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My background
I studied industrial design at TU Delft, with a master's degree in innovation management. My approach is therefore rather methodical and innovative than 'intuitive'. You also have brand strategists who work more from behavioral psychology or art school. That's a different taste.
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During my studies I started an internet agency together with a good friend. Building beautiful things in Flash. We took this very seriously and soon had great customers such as Robeco and Ahold. We often did this with larger agencies at the time, which was super instructive of course.
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We called our agency Acato. We grew up to such a 40-50 online specialists. The management role grew with it and then it became clear to me: I need the content again in, solve 'puzzles'. That's where my heart lies.
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You could say I'm in have worked the entire spectrum of running an agency; strategy, branding, ux design, (a bit of) development, project management, sales, management and entrepreneurship. Also for completely different customers. Then at some point you know of free a lot a little.
In recent years I have gradually turned it around again: real focus. Brand strategy, with extra attention for online, innovation (lean startup) and sustainability.
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'I think the always inspiring and challenging (positive) to work with Gijs to work together'
Arjen de Jong
head of marketing, Iternity
'What an inspiring afternoon man. You are awesome.'
Erik van Haren
Owner, Mathplay
learnings
I have worked with the most diverse entrepreneurs, directors, program managers, project managers and online specialists. Big projects, small projects. Sometimes it went smoothly and sometimes it was tough. Learned a lot.
Here are some of my key learnings:
1. First things first (focused on a complex project with APG with Evan Gelders): I cannot emphasize enough how important it is to be critical of what you do in the first place and only secondarily how you do it. This has become an important principle in my life and in how I like to work. Lazy in thought and too industrious into the action. It's tempting, of course (completely Covey, indeed).
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2. Feedback is a gift (Valentine de Jong). No matter how difficult. Your radical honesty helps me more than your pat on the back.
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3. At high, it is of no use to you (Lodewijk van der Meer), it also comes down to domain knowledge and the details. As a generalist, manager, strategist or consultant, you at some point to become detached from daily practice. The systems, the workplace, the people and tools that determine the context. Practical knowledge of this is essential and this sometimes takes discipline. So you have to be able to zoom in and out to give good advice.
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4. Be who you are (thanks to Willemijn Prins, among others): your identity is the starting point for your future appearance. So not the opportunities in the market, not just what 'your customer' want and especially not 'the trends of 2019'. Then we look at your dream customer.
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5. Try not to be so annoyingly complete MAN (Erik de Frel): Yes, good point! Sometimes I go wild. I've learned - and now point out to others - that it makes no sense to tell the whole story at once. On the other hand, serious buyers usually want just a lot of information. Do suppress the tendency to current story to tell all the nuances and different perspectives at once. Oh, and use short sentences. Write for a 12-year-old (not Jip and Janneke!). That also seems to work best on Linkedin, for example. You become easier to pass on.
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psst. Do you think this is a lot of text?
Keep in mind the following.
The more value and information you can provide your customer, the more likely they are to buy from you
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Shlomo Trachtenberg
conversion specialist
Thank you!
Glad you made it all the way here! Does that mean we might agree need to talk further? You can also leave a message.
My approach is lean and mean, no long processes. I work with some online tools and proven models that will get you into action mode. Focus and clarity, so you can get going. Read more about my approach
you can call (+31) 06 24650260
mail also: Gijs@brandsinnovate.com
