The Innovative Agency

Intro In this episode of The Innovative Agency, we welcome Garrett Garcia, President of PPK, to discuss the challenges and strategies of attracting and retaining talent in the agency world. He explores the importance of having a team-focused philosophy and how it can drive success. What you will learn in this episode: How revolving doors in agencies affect talent retention and acquisition. The expectations for maintaining adequate work-life balance for employees. How to correct performance in real-time without being overbearing. The importance of offering continuing education opportunities to employees. How to scale your talent acquisition process to attract high-level talent. Bio Garrett Garcia was PPK's second employee to join the original founding members in 2005 as an Account Executive. Since then, the agency has grown tenfold and Garrett holds the role of President, leading agency operations and business strategy. His strategic guidance has helped lead PPK to some major wins in the Southeast, including the Florida Lottery, the Tampa Bay Rays of Major League Baseball and Pinch A Penny Pools. After almost 22 years in the creative and advertising industry, Garrett has borrowed from his larger agency experience to help shape the trajectory of PPK's steady growth. Garrett lives in Tampa, Florida and spends most of his free time outdoors when he's not chasing his two young kids and their 80-pound pitbull, Hercules. Resources: Website: https://www.uniteppk.com/ LinkedIn Personal: https://www.linkedin.com/in/garrett-garcia-ba867b4/ Linkedin Business: https://www.linkedin.com/company/uniteppk/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/UnitePPK/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/uniteppk

Karl Sakas, a management consultant and founder of Sakas & Company, shares invaluable insights for agency owners. He discusses the unique challenges of agency ownership, emphasizing the importance of mindset and strategic thinking. Karl offers practical tips on how to work less and earn more, highlighting the critical need to delegate roles effectively. He explains how to transition account management and client strategy away from owners, ensuring smoother operations. Tune in for his advice on measuring growth beyond revenue and avoiding burnout!

Intro In this episode of The Innovative Agency, we explore the often-overlooked topic of profitability in marketing agencies. Our guest is Ilia Markov, marketing director of Toggle. He discusses ways to uncover blind spots and maximize profitability in agency operations. Tune in to learn how to squeeze more juice from your agency's performance and increase your bottom line. What you will learn in this episode: How to use time tracking as a tool to boost productivity and profitability. The importance of contextualizing data in your efforts to increase profits. How to identify new opportunities for profit increases. The difference between open book agencies and more cautious agencies. The benefits of having a high level of openness regarding profitability in your agency. Bio Ilia Markov has diverse work experience in digital marketing and content strategy. Ilia's journey in tech marketing started in 2013 after he graduated with an MBA from the University of Michigan. Since then, he has had the chance to work with some of the most exciting brands in SaaS. Today he leads the marketing team at Toggl to help individuals and organizations of all sizes to be more productive, profitable, and happier. Resources: Website: https://www.markovunchained.com/ LinkedIn Personal: https://www.linkedin.com/in/iliamarkov/ LinkedIn Business: https://www.linkedin.com/company/toggl/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/nochainmarkov Receive 20% Off Any Annual Plan For New Clients With Code INNOVATE: https://toggl.com/plan/

Intro Our latest guest, Abby Wood, is the Founder of The Content Lab. Abby shares insights on how AI may make content creation easier but poses challenges in distinguishing human-created content from AI-generated content. Tune in to this episode to gain valuable insights on the future of content creation in the age of AI. What you will learn in this episode: The impact of AI on content creation workflows. The difference between serving other agencies and serving end-clients. How AI can be leveraged in digital marketing agencies. The importance of ensuring client satisfaction by delivering what clients want. How AI is currently being used in advertising. How white labeling can be beneficial to marketing agencies. Bio Abby Wood is the Founder of The Content Lab, a white-label copywriting and content marketing agency that helps digital agency owners get their time back, keep their customers happy, and increase their profits. She serves over 80 agencies around the world with their copywriting needs, has an amazing team of talented writers, and is also a mentor for UGURUS (a business training program for digital agency owners). Resources: Website: https://www.thecontentlab.ie/ LinkedIn Personal: https://www.linkedin.com/in/abby-woodtcl/ Linkedin Business: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-content-lab-ire/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thecontentlabireland Copywriting & Blogging Templates from The Content Lab: https://www.contentgoodies.com/

Intro In this episode of The Innovative Agency, we discuss the ongoing challenge of finding, keeping, and training the right people in the agency world. Joined by Megan Keuthen, a guru in people management and recruitment, we share insights on talent development and growth strategies for agencies. What you will learn in this episode: The importance of developing strong talent within your agency. How to use talent development as the cornerstone for agency growth. How to avoid talent issues in agencies. The downfall of poor leadership in talent acquisition and retention. How to assess candidates to determine whether they are a good fit. The value of documenting your hiring processes. The impact company culture has on hiring and retention. Bio Megan Kuethen is the co-founder and Growth Strategist at Busy Cure, an operations consultancy devoted to teaching businesses how to have full-time impact with part-time hours. With more than 2000 hires to her name, she is best known for being a team expert, helping founders become great leaders and businesses develop strong and healthy culture. In her free time, Megan reads over a hundred books a year, travels the world, and bakes delicious sweets for her loved ones. Megan lives in Nashville, where she's an active member of the entrepreneur community and her church. Resources: Website: https://thebusycure.com/ LinkedIn Personal: https://www.linkedin.com/in/megankuethen/ LinkedIn Business: https://www.linkedin.com/company/busy-cure/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/megankuethen

Pamela Slim, founder of K’é Main Street Learning Lab, discusses monetizing agency knowledge, developing new revenue streams, scaling agency services, and the value of protected intellectual property. She emphasizes the importance of refining expertise, determining market value and pricing strategies, and maximizing potential upside and return on investment. The podcast concludes with a focus on monetizing expertise and maximizing value for agency owners.

Intro In this episode of The Innovative Agency, Chris Dreyer, founder of rankings.io, discusses the ever-changing world of search engine optimization (SEO). We'll delve into the technical aspects of SEO and how it is influenced by market factors and artificial intelligence. Agency leaders can also expect to learn what shape SEO marketing may take. What you will learn in this episode: How to avoid churn in SEO agencies. How to manage communication in digital agency relationships. The proper length for SEO content. The importance of developing a strong brand and consistent company culture. Why niching down ultimately proves to be beneficial for most SEO agencies. What the future of SEO marketing looks like. Bio Chris Dreyer is the CEO and Founder of Rankings.io, an SEO agency that helps elite personal injury law firms land serious injury and auto accident cases through Google's organic search results. His company has the distinction of making the Inc. 5000 list five years in a row. In addition to owning and operating Rankings, Chris is the *Wall Street Journal* and *USA Today* best-selling author of "Niching Up: The Narrower the Market, the Bigger the Prize", a real estate investor, and podcast host, as well as a member of the Forbes Agency Council, the Rolling Stone Culture Council, Business Journals Leadership Trust, Fast Company Executive Board, and Newsweek Expert Forum. Chris's journey in legal marketing has been a saga, to say the least. A world-ranked collectible card game player in his youth, Chris began his "grown up" career with a History Education degree and landed a job out of college as a detention room supervisor. The surplus of free time in that job allowed him to develop a side hustle in affiliate marketing, where (at his apex) he managed over 100 affiliate sites simultaneously, allowing him to turn his side gig into a full-time one. When his time in affiliate marketing came to an end, he segued into SEO for attorneys, while also having time to become a top-ranked online poker player. Resources: Website: https://rankings.io/ LinkedIn Personal: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrisdreyerco/ LinkedIn Business: https://www.linkedin.com/company/rankingsio/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/chrisdreyerco Twitter: https://twitter.com/chrisdreyerco Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chrisdreyerco/

Intro In this episode of The Innovative Agency, we explore the importance of project management in running a profitable agency. Galen Low, an industry veteran with a passion for digital project management, discusses how agencies can effectively manage and control the process of delivering work and results to clients. Tune in to gain valuable insights on avoiding scope creep, maintaining margins, and meeting client expectations. What you will learn in this episode: How to effectively manage a project digitally. Why the project manager needs to ask the right questions to get the ideal results. How to encourage collaboration amongst different agency teams. What it takes to allow new ideas to flourish in an agency. Why project managers should always develop a deep understanding of modern technologies. The importance of fostering and embracing innovation in your agency. Bio Galen Low is the co-founder of The Digital Project Manager, a training community hell-bent on sharing knowledge to amplify the value of responsible project management in a digital world. Over the past decade or so, he's worked at boutique agencies and large consultancies to help shape and deliver human-centered digital transformation initiatives in government, healthcare, transit, and retail. Today he shares that knowledge to help project professionals get skilled, get confident, and get connected so that they can build rewarding careers in the digital space. Resources: Website: https://thedigitalprojectmanager.com LinkedIn Personal: https://www.linkedin.com/in/galen-low-digital-transformation-advisor/ LinkedIn Business: https://www.linkedin.com/company/thedigitalprojectmanager/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thedigitalprojectmanager Twitter: https://twitter.com/thedigitalpm/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thedigitalpm/

Today we're diving into the technical aspects of marketing and the potential impact of generative AI. In this episode, our guest, Josh Golden, Chief Marketing Officer at Quad, shares insights on the transformative nature of generative AI in marketing and knowledge work. From the challenges faced by leaders in the marketing services industry to the importance of understanding the process and uses of AI, we explore the paradigm shift AI brings in agencies and client companies. What you will learn in this episode: Why generative AI has the potential to revolutionize marketing and knowledge work. How the marketing services industry can face challenges such as increasing complexity, the need to adapt to new technologies, and a lack of support for marketers. Why agencies and marketers need to embrace AI and incorporate it into their services. What makes understanding the process and uses of AI crucial in academia and agencies. Why agency owners should combine gut instincts with data-driven decisions to make strategic business choices. Why agencies and companies must establish internal policies and procedures regarding the use of AI. What is behind the growing interest in new technologies like Chat GPT, VR, AR, Web 3, and NFTs. Bio With more than two decades of experience in marketing, branding, media, and content, Josh Golden is one of the most connected connectors in the marketing ecosystem. Today he is leading a brand transformation as CMO at Quad. He heads a highly collaborative team that works with marketers around the world to create campaigns, programs, assets, and direct marketing materials that clear the path for better, deeper, easier consumer engagement. Resources: Website: https://www.quad.com/ LinkedIn Personal: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshuajgolden/ LinkedIn Business: https://www.linkedin.com/company/quadgraphics/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/joshuajgolden

Intro In this episode, I speak with Mike Woolsey and Dean Rojas, the Co-Founders of Gassed, which specializes in conversion-optimized creative and paid media management. They share their perspectives on how agencies can squeeze the most ROI out of the content they create and some unique strategies they leverage with their media-savvy clients. What you will learn in this episode: How to scale up the content you create. The importance of investing in longevity when buying media for clients. The value of a diverse media mix and understanding how that mixture performs on various platforms. How to optimize the process of generating case studies from client work. Why content that appears native to the platform tends to perform well. Bio Dean Rojas and Mike Woolsey are the Co-Founders of Gassed, a paid social creative agency that combines conversion optimized creative and paid media management to unlock new customer acquisition. Gassed delivers high converting creative assets at scale so your ad spend is as efficient as possible. Gassed combines Media Management along with a high volume of Vertical UGC style videos to combat creative fatigue and help you win on your paid social channels. Resources: Website: https://www.gassedagency.com/ LinkedIn Personal: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-woolsey-10659b66/ LinkedIn Personal: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dean-rojas-6951a011b/ LinkedIn Business: https://www.linkedin.com/company/gassed/ Media Buying Briefing: https://digiday.com/media-buying/media-buying-briefing-how-tiktok-agencies-work-and-why-they-dont-fear-a-u-s-ban-of-the-app/