Hi, I'm Gary.
I've spent nearly twenty years sitting in rooms with agency founders trying to work out why growth feels harder than it should. Different agencies. Similar patterns.
Where the observations came from.
Different specialisms. Different sizes. Different founders.
Since 2007, I've worked directly with hundreds of B2B and B2C agencies across almost every marketing discipline.
I've helped develop, and deliver, thousands of growth strategies for founder-led agencies, specialist independents and global networks.
Different specialisms. Different sizes. Different founders.
Surprisingly similar commercial challenges.
The same conversation, repeated hundreds of times.
Different agencies. Similar patterns.
The same conversation. Repeated hundreds of times.
Less interested in tactics. More interested in patterns.
Over time, I've become less interested in individual tactics and more interested in the patterns beneath them.
Why do some agencies consistently create momentum while others seem trapped in cycles of stop-start growth?
Why do some founder-led businesses become less dependent on the founder over time, while others become more dependent?
Why is great work often necessary, but rarely sufficient?
Why do some agencies stay visible and relevant while others gradually fade from the conversation?
And why do the same commercial challenges keep appearing across completely different agencies?
Betterly exists because those questions became more interesting than the tactics themselves.
Different disciplines. Similar commercial questions.
- Creative & Media
- PR & Corporate Communications
- Social, Content & Influencer
- Brand, Packaging & Design
- Shopper & Retail Media
- Performance, SEO, PPC & AIO
- Digital, CX & Transformation
- Adtech & Martech
- Experiential, Events & Production
- Founder-led boutiques
- Independent agencies
- Multi-office groups
- Global networks
Agencies with five people. Agencies with five thousand.
Different disciplines. Similar commercial questions.
A few things I've learned.
- 01
I ask a lot of questions.
- 02
I trust patterns more than playbooks.
- 03
Insights are easy to find, but hard to use well.
- 04
Context does more heavy lifting than volume.
- 05
Personalisation beats generalisation.
- 06
Most growth problems show up in the pipeline long after they've started.
- 07
Great work helps. It just rarely does all the commercial heavy lifting on its own.
- 08
For all the changes in technology, platforms and channels, people still seem remarkably keen on buying from people.
- 09
Nearly every growth story looks obvious in hindsight, but painfully slow while it's happening.
Outside work.
Outside work you'll usually find me training for my next marathon (slowly), writing a fantasy novel (more slowly), painting miniatures, or listening to history podcasts.
I also have three children and four cats.
Of all these, I have two favourites.
I'm not saying which.
Time Magazine Person of the Year, 2006.