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What are the best agency podcasts to follow in 2019? We’ll share 13 of our favorite podcasts for agency founders and leaders in 2019.
As an agency leader, you can't afford to be behind the curve. You have to keep one eye glued firmly to the future to serve your clients better. At the same time, you have to constantly innovate and improve your operational practices.
One of the best ways to stay ahead of the curve is to know what the thought leaders in the creative industry are doing.
And the best way to do that is through podcasts.
As plenty of others have pointed out, we're in the "golden age" of podcasting. There are more podcast listeners than ever - 73 million in the US alone - and they have an increasingly larger library of podcasts to listen to (over 660,000).
With such a vast library, finding the right podcasts can be a challenge. So in this post, I’ve compiled a detailed list of the best agency podcasts online right now. This includes podcasts meant specifically for agency leaders, as well as business and marketing podcasts.
1. Agency Trailblazer Podcast
Host: Lee Jackson
Website: AgencyTrailblazer.com
Forget the fluff and platitudes that often accompany most "thought leadership" content. This podcast is all about actionable insights.
Featuring agency consultants, owners, and top executives, the Agency Trailblazer podcast is focused firmly on helping small agencies grow. From acquiring leads to building recurring revenue, each episode deals with a practical aspect of agency growth.
Each weekly episode runs for about 30-35 minutes. With over 197 episodes already in the can, there is a lot you can learn from.
Favorite episodes:
- How storytelling benefits business with Jody Maberry
- How to develop a personal brand with Nicole Osborne
2. Smart Agency Masterclass
Host:
Jason Swenk
Website: JasonSwenk.com
Jason Swenk’s popular agency podcast has been around since the beginning of 2015 and covers everything from content creation to agency team management. Instead of the usual interview format, Swenk's podcast includes both solo shows and traditional interviews.
What makes this podcast a must-listen is Swenk's background as the founder and CEO of an agency for over a decade. Swenk brings his own experience to the table, besides the expertise of his guests. He mostly covers topics that help growing agencies scale to the next level.
Favorite episodes:
- Are You Self-Sabotaging Your Agency’s Sales & Growth?
- How One Agency Doubled Revenue Every Year for 5 Years
3. Build a Better Agency
Host:
Drew McLellan
Website: AgencyManagementInstitute.com
Agency veterans (and keen-eyed readers of this blog) would be familiar with Drew’s name. As the founder of AMI, Drew has been a leading voice in the industry for years. This podcast is an extension of AMI’s mission to help you, well, build a better agency.
Spanning over 175 episodes, this long-running podcast tackles the operational aspects of agency life. Topics covered include figuring out processes and automation, managing traffic, and business taxes. Apart from a few solo shows, most episodes follow the usual interview format with guests such as Brendon Craigie of Tyto and Daniel Lemin, author of “Talk Triggers”.
Add this to your listening library if you want to optimize your operations and learn best practices from agency leaders around the world.
Favorite episodes:
- The Location Agnostic Agency with Brendon Craigie
- Purpose-Filled Recruitment and Retention with Steve Lowisz
4. The Digital Agency Show
Website: uGurus.com
This podcast makes its mission clear in its title itself: to help agency owners "transform their business mindset to increase prices, work less, and grow profits".
While the podcast does cover the operational aspects of agency life, most episodes talk about the mindset behind building a successful agency. This includes some fantastic episodes on topics such as "overcoming shyness" and "balancing creativity and business", alongside more conventional how-to content.
Episodes tend to be slightly long, running into 40-50 minute range. With nearly 100 episodes in the bag, there's a huge library of insight you can learn from.
Favorite episodes:
- Building A Strong Pipeline Of Clients with Philip Morgan
- The Magic Of 80/20 with Perry Marshall
5. Making Marketing
Website: Digiday.com
Most of you reading this likely have Digiday right near the top of your daily reading list. As one of the most popular publications in the creative industry, Digiday often defines the paradigms for the future of marketing.
Making Marketing is Digiday's podcast for the industry. Meant for "grown up" agencies and creatives handling large accounts, this podcast focuses largely on thought leadership. You might not learn how to build an agency from scratch, but you will learn why the ad-driven model doesn't work today, and why few companies will take advertising in-house.
If you work in a large agency or handle large accounts, this should be a must-listen podcast in your library. Episodes tend to be relatively short (between 20-30 minutes) and most guests tend to be top agency execs.
Favorite episodes:
- How to build great digital products with Paul Ford
- The advertising agency business is not growing with Mike Sheldon
6. Agency Highway
Host: James Rose
Website: AgencyHighway.com
Although it's one of the youngest podcasts on this list, Agency Highway has quickly racked up a loyal following thanks to its mix of motivational and informative content. Hosted by James Rose, co-founder of ContentSnare, this podcast targets smaller agencies looking to fast-track their growth.
Given this audience, most topics are focused on helping early-stage founders bring rigor and operational excellence to their agencies. You'll learn things such as onboarding clients, building a strong agency brand, or productizing your agency.
Most episodes tend to run around 40 minutes with guests from smaller agencies and consultancies.
Favorite episodes:
- Building a brand for your agency with Ryker Taylor
- Find solid partners for outsourcing and referrals with Chris Castillo
7. THRIVE: Your Agency Resource
Host: Kelly Campbell
Website: workamajig.com/thrive
Does the THRIVE name sound familiar?
Of course, it does!
THRIVE is Workamajig's supported podcast hosted by Kelly Campbell. Although it's relatively young with just about 40 episodes in the can, Thrive tackles some of the biggest issues concerning agencies right now. This includes finding alternative agency partnership models, disqualifying agency prospects, bridging contractual gaps, etc.
Partly motivational, partly operational, this is a great podcast to build up your agency knowledge. You'll learn how to streamline operations, win new business, and change your mindset. Episodes are twice a month and feature guests from medium to large-sized agencies.
Favorite episodes:
- What is Compassionate Management with Rena DeLevie
- The Power of Positioning with David C. Baker
8. Inbound Agency Journey
Hosts: Andrew Dymski and Gray MacKenzie
Website: ZenPilot.com
ZenPilot's Agency Journey is focused on helping inbound marketing agencies scale their businesses through better processes and operational rigor. As narrow as this focus might sound, it has some great takeaways for agencies of all shapes and sizes.
This podcast has been around since 2015 and the hosts, Andrew Dymski and Gray MacKenzie, are recognized leaders in the inbound marketing space. Moreover, they both have prior agency experience, which helps them bring unique insight to the way agencies market themselves.
While a lot of podcasts talk about growth, few focus on using process-driven inbound channels to accelerate sales. This alone makes Agency Journey one of the best agency podcasts in 2019.
Favorite episodes:
- Vertical Specialization and Agency Podcasting with Spencer Powell
- The Flywheel Model and Service as a Growth Center with Moby Siddique
9. The Creative Agency Podcast
Hosts: Chris Bolton
Website: CreativeAgencyPodcast.com
Although it hasn’t been updated this year, the Creative Agency Podcast is still a great repository of knowledge. As the name implies, this podcast is focused on creative agencies. Most guests either run their own creative agencies or have prior experience working in one.
Topics tackled include hiring new employees (a constant issue for creative agencies), cultivating a creative culture, and creating a content strategy. The episodes tend to be infrequent - 2018 saw just 6 episodes - but they’re all quality. The host, Chris Bolton, also brings his experience as the strategy director of Murmur Creative to the table.
Use this podcast not to know what’s current in the creative industry but to master proven best practices from other agencies.
Favorite episodes:
- Cultivating a Creative Culture with Justin Dauer
- Stop Scope Creep with Karl Sakas
10. Gravity - The Digital Agency Power Up
Hosts: Bob Gentle
Website: BobGentle.com
New to the agency business and need some guidance? Started a new agency recently and struggling to scale? Jumping from part-time to full-time consulting work?
This new podcast answers all such questions. Rather than medium and large-sized agencies, Gravity's focus is on helping new entrepreneurs and agency founders grow their business.
You won't learn how to manage six-figure accounts, but you will master capturing leads from YouTube, how to build niche expertise, and use live video for sales - valuable advice for a new founder.
Favorite episodes:
- Self-leadership & success as an inner game with Kelly Baader
- How and why to niche in a single vertical market with Joe Burnich
11. LTV
Hosts: Kyle Racki
Website: Proposify.com
Formerly called 'Agencies Drinking Beer', and later, 'Biz Chat', LTV is the latest iteration of Proposify's podcast. Although its focus has shifted beyond agencies to cover businesses of all shapes and sizes, this podcast still offers fantastic growth insight for digital agencies.
Proposify's target audience includes a lot of smaller agencies. This has given the founder and host, Kyle Ricki, substantial insight into the agency business. Kyle brings this insight to the podcast, along with A-list guests.
Topics range from using competitive intelligence software to understand your market to creating a story for your brand. Newer episodes are focused more on product entrepreneurs, but you can still revisit older Agencies Drinking Beer episodes (all 71 of them) for some fantastic insight.
Favorite episodes:
- How Core Values Make for Better Business Decisions with Brad Flowers
- The Power of a B2B Podcast to Put $1M in Your Pipeline with James Carbary
12. The Businessology Show
Hosts: Jason Blumer
Website: Businessology.biz
The businessology podcast is unique in the creative agency landscape in that it doesn't have a creative or entrepreneur as its host. Rather, it is hosted by Jason Blumer, a CPA who works with agencies.
This unique background helps Jason bring a fresh perspective to the agency business. Sure, you'll learn how to get new clients and build a brand, but you'll also learn about the accounting and taxation issues agencies so often overlook.
Some of our favorite topics include allocating equity, exploring pricing, and building an agency team. Episodes are monthly and go all the way back to 2013.
Favorite episodes:
- Agency Team Building with Mickey Mellen
- Becoming Experts in a Niche with Jason Pontius and Tonya Moyle
13. Working Without Pants
Hosts: Jake Jorgovan
Website: Jake-Jorgovan.com
Jake Jorgovan, the host, is the founder of LeadCookie, a B2B sales prospecting company with no offices and a 100% remote workforce.
As such, Jake's podcast targets similar businesses: consultants and small agencies that want to attract customers without compromising on their core values. You might not learn how to close Fortune 50 brand accounts on it, but you will learn how to build a community or run a LinkedIn outreach campaign.
All topics, of course, stay true to the title of the podcast - to work from anywhere.
A must-listen for solopreneurs and small agency founders.
Favorite episodes:
- Building a content marketing agency with Say Gabriel
- Transitioning from agency to SaaS owner with Mike McDerment
This covers just the tip of the podcasting iceberg, of course. There are thousands of other podcasts covering everything from inbound marketing to design and business operations.
These 13 podcasts, however, offer agency founders a great deal of insight into building better agencies. Some are meant for solopreneurs, and some are for agencies with 100+ employees. Regardless of your agency size or type, there is something you can learn from them.
To unlock even more value from your agency, try switching to a management system that is designed specifically for agencies, like Workamajig.