15 Agency Profile
Dax Callner Dom Thomas-Smith Rick Stainton
their objectives .” There it is : that ’ s why he is a strategy director , and I am not .
“ That ’ s being strategic . And my message to the amazing people at Smyle is , in your client interactions , ‘ Be consultative , give advice , and if you think they are doing something that isn ’ t going to work , tell them . Even if it results in less revenue for Smyle : tell them ’. This approach makes us a partner to the client with a shared responsibility for their objectives .”
Metrics that matter Dom Thomas-Smith has been at Smyle for the best part of 18 years , and now holds the position of managing director . As you would expect , he and Callner are on the same page when it comes to strategy , so ask him about metrics . “ We ’ ve seen so much data with digital this last year , clients are now able to know much more about their audiences and we believe there is the opportunity to bring this into physical . Our own in-house methodology , Metric , will be a major part of everything we do in the future ,” he says .
On differentiating the metrics between virtual and in-person experiences , Callner adds they aren ’ t always indicative of business results . Historically , it has been hard to articulate the meaning of in-person experience metrics . Does it need to be that way ? “ No , it doesn ’ t ,” he says .
“ Reiterating what Dom said , we ’ ve had so much data this last year , but they ’ re not always indicative of business results , it is useful because you can optimise an experience based on what the numbers are showing you ,” he adds .
In May this year , they launched ‘ Cycle ’, a new consultancy service that offers brands a methodology to accelerate sustainability through innovation and action .
It is available in two formats and the service takes a rounded view of events to deliver sustainable experiences . It evaluates the environmental impact of elements including the materials used , waste created , energy and water consumed , travel and transport involved .
They tell me Smyle ’ s 2025 sustainability goals are to reduce greenhouse gas emissions on internal operations by 50 %, as well as reducing GHG emissions by 30 % on all client work delivered . The agency also aims to minimise waste and replace all single-use materials with circular economy equivalents .
That really does take it to a new
“ Look at it like this : if a client knew what they wanted , why would they hire Smyle ? They are hiring us to give them our point of view on what they should do to achieve their objectives .” Dax Callner , Smyle
level .
The pair delve deeper into it , and it really is interesting , but perhaps I will let them share with you themselves if you fancy giving them a call .
These methods , though , have attracted new clients over the last year .
Thomas-Smith says : “ We ’ re so proud of our client retention . Many of whom [ some very familiar household names ] have been with us for 8 , 9 , 10 years plus . But this last 18 months , as brands have been looking for innovative ways to engage their audiences , we ’ ve taken on around 20 new clients , and some of them are planning big all the way into 2022 .”
That ’ s music to my ears .
From the top By Stainton ’ s own admission , I didn ’ t need to speak to him at all , since his team of experts gave me all I needed and more . In fact , I ’ m going to have to run an extended version of this feature online as there is far more to tell .
But Stainton wants to make one thing clear to me : that the credit of the agency ’ s success goes to the team , and not himself or the board .
“ We employ the best people , and we find ourselves learning from them ,” he says . “ We are part of a bigger strategic mission , and I really do believe that Smyle is an aspirational career destination for so many people in our sector . We currently have 35 job vacancies open for a range of roles , and that ’ s testament to the growth we are currently seeing .”
And so it does . It was a fascinating experience , almost novel , to meet the team in person , and I look forward to sharing with you some of their projects . I left with a Smyle on my face . www . conference-news . co . uk