increasing revenues quickly. Contact Matt on his website or on Twitter.

Featuring: Sherri and Reuben Johnson from Fly Media Productions In this first-ever two-part episode, Sherri, Reuben, and I talked about how they paved the way into their niche by following a passion that took their marriage to the next level. How implementing EOS lead to a rebrand and informed their overall agency messaging and niche targeting. They shared some of the secret sauce on how they successfully navigate running an agency as a married couple who both have chronic illnesses and ADD. The Fly Duo shared about a few of their side passion projects and how the ambition of eliminating stigma and having sex-positive conversations happen to also be fueling their agency growth. Tune into both episodes to hear the full conversation! Reuben and Sherri Johnson, affectionately known as the FlyDuo®, are partners in life, love, crime, and everything in between. They are co-founders of Atlanta’s premier award-winning, sex-positive brand agency Fly Media Productions®; co-founders of SexTech n’ Chill™, a handpicked selection of news, products, and experiences thoughtfully curated by the couple for pleasure seekers; and co-hosts of the podcast-style web show The FlyDuo Sex Project™. In addition to their own projects, Reuben and Sherri currently serve as official ambassadors for The Bureau of Digital and Erika Lust’s “The Porn Conversation”. Contact the FlyDuo on their websites, FlyMediaProductions.com and ST&C Special Project Website, on LinkedIn for FlyDuo, LinkedIn for FLy Media, Instagram for FlyyMedia, Instagram for ST&C, and on X.

Featuring: Sherri and Reuben Johnson from Fly Media Productions In this first-ever two-part episode, Sherri, Reuben, and I talked about how they paved the way into their niche by following a passion that took their marriage to the next level. How implementing EOS lead to a rebrand and informed their overall agency messaging and niche targeting. They shared some of the secret sauce on how they successfully navigate running an agency as a married couple who both have chronic illnesses and ADD. The Fly Duo shared about a few of their side passion projects and how the ambition of eliminating stigma and having sex-positive conversations happen to also be fueling their agency growth. Tune into both episodes to hear the full conversation! Reuben and Sherri Johnson, affectionately known as the FlyDuo®, are partners in life, love, crime, and everything in between. They are co-founders of Atlanta’s premier award-winning, sex-positive brand agency Fly Media Productions®; co-founders of SexTech n’ Chill™, a handpicked selection of news, products, and experiences thoughtfully curated by the couple for pleasure seekers; and co-hosts of the podcast-style web show The FlyDuo Sex Project™. In addition to their own projects, Reuben and Sherri currently serve as official ambassadors for The Bureau of Digital and Erika Lust’s “The Porn Conversation”. Contact the FlyDuo on their websites, FlyMediaProductions.com and ST&C Special Project Website, on LinkedIn for FlyDuo, LinkedIn for FLy Media, Instagram for FlyyMedia, Instagram for ST&C, and on X.