Charly Gillespie-Smith

Final Prep for my talk tomorrow for The Agency Collective | B Corp Certified New Business Clinic LIVE 3 things we’re going to cover: 1. How to become a Master at Lead Nurturing 2. How to genuinely embody your industry’s Authority 3. How to run profitable new launches every single month These 3 strategies together form The Thought Leader Funnel - and it’s the process we leverage for our clients, which has led to: → John signing his biggest ever retainer at $20k/month → Henrik breaking the ‘losing pitch cycle’ and selling intro workshops for £20k+ → Phil winning $150k worth of business in month 1 of launching And plenty of other clients booking meetings with the likes of: Unilever, SAP, Pizza Express, Roche, Electrolux and many more… If you want to join us, I’ve got 25% off tickets… Use the code: NBLODL25 Book on the link below: https://lnkd.in/eHC7G5pW And see you there 👊

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Virtually all food & drink businesses don't send enough emails. You're guilty of this right? This leads to two guaranteed outcomes, 1️⃣ you are missing out on sales 2️⃣ you're slowing down the time it takes for people to understand more about your business and products What's stopping you? Usually, it’s one of two things: 1️⃣ Design pressure – You feel everything needs to be perfectly polished. 2️⃣ Time constraints – You keep putting it off, often because you're spending too much time sat pondering why sales aren’t higher. 💡 Here’s how to fix it: 1️⃣ Forget perfect design. Focus on the basics: - A clear headline (e.g. 30% off for BFCM). - A relevant image to grab attention. - Simple copy - clear, direct, and to the point (don't worry about being a 'good' writer or being funny... if struggling, just stick to writing a simple explainer) [image below is an example of focussing on the basics] 2️⃣ Set up automated email flows. - Flows work 24/7 to engage customers, often when they’re most ready to buy. - They’re the secret to growing sales without having to manually create campaigns every week. -- Sending manual campaign emails is something that regularly slips (I'm totally guilty of this for Bloody Bens - my Bloody Mary drinks biz) --- Automated flows are the remedy. This approach helped me: ▶ Grow one brand where email drove 50% of total sales. ▶ Take another from 8% to 27%. ▶ Boost another to 30%. -- that's a lot of otherwise missed revenue and customers, who would have lapsed, won back. ▶ and, if you're wondering, for Bloody Bens right now, email represents 37% of sales. --- 👋 I’m Ben, founder of On A Plate Growth Agency. I help food & drink brands grow DTC sales through effective email strategies, from start-ups to those doing £50k a month on Shopify. 💡 Want to learn more? 1️⃣ Join my free online workshop on 28th Nov, 11am-12pm (only 5 spots available). 2️⃣ Book a free 1-2-1 email optimisation session (worth £400) - offer ends Jan. ▶ DM or email [email protected] to grab a spot or book a session.

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Our agency will produce 5k+ UGC ads over Q4 Here's the Internal UGC Creator brief we'll use for every ad: Briefing creators used to be a huge headache for us: → Countless hours spent on back and forth messages → Content coming back low quality → Lots of reshoots with many shots being missed However, earlier this year we completely redesigned our brief template to solve all of the above problems, which changed the game for how many UGC ads we can produce each month. And today I'm giving away our internal UGC brief template for 100% free. It has everything: ✅ Brief overview ✅ Brief guidelines ✅ Step-by-step shot descriptions ✅ Filming checklist for creators ✅ Reshoot instructions (if necessary) ✅ All shot types explained ✅ All audio types explained ✅ Section explaining how we make ad variations ✅ And a lot more ... If you want access, all you need to do is: 1. Connect with me Ciaran Finn 2. Like this post and comment ‘UGC' below And I’ll send the UGC brief template straight over. — Feel free to repost if you find it valuable to help someone in your network with their Facebook ads ♻️

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I love it when brands do sexy PPC. Great example here of using: 1️⃣ Audience data 2️⃣ Location data 3️⃣ Copywriting skills To make their ad relevant and effective. Reminding me (a customer) that I don’t need to use Splitwise Inc. when I have Monzo Bank! The use of site links, that are relevant and enticing is a fantastic touch. Great example of how even a fairly dry subject, can be a chance to upsell your customer. The only way to stand out on the SERP is an effective ad - don’t forget that!

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These are the 6 things I always look at when reviewing a piece of performance UGC 👇 ✅ Hook ✅ Product to frame ✅ Benefits/USPs ✅ Reviews/Credibility ✅ Outro ✅ Length If you are ticking all of these boxes and regularly working on iterations of the top performers, you're already ahead of the curve 👏 #paidmedia #meta #tiktok #ugc

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The phenomenal Laura Cazabon from Star Digital is running Social Media Thursdays again next Thursday 22nd August. If you have ever asked yourself "which social media platform is the most effective for reaching my specific target audience, and how can I leverage it to maximise engagement?" "How can I create and implement a social media strategy that aligns with my business goals and increases sales?" "What are the best practices for creating content that resonates with my audience and drives more interaction on platforms like Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn?" Then sign up here for clear and impactful, expert advice: https://lnkd.in/eGfXejem

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I've worked with 50+ investment companies on lead-gen. 90% struggled with passing ad regulations. Here's 3 tips to ensure that your ads pass: 1. FCA - Google Ads to the UK need an FCA number - If you don't have one, run campaigns overseas to English speakers Want an up-to-date list on which countries you're allowed to target? ↳ Message me 'COUNTRY' and I'll send the top-performers over. 2. Ad content - Ads are not allowed to be misleading - Don't advertise any guarantees that you can't fulfill - Your content must be correct to your services/ products 3. Compliance - If you have a compliance team, have them sign ads off - Train them up on the FCA advertising regulations Following the FCA regulations is so important. Use the tips above to keep yourself out of trouble.

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Can social save advertising? There’s a lot of talk in the industry right now about the death of advertising, people hate ads so much they pay money to avoid them, people that work in advertising are seen as satan's spawn and as a generalisation, ads are generally just getting more yawns than laughs In short the advertising industry has an advertising problem And at first glance it seems like social media is just piling more bodies onto that grave There’s a terrible sickness, an obsession with short-termism, sell sell sell, rational performance marketing, big data, targeting, an overuse of left-brained thinking (as System1's Orlando Wood puts it) But there’s another side of social which has been emerging over the last 4 years which could well be advertising's saviour It’s entertainment, it’s TikTok skits, it’s emotion, it’s Ryanair’s self-deprecating tone of voice, it’s companies spending money on advertising because it just works and not because it delivers an ROI of 10X, it’s investors taking the 5 year view, it’s making a 6 second ad that actually moves you So to answer my own question, yes social can save advertising. #socialmedia #social #advertising #marketing #branding #brand #performancemarketing  

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Your brand will be hit with a hidden tax this BFCM. Black Friday & Cyber Monday (BFCM) margins for the average UK brand can fall to 0.5 - 3.5% - and while retention is the best way to offset that, it's not the point of this post. 0.5 - 3.5% is an insanely thin margin of error. Priced in of course, is the 2-6% you'll pay in payment fees for each sale. Let’s break it down: For every £1M in BFCM sales, you could be losing £20,000-£6,000—all going to card companies, wallets and BNPL providers. Imagine how much more risk you could offset, and how much more value you could offer your customers with that money - making you far more competitive this BFCM. In a time when every penny counts, tackling payment fees head-on can make a big difference. Don’t let hidden fees eat into your profits this BFCM. Act now to protect your margins and make this holiday season a win for your brand. Payment fees are dead, and Fam (Techstars '24) has killed them. 

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High performing TikTok content = NATIVE CONTENT 📈 And the same goes for your Calls To Action. We analysed the top performing organic posts across all our clients + influencer campaigns and they ALL had one thing in common… No CTA. Does this shock you? Because it didn’t shock me at all, but every other agency owner/TikTok employee I told was gobsmacked. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, people HATE being told what to do. It’s like being told to do the dishes when you’re just about to do them anyway (a personal loathe). As you add a CTA it automatically becomes about selling a product rather than someone authentically sharing content…. I’ll say it again: As soon as you add a CTA, it becomes about selling a product rather than someone authentically sharing content. And TikTok is ALL about authenticity, as we know. When you’re used to building highly coveted, exclusive and trendy brands on TikTok, you get to know the damaging effect that poor brand positioning can have. The use of CTA’s instantly aligns a brand with creators, content and other brands that would send our clients into a coma if they became associated with them. Taylor Swift wearing a dress is cool. Taylor Swift wearing a dress with a ‘buy now’ button is not. Do you think that the overt CTA still has a place in modern social media marketing? Let me know your thoughts in the comments. #tiktokmarketing #tiktokads #tiktokagency P.S. We know social 🐐. We have a proven track record of building brands through comprehensive creator marketing strategies and then scaling through paid social adverts. Currently have availability in Q3 2024 for brands looking to win on TikTok 🥊 

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Calculating rate cards for your agency isn't difficult but it needs some logic, understanding if the how and some basic information To be as accurate as possible you need the below: - list of staff with salary, job title, FTE % - utilisation data for each staff member for as long as you can - agency recovery data - actual or preferably budgeted overheads for the year - ability to use a spreadsheet (preferable Google sheets!) If you have this you have everything you need to at least calculate what they could be. It doesn't mean you can sell at those amounts, but with the data you will be able to price more strategically, knowing where margin is higher etc If you need help calculating your rate cards please get in touch. #ratecards #agencyfinance #finops

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I've worked on 60 Black Friday campaigns (yes, sixty 😳). Here’s a FREE cheat sheet that’s helped brands: 1. Maximise sales in Q4 2. Navigate sky-high CPMs 3. Squeeze every bit of value out of their ad spend Inside, you’ll get: ✅ Mobile optimisation tricks ✅ CRO hacks that actually work ✅ Proven techniques to boost conversions ✅ Real-world strategies for surviving the Black Friday chaos ✅ Urgency tactics that drive clicks (without annoying customers). Plus: 💫 Bonus tips on holiday ad creative 💫 Insights on what NOT to do this season 💫 A checklist for last-minute Black Friday prep Want to see it? Just: 1️⃣ Follow Jalpesh Patel on LinkedIn 2️⃣ Comment ‘BF GUIDE’ And I’ll zap you over the link! Let’s make this your best Black Friday yet. 🚀✨

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🚨 Important Update for TikTok Shop UK Sellers! 🚨 Starting in September, the platform fee will be increasing from 5% to 9%. While this may come as a surprise, there’s also some good news! By completing specific requirements such as creating engaging videos and going LIVE on TikTok, you can qualify for a reduced platform fee. 🎥 This change is part of TikTok's effort to encourage brands and sellers to be more active and creative on the platform. Now is the time to leverage these tools and grow your presence on TikTok Shop! 📈 Stay ahead of the game by embracing these opportunities and continue to captivate your audience. 🚀 #TikTok #TikTokShop #eCommerce #UK

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Next in our 'Intro to TikTok Shop' series is everything you need to know about order fulfilment in the UK. Get to know - Your 3 fulfilment options - How to qualify for Fulfilment by TikTok (FBT) - FBT service costs - How to weigh up the pros and cons of each option

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In November, we generated 9.1M organic views on our Instagram account @artworth_brothers. Here’s what we learned 📱Reels Dominate Engagement With 91.5% of our views coming from reels, it’s clear that short, engaging video content is where the audience’s attention lies. Investing in visually captivating reels pays off significantly in terms of reach, interaction and follower growth. 📈Consistency is Key Consistently publishing content keeps the algorithm working in your favor. Regular posting not only builds momentum but also signals to the platform and your audience that your account is active and relevant. At Artworth we post 1-2 times per day. 👥Know Your Audience Understanding what resonates with your audience is crucial. By analyzing which types of content generate the most interactions, you can refine your strategy to deliver exactly what your followers want to see. 🎣Strong Hooks Drive Views Capturing attention within the first few seconds of a reel is critical. Analyze the "views over time" and "view rate past first 3 seconds" metrics of published reels and implement leanings into new videos. 📊Data-Driven Decisions Lead to Growth Regularly reviewing metrics like views, interactions, and follower demographics allows you to make informed decisions about future content. Data insights turn guesswork into strategy, leading to more impactful outcomes. 👉To our Instagram account: https://lnkd.in/eMeCfUmC

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More and more people are launching businesses as an influencers. It can be very lucrative but there are lots of legal pitfalls too. Read our free guide to setting up as an influencer to find out more https://lnkd.in/etUtdhbH #Influencers #InfluencerMarketing #SocialMedia

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