“What is that feeling when you’re driving away from people and they recede on the plain till you see their specks dispersing? – it’s the too-huge world vaulting us, and it’s good-bye. But we lean forward to the next crazy venture beneath the skies”. Jack Kerouac always had a way to capture a moment. And this is the moment, at the 2-year mark, to say … Continue reading Episode 104: Time To Say Goodbye
Why do people buy? They believe that what you are selling is going to fulfill their need. And that’s the key word…believe. For them to believe this fact, they have to trust. And in an industry based on artifice, to instil trust, nothing matters more than authenticity. I’m aware that speaking about authenticity with regards to digital marketing risks eliciting eye rolls and sighs at … Continue reading Episode 103: Keeping It Real – Authenticity Matters
We have previously discussed the emerging opportunities and threats presented by automation and artificial intelligence. Make no mistake, they are going to have a profound effect on our industry and society. But all is not lost. As we have previously outlined, the digital strategist is poised to thrive in this age of upheaval, and one of the key roles they will fulfill is the role … Continue reading Episode 102: The Digital Strategist As Integrator
You sit in the eye of the storm, pulled in a hundred different directions. How do you stay focused on the right outcomes? How do you turn the chaos and energy to your advantage? You do it by remembering who you work for. You do it by being the client advocate. Digital media and marketing often feels like the embodiment of chaos. You never quite … Continue reading Episode 101: The Client Advocate
**Record Scratch** **Freeze Frame** Yeah. That’s me. You’re probably wondering how I got here. I know I sometimes do. When I first launched this project just under 2 years ago, my hope was that coming out of this I could build a repository that would be useful to aspiring strategists, giving them a roadmap for their career development. In order to do so, I had to answer 2 … Continue reading Episode 100: These Truths We Hold To Be Self Evident
Consensus can be a dirty word. It implies compromise. Compromise invites committee thinking. And committee thinking is associated with safe and uninteresting solutions. But without consensus, we can’t deliver a digital strategy. How do we achieve consensus while remaining daring and innovative? Let’s start by saying that consensus is necessary. As strategists, our role is to drive the thinking and deliver the broad vision, connecting … Continue reading Episode 99: Building Consensus
Digital media is having a moment, one that if not aggressively addressed will turn into a full blown crisis of confidence. Procter & Gamble CMO Marc Pritchard caused a sensation when he called on digital media providers to become transparent in the face of “crappy advertising accompanied by even crappier viewing experiences”. Major advertisers, including the UK government, the Guardian and Havas have frozen all Google and YouTube … Continue reading Episode 98: Strategy In The Age Of Media Crisis
The Ancient Greeks wrote that you should know thyself. But self awareness is a seemingly rare trait. We rush to talk, to get our opinion across without thinking about the impact on how we are perceived. Why is self awareness so important, why is it so rare, and how can we become more self aware? Self awareness is the conscious knowledge of one’s own character, feelings, … Continue reading Episode 97: Self Awareness Is A Beautiful Thing
Overlooked, sidelined and dismissed, soft skills are considered less important than hard technical skills and experience. But as you grow your career, they become ever more important. What are soft skills, why are they not considered important when you first start your career, and why do they become more important as you grow? Soft skills are human skills. They are communication skills. They are about … Continue reading Episode 96: Why Are Soft Skills So Hard?
When you’re in the middle of the scrum, with a thousand requests coming at you at the same time, how do you prioritize? How do you deliver to expectations? How do you maintain the quality of your thinking and output? How do you stay sane? Life comes at you fast. To be a strategist means to never have a dull moment. But it is a … Continue reading Episode 95: The Things Left Undone – Avoid Getting Overwhelmed
Octopus Digital Strategy 