Contributors Welcome!
Do you know someone with expert knowledge on a topic that agency owners would love to hear about? Drop me a note, and let’s get them on!
Agency Bytes is a podcast for owners of creative, marketing, and advertising agencies that packs a ton of important agency information on one topic, from one expert into a 25-minute brief. Why 25 minutes? Because who has the attention span for much more these days, and you can squeeze in a listen between meetings with time for a bathroom break or coffee refill before your next meeting. Agency Bytes is brought to you by Steve Guberman from Agency Outsight. Steve is a 20-year agency veteran who works as a business coach for agencies around the country. He coaches owners of branding, marketing, design, and PR agencies to conquer their goals and overcome their challenges. Learn more about Agency Outsight at www.agencyoutsight.com
Episodes
Friday Mar 31, 2023
Friday Mar 31, 2023
Featuring: Patrice Embry, Project Menagerie
In this episode, Patrice and I talk about the winding path that she took to get into the world of digital project management, how being fired (twice) set her on her way to mastering her destiny, why college may or may not be for everyone and some of the things agencies do (and don’t do) that are mind-boggling.
Patrice started managing digital projects 20 years ago, starting with a pioneering e-commerce music company during the .com boom in the 90s. Since then, she’s managed projects big and small for companies, agencies, and now as a freelance project manager - projects ranging from mobile apps to large-scale CMS-driven websites, and even print projects on occasion. An active member and writer for the larger Digital Project Management community, she’s always willing to talk about the operations aspect of project management and how agencies can better use PM to strengthen client relationships.
Connect with Patrice on her website.
Monday Mar 20, 2023
Monday Mar 20, 2023
Featuring: Mark Miller, Historic Agency
Having recently published a book, Culture Built My Brand, Mark and I spoke all about the driving force behind the book and how it helped define the success story of an agency previously in trouble. We spoke about how he and his agency took action to create intentional culture, drive out the negativity from the team, and build processes to deliver work for clients that were previously unheard of. Mark shares his and his team's bravery in how they faced tough times and as a result of an actual culture, are stronger than ever.
Mark is the author of Culture Built My Brand: How to win more customers with company culture, and the founder of Historic Agency, a branding and design thinking agency for nonprofits.
Connect with Mark on his agency website, on LinkedIn, and grab his book here.
Friday Mar 03, 2023
Friday Mar 03, 2023
Featuring: Jenny De Witt, Rebranded Media
In this episode, Jenny and I talk about how an agency owner can benefit from being a digital nomad and what that means for their perspective on business and life. Jenny joined me from Argentina and talked about how her agency is going through a metamorphosis from focusing on web 2.0 technology and marketing and moving into web 3 solutions for their clients and how you can bring web 3 solutions to your clients.
Jennifer De Witt is a communication design pioneer who got her start on the web by building physical computer networks at the University of Georgia. Since that time she has made it her mission to be at the forefront of new media and emerging technology such as website design, social media, and live video.
She holds a Master's in Instructional Design and combines her experience as an educator, strategist, designer, and internet marketer to build exceptional customer experience (CX) environments.
She is currently in Buenos Aires and heads up a fully remote collective of professionals dedicated to building the future of the web.
Connect with Jenny at rebrandedmedia.com.
Friday Feb 17, 2023
Friday Feb 17, 2023
Featuring: Mike Graham, Second Melody
In this episode, I chat with Mike about the evolution his agency, Second Melody, has taken in the 17 years it’s existed. We cover things like when to let an employee go, fighting the niche, saying no to clients, elevating employees as a leader, and the competitive nature of an agency owner.
Mike Graham is the founder and CEO of Second Melody, a branding studio working with organizations to uncover the accurate, ownable, and inclusive narratives that help tell their stories and drive growth.
Connect with Mike and listen to his mix tape at www.secondmelody.com.
Thursday Feb 02, 2023
Thursday Feb 02, 2023
Featuring: Ken Jacobs, Jacobs Consulting & Executive Coaching
In this episode, Ken and I got to talk about the difference between being an owner and a true leader, how to lead and inspire in times of uncertainty, how transparent leads can or should be, and the differences between consulting, training, and coaching. We also tried really hard to remember the name of the book Ken was reading at the time of the recording. The book is "Give and Take. Why Helping Others Drives Our Success." by Adam Grant.
Ken Jacobs is the principal of Jacobs Consulting & Executive Coaching, which helps empower PR and communications leaders and executives to become more effective leaders. It does so via executive coaching.
His company also helps agencies grow business, manage for profitability, improve client service, and enhance team performance, communications and leadership skills, via training and consulting.
Prior to launching his companies, Jacobs spent 25 years in management and leadership positions with a number of PR agencies, including Ogilvy & Mather PR, Marina Maher (pronounced “Mar” like “Star!”) communications, Maloney & Fox, and Lippe Taylor.
Jacobs discusses leadership with some of the PR and communications industry’s most respected leaders via “Taking the Lead,” his quarterly leadership column in PRSA’s Strategies & Tactics, and the similarly named video podcast on his website and YouTube channel.
He's a regular presenter at PRSA Counselors Academy and various PRSA chapters. He loves living “Down The Shore” in Asbury Park, New Jersey. No Bruce sightings yet.
Wednesday Jan 18, 2023
Wednesday Jan 18, 2023
Featuring: Lee McKnight Jr, RSW/US
In this episode, Lee and I talked a lot about how business development for agencies has evolved, what agencies can be doing to deepen their relationships and pipeline, some of the systems they could be using, and ways to differentiate themselves from other agencies. We also talked about the economics and logistics of keeping business development efforts in-house vs. outsourcing.
Lee McKnight Jr. is the Vice President of Sales for RSW/US in Cincinnati, Ohio. They are a new business development firm that works solely with agencies, PR, and marketing services firms. Lee earned his undergraduate degree at the University of Kentucky and JD from Cumberland School of Law in Birmingham, Alabama. After graduating from law school, he worked for an internet healthcare start-up in Nashville until the bubble burst in 2000.
Fast forward through some interesting marketing and sales positions to RSW/US where Lee has worked with agencies of all types to help drive their new business efforts. Married with two children, he’s a big fan of history, comics and horror novels, and plays in a few bands in Louisville and Cincinnati when time permits.
Connect with Lee at www.rswus.com or via email.
Friday Jan 06, 2023
Friday Jan 06, 2023
Featuring: Jamie Hawk, Altitude Operations
In today’s episode, Jamie and I dug into the need for agencies to solidify their project management systems, what’s needed for an agency owner to really scale their operations, how and why to charge for project management, and the key differences between project management and account management. Having recently brought her husband into her company, we also spent some time talking about the benefits and ways to navigate successfully working with your spouse.
Altitude Operations is a fractional COO and project management company that focuses on helping marketing agencies grow and scale by removing agency owners from the day-to-day allowing them to focus on bringing in sales.
Thursday Dec 22, 2022
Thursday Dec 22, 2022
Featuring: Lou Kotsinis, BCS Interactive
In this episode, Lou and I spoke a lot about how his agency, BCS Interactive really digs into their niche industry of non-profits and the services they provide them. Lou brought us into the secret ingredient of his agency and how they lead with this ingredient to make bigger impacts for their clients. We talked about some of the tools and systems his team relies on for their success as a fully remote agency.
Lou Kotsinis is co-founder and CEO of BCS Interactive, a digital agency that works exclusively with nonprofit and educational organizations, focusing on the areas of impact, awareness, and efficiency.