Andrew Cove

Andrew Cove is the digital marketing director at M3 Agency and has been in his current job for one month. He joined the team from SevenCapital to help drive M3's digital offering and client engagement with a specific focus on e-commerce sales, lead acquisition and marketing performance.

HOW DID YOUR COMPANY RESPOND TO THE CORONAVIRUS CRISIS? We went into full lockdown with both offices working remotely from home in March. During the first lockdown, M3 asked its client SDI Display to make the Albrighton and Birmingham offices Covid-secure and this involved screens, sanitising stations and reconfiguring desks to ensure social distancing.

HAS THE FALLOUT FROM THE PANDEMIC PRESENTED ANY OPPORTUNITIES? Businesses have turned to online solutions to make up for the fall in face-to-face interactions. As digital marketers, this means we are in high demand right now and we expect growth of digital marketing to accelerate quickly in 2021.

AND ANY CHALLENGES? Some clients have been hit harder through the pandemic than others and during the first lockdown we saw a lot of panic. Many turned all marketing spend off, which, on further consideration, was the wrong thing to do for those who could service clients well online.

HOW DO YOU GET THE BEST OUT OF YOUR STAFF? Having recently read the book Radical Candor, there are two things people need from their boss. Number one is to care personally and number two is to challenge directly. People are radically different and respond to praise or feedback in completely different ways. Knowing everyone at a deeper level and caring about these needs is very important to growth and trust between staff and ‘the boss’. I try to come to work every day with a positive attitude and that seems to rub off on people around me.

HOW MANY EMAILS DO YOU TEND TO GET IN A DAY, AND HOW MUCH TIME DO YOU HAVE TO READ THEM? Hundreds of emails. I’m on top of them all. No scroll is the goal, so archive once they have been dealt with.

HOW DO YOU HOPE YOUR COLLEAGUES WOULD DESCRIBE YOU? Happy and inspirational.

HIGHLIGHTS OF YOUR CAREER SO FAR? I’ve worked for two incredible companies. The first being Gymshark, where there was constant growth and incredible confidence in our mission and the second was SevenCapital where I was given so many opportunities to grow personally and work with the best people. I’ll always remember where I have been for the people I’ve worked with over the things I’ve achieved.

ANY PARTICULAR FAUX PAS OR EMBARRASSING MOMENTS IN YOUR CAREER YOU WOULD PREFER TO FORGET? It was during my first week at M3 - everyone was interested to get to know me being new to the team, so asked what my most played song of the year was on Spotify. I decided to play my most listened to track out loud without checking and it was ‘Man I feel like a woman’ by Shania Twain.

PET HATES? If you’re not 10 minutes early, then you’re late.

IF YOU COULD GO BACK AND GIVE YOUR YOUNGER SELF SOME WISE ADVICE, WHAT WOULD IT BE? If I was to put my career into a simple formula it would be: Skills + Attitude + Experience x Confidence = Progression

Always be ready to learn and become better at how you do things. Remain positive in your skills and treatment of others and generally experience comes along the way. The confidence part is key to the whole formula because sometimes you have to take risks and put yourself out there to take that next step in your career. Without confidence in yourself and your own ability, you are likely to fall into the inevitable trap of stagnation and not demanding the most you can from yourself.

HOW DO YOU RELAX AWAY FROM WORK? Exercise is key for me. I’m very energetic and without the gym it builds up without release. This makes me chaotic without being able to channel my energy.

WHAT DO YOU BELIEVE IS SPECIAL ABOUT THE BIRMINGHAM BUSINESS COMMUNITY? We live in a big city, but we make it quite small by being a community.

TELL US SOMETHING ABOUT YOU THAT MOST PEOPLE PROBABLY WOULDN’T KNOW. I make extensive lists on my phone. I probably have a collection of around 150+ notes, all of which I keep on top of and add to regularly. 

YOU CAN TAKE ONE BOOK, ONE FILM AND ONE CD ONTO A DESERT ISLAND – WHAT WOULD THEY BE? Book: Tony Robbins – Awaken the Giant; film: The Wedding Singer; CD: Hybrid Theory – Linkin Park

YOUR FIVE DREAM DINNER PARTY GUESTS, DEAD OR ALIVE? Nelson Mandela, Barack Obama, Dave Chappelle, Richard Branson and, last but certainly not least, my wife.

WHAT WOULD YOU CHOOSE TO EAT FOR YOUR LAST SUPPER? A single slice of crusty bread.