I'm a marketer, strategist, problem solver, community builder, husband, dad, mentor, volunteer... and probably a few other things depending on the day.

And almost all of those things have one thing in common:

People.

I've spent more than a decade working in marketing, sales, technology, hospitality, local business, and everything in between. But I've never really been fascinated by marketing for marketing's sake.

I'm fascinated by why people do what they do.

• Why they choose one business over another.

• Why some messages stick, and others disappear.

• Why we trust certain people and brands.

• Why we become fiercely loyal to the coffee shop down the street, a local business, a technology product, or even a community.

That's really what led me here.

Marketing is a people business.

I've worked with startups trying to find their first customers, established companies trying to figure out why their marketing isn't working anymore, technology companies building new products, local businesses trying to become part of their communities, and growth teams trying to make marketing and sales actually work together.

The tools have changed a lot along the way - SEO. Social media. Marketing automation. CRMs. MarTech. AI. (other buzzwords)

I've used all of them, but the tools aren't the interesting part.

The people are.

AI can help us research faster, analyze more information, automate repetitive work, and execute ideas at a scale that wasn't possible a few years ago. (See my webinar and workshop materials; I’ve presented on this a few times now.)

Someone still has to understand the customer, ask the uncomfortable questions, decide what is actually worth saying, and someone still has to care.

That's the kind of marketing I believe in.

My community

Community has always been a big part of my life. You'll find me involved in Calgary's technology and product communities, mentoring new marketers, volunteering with community organizations, supporting local businesses, helping organize events, or occasionally saying yes to something before I've figured out where I'm going to find the time.

I believe strongly that good communities don't just happen; people build them.

They network. They volunteer. They mentor. They advocate. They show up.

That philosophy has influenced the way I think about marketing too. Some of the most powerful marketing doesn't feel like marketing at all. It's an outside-the-box recommendation. A conversation. A local business remembering your name. Someone telling a friend, "You should talk to this person."

The most important people aren't clients.

They're my family… I'm a husband and a dad to two daughters, and they have probably taught me more about patience, communication, empathy, and perspective than any marketing book ever could. Building a career and a business while being present for my family has also changed the way I define success.

• I care about doing meaningful work.

• I care about helping organizations grow.

• I care about building things I'm proud of.

• Most of all, I also care about being there for the people who matter to me.

That perspective keeps me grounded, and it follows me into the way I work with clients, colleagues, and the people I mentor.

People have lives outside of the meeting we're sitting in; I think remembering that makes us better leaders, better marketers, and probably better humans.

And then there's coffee.

I've spent a surprising amount of my life around coffee.

I worked in restaurants and hospitality before my career moved deeper into marketing and technology, including several years with Starbucks, and coffee has always meant more to me than caffeine.

Coffee is where conversations happen. It's where I've met clients, caught up with friends, mentored young marketers, brainstormed ideas, worked through problems, and occasionally sat by myself trying to figure out what happens next.

Some of my best professional relationships started with:

"Want to grab a coffee?"

So if you've made it this far and you're wondering what working with me is actually like, that's probably a decent metaphor for it.

Let's talk about it. Bring your problems. Let’s have a coffee (or tea). We'll figure out what actually matters before we start trying to fix it.