Taking the jump and starting my own marketing agency
I had always considered starting my own thing. I wasn't sure what that looked like yet, freelance consultant or marketing agency. I wasn't sure. In my career I had been every side of the marketing fence. Starting in sales for DMG, I moved to an advertising agency (RP2, the artist formerly known as Rathbone Media) where I stayed for 13 years and then on to Live my Life Adventurously at Adventure Forest Ltd marketing the Go Ape and Air Space brands.
During my agency years, I saw the dominance and importance of digital coming and I helped to prepare what was a pretty traditional agency for the change, pulling them (literally at times) into the present. Within just a couple of years I had built a one million pound turnover digital department from scratch. Fast forward to my next role and that was as a Head of Marketing and eventually Marketing Director at Go Ape and Air Space where I sat on the board, a great adventure where I learned a lot more about client side marketing, brands, business. I had gained a lot of experience across a wide range of sectors in that 20 years or so. But still something wasn't quite right. I wanted to work hard but I needed greater flexibility to get a little work life balance back and I had always felt that I wanted to build something of my own. Well, I had no better motivator than what was coming, our third child was due within a couple of months and that's the point at which I decided to hand in my notice and take the risky step of starting my own marketing agency. Gulp..
So here I am, three months later and my 'startup' is more of a 'got going'. I have built my website from scratch and now I am working on the business, looking for great clients to work with. Fortunately I did not go into this process blindly and I had prepared by creating a reserve of funds (six or seven months we would be OK) and streamlining my mortgage, bills and car making them as cost efficient as possible. Getting your finances in order ahead of choosing to work at your startup permanently is a 'must do'.
My notice period ended with two weeks to go until our due date which gave me time to prepare my new office and get started on that website. Our little boy was born on the 16th February and with that my motivation to get 'Improve Marketing', that's what I called the startup agency, up and running. After baby Myles was born I took a little of that work life balance and enjoyed some well earned paternity leave, this was the first time in my career that I had ever taken any longer than two weeks off! Two weeks and one day later and I was itching to get started again. You need no greater motivation to get up and work hard than another member of the family to join you (even if sleep at this point was still far from regular).
So, now the real work begins. I have found an excellent accountant who has helped to set the business up and who will guide me through the meandering roads of corporate tax and wealth optimisation. I have spoken to as many of my colleagues and friends about the business as I can.
Finally I have created a new business strategy and I know what clients I want to work with..... With fruitful financial times ahead, absolute certainty in our political leaders and a stable market to operate in, what could go wrong....
Improve Marketing is a marketing agency based in Suffolk, UK. We would love to work with you, so why not get in touch by contacting us here.
Written by Paul Lymer
Want to start up your own marketing agency? Find all the information and resources you need by reading the Definitive Guide To Starting Your Own Marketing Business!
