In this special edition of our “Meet the Team” series, we sat down with our CEO, Marty Fisher, to chat all things Marketing. From staying creative in the industry, podcast recommendations, and even what makes the perfect Rebel Alliance Member — Marty shared knowledge from his many years of experience.
What inspired you to start your career in marketing?
I didn’t plan this career path — it just happened.
I have a degree in Agricultural Economics but started out in the computer industry. That led to IT work for creative agencies, where I taught myself to use design software. I began taking on freelance projects and eventually started my own marketing company and the rest is history. It was entirely by accident. Looking back, the writing was on the wall, but I didn’t see it. In high school, I focused on science even though I genuinely enjoyed art and English.
I didn’t realize I should pursue what I loved.
My advice on choosing a career you love is to ask yourself: what classes do you never skip? What assignments do you enjoy? Those are great indications of a job passion you don't even know about.
How do you see the future of marketing evolving over the next decade?
Phew. We’re really in that rapid evolution right now. Things are going to settle down a little bit.
In my career, everything old is new again. This ability to be authentic and hyper-personalized is old news. We were trying to do that in 2000.
What I think is going to change is people are going to value their privacy even more. It’s going to be even harder to get the email addresses, the follow, the like, et cetera. Humans are tribal by nature and we’re just going to even further niche down into communities of like-minded people. They will aggregate and operate in these communities where they are comfortable and can exist. They are searching for a place where genuine value can be created and shared.
Advertising will only get harder and harder.
You’re a big adventure guy – from motorbikes to ski trips with your wife. Does that adventurous side of you translate to your professional life?
100%. I think that there is a zest for a new experience and embracing the unknown that I live for. Not things, but experiences. And I think that is true in my professional life. Travelling and adventuring means trying new things, and that’s something I bring to this agency: let’s try something new.
How do you stay creative and innovative in such a fast-paced industry?
I have a series of websites that I visit almost daily that are vetted sources for me. I know that the authors are genuine professionals and what I’m reading can be trusted. Then I’m exposed to new ideas, whether it’s marketing or technology in general, which I use as a jumping-off point to get more information.
What’s one book or podcast you think everyone in marketing should check out?
The podcaster I listen to the most is Tim Ferriss. There are tons of people in business on his podcast. I also will occasionally listen to Diary of a CEO.
From a blog standpoint, TechCrunch, Beta-Kit, The Verge, Engadget, Ars Technica. Finally, the granddaddy of them all is Harvard Business Review.
Those are almost daily visits for me.
We know you’re a big Star Wars guy. What qualities make the perfect Rebel Alliance member?
The perfect Rebel Alliance member does more with less, has integrity, loyalty, and fearlessness.
What are some trends or technologies in marketing that excite you the most right now?
I’m pretty jazzed about AI. It’s amazing to use it and see how it’s making not necessarily my output better but certainly helping me work faster. It’s a great copilot for helping me get unstuck and stop procrastinating. I have stopped looking for stock photos because I can go into Adobe Firefly and type in what I want. It’s my “always-on buddy” that you can bounce ideas off of (as weird as that sounds).
What’s your favourite craft beer in the city (brewery and flavour)?
Easy. *He answered immediately* Lake of the Woods Brewery, Lakeside Kolsch – with Lago being a current close second.
What values guide your leadership style?
First, I would say that it’s evolving. I’m still learning how to be a good leader. But the three things I always say are:
1. Don’t be an asshole. Nobody that works here is going, “Oh, I can’t wait to get to work and do a shitty job.” We’re all trying to do good work so there is that level of respect from me.
2. Listen more than you talk. There is a lot of value in what others tell you.
3. Learn how to deliver hard news kindly and truthfully. On the opposite side, also make sure that you’re delivering good news, and recognizing that at a greater frequency.
Everyone at the agency knows about your love of the ag industry. Where does that come from?
I think what you do professionally can have a lot to do with where you are geographically.
I went to the University of Guelph and that’s one of the leading ag schools in Canada. I didn’t go there for that specifically, but it definitely had an effect. The industries that were big where I was, were financial services and agriculture. So, it’s more like I got the opportunity to do work in the ag industry and I loved it. I loved the industry and the people. I love farmers and I love the people who are trying to be creative and sell products and services that help farmers farm better.
That’s where my passion for ag grew and holy cow, do I ever love working in this space.
We know how much you love All-in Tuesdays – what has been your favourite lunch so far?
Man... I guess if I’m on a deserted island and I must choose, I’m probably the one who lobbies the most for Shorty’s Pizza. But when we have Ramallah Cafe that’s a close second.
You often describe Show and Tell as a full stack, integrated team – what does this mean to you?
So, these are two really important terms that get tossed around: integrated and full stack.
"Full stack" in a traditional way is a full stack programmer — someone who can build a website by themselves. Build the bones, get the images, write the content end-to-end as one person. When I talk about full stack, it means that we have subject matter experts in the full stack of things you would need to make exceptional work. We aren’t asking a designer to write the content on the website, we have a specialist for writing and a specialist for designing.
Integrated is a different thing all together. When we think about the challenges that we are trying to solve for our clients, we are thinking about the solution agnostically. We are going in to solve the problem without any preconceptions. We want to look at the entirety of what we can do at the agency — all the talented people. We will integrate all these experts’ perspectives to see how everything that we do can work together.
Follow up: A large part of integration is building the right team. What do you look for when building the team and S&T?
If we’re thinking about what I’m looking for at a macro level, it’s high achievers. People who are exceptional – and it’s clearly uncovered and demonstrated in the interview process that they’re exceptional.
I don’t care what your degree is and what your grades are, I care if you give a sh*t and if you’ll do a good job. And are you nice?
We recently released a video of what the Show and Tell team says about you when you aren’t in the room – what do you say about the team when they aren’t in the room?
They are fun, irreverent and smart.
Editor's note: We can confirm - Marty also says these things in the room.
What advice would you give to someone new at the agency?
Fight for the attention of the senior people.
I think I tell most people that you can learn a lot from people who have been in the industry but they’re often busy and maybe throw off a vibe that they don’t want to mentor and that is wrong. I believe we all have something to share and should want to teach and mentor to see everybody have an opportunity to become more proficient at their trade.
Any closing words?
I am inspired by the hope that is clearly presenting itself at the agency. It is a kind of hope that isn’t rooted in doom and gloom. It’s a kind of hope that people feel like we are a special company. By committing to and getting the opportunities, this is a really great place to work and a great place for clients to work with. I feel like the hope is tangible.