Becoming Inspired to Build a Cybersecurity Business To Support Other Businesses
The Marketing Agency Leadership Podcast
Matthew Connor, Founder and CEO of CyberLynx, began his programming career at 12 years old while working as a coder for his father’s company. His passion led him to develop his own company, which focuses on offering premium IT services and protecting growing businesses from ransomware. CyberLynx, previously known as Your IT Department, continues to provide cybersecurity and professional IT and support services for expanding companies. In February 2023, Matthew launched The Cyber Business Podcast, where he features founders and entrepreneurs sharing inspiring stories. Matthew is on a...
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From Merger to Mastery: Transforming Into a Comprehensive Digital Partner
The Marketing Agency Leadership Podcast
Kevin Hourigan is the President of Spinutech, a full-service website design and digital marketing agency dedicated to developing customized and data-driven digital marketing solutions. Before merging his business with his current business partner, Kevin founded Bayshore Solutions, which he operated for over two decades. He’s been an active YPO member for over 12 years and serves as its Digital Marketing and Media Network Forum Officer. In 2023, Kevin launched The Growth Fire Podcast, a business growth-focused medium where top business leaders share their experiences and insights. When...
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A Journey of Growth and Learning With Jon Morris
The Marketing Agency Leadership Podcast
Jon Morris is the Founder and CEO of Ramsay Innovations, which helps businesses quickly scale through financial education and strategic funds allocations. In September, Jon founded Fiscal Advocate, which specializes in helping marketing communication firms manage their finances, gain business insights, and grow revenue. Before joining Ramsay Innovations, Jon founded Rise Interactive, a full-service internet marketing agency — growing it from a $10,000 bootstrap business to one of the largest independent digital agencies. Jon is also an Advisor for Fiscal Advocate and was previously an...
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Insights From Jon Tsourakis on Navigating Success in the Marketing Industry
The Marketing Agency Leadership Podcast
Jon Tsourakis is the Co-owner, President, and Chief Revenue Officer at Oyova, an agency offering integrated digital solutions such as app development, web design, and marketing to create efficient processes for company growth. Jon is a serial entrepreneur and marketing strategist whose continual study of brand identity, business communications, buyer behavior, sales conversion, and various digital marketing techniques keeps him astute to industry standards. His resumé includes executive positions with digital agencies including Innersight dZine Studio, REVOLT, and the Digital Mastermind...
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Building Success, Overcoming Challenges, and Harnessing AI for Growth
The Marketing Agency Leadership Podcast
Vic Drabicky is the Founder and CEO of January Digital, a digital marketing agency and consulting firm focused on luxury, retail, and beauty. January Digital is dedicated to comprehensive digital planning and execution, encompassing paid search, paid social, programmatic media buying, and SEO. With a wealth of industry experience exceeding two decades, Vic has previously worked with renowned brands such as Nike, Neiman Marcus, Staples, and Michael Kors.
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From Co-Workers to Agency Owners: The Story of Little Hands of Stone
The Marketing Agency Leadership Podcast
Michael Boychuk is the CCO and Co-founder of Little Hands of Stone, a creative agency and Ad Age Small Agency Newcomer of 2020. Michael has nearly 30 years of industry experience, working for notable firms like WongDoody, SK+G Advertising, and Leo Burnett. Before LHoS, Michael helped build Amazon’s D1 internal creative agency as the North American Executive Creative Director. He leveraged his talents and leadership expertise to spearhead four Super Bowl campaigns and the rebranding that shifted Amazon’s identity toward the globally-recognized standalone smile. Michael also helped launch...
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Expert Advice for Agency Owners: Rob Kischuk on Business Growth and Scaling Teams
The Marketing Agency Leadership Podcast
Rob Kischuk is the Founder and CEO of Bellwood Labs, an on-demand software solution that helps companies develop software from concept to final product. In addition to his development skills, Rob is also a team and relationship builder. He was inspired to start Bellwood Labs to fill the gap between businesses' challenges, objectives, and software products. Rob is a three-time founder and CEO of software tools designed for marketers, including Converge and PerfectPost, and is a mentor at Techstars, a company helping startups with technology, scaling, and product management and strategy. He’s...
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On Generosity, Integrity, Raising the Goal, and Doing it NOW!
The Marketing Agency Leadership Podcast
Joe Soltis, CEO, ChoiceLocal (Cleveland, OH) Joe Soltis is CEO at ChoiceLocal, which Joe describes as “the top performing franchise growth engine” with a “money back guarantee.” The agency offers a wide scope of services for franchisors and franchisees of over 50 brands, enabling them to provide “Fortune 500 level customer service, results, strategy, and ROI on the franchisee level” for a “small and medium size business price.” Large clients might be parent companies of franchise systems, franchisors owning 20 or more franchise systems where each system may have...
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How to Bring the “Little Guy” to the TOP
The Marketing Agency Leadership Podcast
Rafi Arbel, President, Market JD (Chicago, IL) Rafi Arbel is President at Market JD, an internet-based advertising that focuses its work on “increasing visibility” for small law firms specializing in personal injury and workers’ compensation cases. With the kind of clientele the agency serves, the written content has to be extremely precise and accurate. That’s why the firm currently employs 3 attorneys. Rafi is one of them. The agency provides websites, search engine optimization, pay-per-click, reputation management, and content production. The work split is about 65% to...
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Why Citizen Branding?
The Marketing Agency Leadership Podcast
Robin Raj, Founder and Executive Creative Director, Citizen Group (San Francisco, CA) Inspired by Marc Gobé’s book, Citizen Brand: 10 Commandments for Transforming Brand Culture in a Consumer Democracy, Robin Raj, Founder and Executive Creative Director at Citizen Group, started his agency in 2006 to work with entities committed to meaningful and measurable pro-social impact. His agency’s proposition is that organizations build brand value when they “walk their talk” and operate in ways that enhance society for their employees, shareholders, and consumers. Robin notes...
info_outlineJosh Dougherty and Polly Yakovich own A Brave New, a 4-year-old boutique marketing agency focused on branding, inbound marketing, and web design. A Brave New uses strategy, marketing, content, and technology to help clients around the USA tell their stories, expand their reach, and connect with the right kind of customers, clients, or donors, “who will benefit from whatever they have to offer.”
A Brave New believes in developing a “smart strategy” and diving quickly into execution to get “80% of the way” to the final results—energizing client companies with quick wins, seeing what works and what doesn’t, and leveraging that experience to refine the strategy. Targeting perfection from the start wastes time and strategy does not have to be “complete” at the time of implementation. Companies can learn a lot by “doing,” adjust their course, and develop strategies iteratively over time. A Brave New has found that flexibility and nimbleness empower companies to leapfrog over the competition. In simple words, “Get to the marketplace quickly, then fix it.”
Both Josh and Polly came from a “big agency” and executed carefully-planned, strategic, employer-supported exits from big agency life. They honestly and openly shared their long-term goals with their employers and maintained good relationships with them as they adjusted their work schedules and phased into working at A Brave New full-time over a period of two years.
In this interview, Josh and Polly address the curiosity, discomfort with the status quo, and drive to explore new ideas that characterize the entrepreneurial spirit. They give a lot of credit for A Brave New’s success to great mentors and a network of entrepreneurs who advised and encouraged them through the hard times so typical for start-up companies. Josh comments that, “Fortune and the future really favor people who are bold and set big goals.” Polly agrees.
Josh can be reached on Twitter at @doughj or on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/jdough/
Polly can be reached on Twitter at @pollyyakovich or on Linked in at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/polly-yakovich-5a5151b/
Both are also available on the company’s LinkedIn page: https://www.linkedin.com/company/a-brave-new/ or on their company website, a Brave New, at https://abravenew.com/