Marcus Knight

Building a marketing agency. Sharing things I learn along the way.

[Marcus Knight @marcusknight]

Me 👉 Ten years working in agencies. Launched my own in 2018 with two brothers. Now focused on building a team of expert leaders. On Twitter to share lessons learned and pick up some more. Hobbies include drinking, reading, parenting. Not in that order.

[Marcus Knight @marcusknight]

@huntkyle SCALE

[Marcus Knight @marcusknight]

@Kieran_N17 Returned to the correct position

[Marcus Knight @marcusknight]

Things that are bad for focus:

- Sitting at a messy desk
- Having a disorganised laptop
- Boring/uninteresting work
- Regularly doom scrolling
- Being tired and/or hungover
- Always-on notifications
- Welcoming distractions

[Marcus Knight @marcusknight]

Things that are good for focus:

- Sit at a comfortable desk
- Drink a cup of coffee
- Close everything else
- Noise cancelling headphones
- Instrumental music
- Set a timer
- Take a break
- Repeat

[Marcus Knight @marcusknight]

Get yourself addicted to working on one thing at a time, without distractions

[Marcus Knight @marcusknight]

I think that marrying well is the single most effective thing a business owner can do.

[Marcus Knight @marcusknight]

Two important areas of learning

- your own experience: mistakes, testing, reflection

- experience of others: books, blogs, articles, talking with other experts

You need both to become an expert

[Marcus Knight @marcusknight]

If you're running a meeting, be careful how you invite questions

“has everyone understood” subtly asks people to admit their weakness, which many won’t do

“would you like to stay on this topic” puts the responsibility on you to ensure understanding.

Option 2 is much better.

[Marcus Knight @marcusknight]

Life gets much better when you start chasing what you really like instead of what other people like

[Marcus Knight @marcusknight]

Approach difficult situations with common sense, logic and an open mind. And take action on what you see.

[Marcus Knight @marcusknight]

Wrap up all of the critical points as a spoken summary at the end of the meeting, and follow it up with a written one for good measure; this will reduce any ambiguity between attendees and show everyone how in control and effective you are at hosting meetings.

[Marcus Knight @marcusknight]

Micromanagement is mismanagement

[Marcus Knight @marcusknight]

When your agency is 1-10 people, you probably don't need an operating system

From 10-20 people, you probably need one

From 20+, you definitely need one

[Marcus Knight @marcusknight]

Most of us should really work on our addiction to checking our inbox

[Marcus Knight @marcusknight]

To set up a productive meeting, start by being clear about the key things that will be discussed - create an agenda, add this to the meeting invite, and email it to everyone in advance.

[Marcus Knight @marcusknight]

There are no shortcuts to becoming an expert. Be patient, put in the years of effort required, make mistakes, and actively look for better ways to do and think about your area of expertise

[Marcus Knight @marcusknight]

Two very important skills for agency founders

1. Building systems
2. Building systems that other people want to use

I'm currently working on getting better at the second one

[Marcus Knight @marcusknight]

Everyone makes mistakes. Your clients will be far more forgiving if they are generally happy with your relationship and the overall quality of your work

[Marcus Knight @marcusknight]

Every agency founder's route will be unique. But the elements needed to be successful are universal.

[Marcus Knight @marcusknight]

People aren’t motivated by pessimists - even in the face of trouble, remain enthusiastic and always optimistic