The name Sales and Marketing Engineers is for a reason, as I started my career in engineering.

As a teenager, I was obsessed with subatomic particles and physics - my heroes were Einstein and Tesla. I studied Engineering at university for four gruelling years, only to realise that was just one side of me. I started working in sales and marketing and discovered how much I enjoyed the social and creative side.

My first long-term job was at an exhibition company in South Africa, designing and selling exhibition stands, including some impressive ‘chipboard castles.’ When I moved to the UK, I stayed in the exhibitions sector at a company called Nimlok. It was great, but I craved a more creative role in digital marketing. I approached a local branding company, Storm12, and essentially sold myself into the company.

Storm12 excelled at creatives and websites, and I was fascinated by the analytics. I enjoyed experimenting with social media and SEO to optimise the website experience.

After eight years, I decided I wanted to explore my own path. I love working with smaller clients because you deal directly with decision-makers. It’s more rewarding than working with huge marketing teams that are disconnected from sales. Sales and marketing are intertwined, and that’s the essence behind Sales and Marketing Engineers. I’m passionate about helping smaller companies because they’re often time-poor, and I know I can make a difference.

I really enjoy learning and staying updated with new marketing and sales techniques. Marketing is evolving rapidly with tools like AI. It’s amazing what you can do with data, analytics and content. AI is a key future-proofing tool, and I believe AI recruitment will be huge. Companies will look for people with AI skills over traditional ones. Businesses will have virtual AI agents in their marketing teams, and they’ll need people to set that up.

I love understanding a company’s challenges and resources, and crafting strategies tailored to them. The pillars of any business are sales and marketing, operations, finance and HR. AI will blend into all of these areas.

Working for myself means the world is my oyster. The only barrier is me. I get the flexibility to work when I want, but ironically, I work harder than ever. The challenge is developing my own strategy while helping others with theirs. It’s not for the faint-hearted. There are risks and stressful moments. That’s why I surround myself with good people for support and advice.

After a few months, I realised I was getting more work than I could handle. When writing my business plan, I hadn’t prepared for a scenario where the business does better than expected? I had to quickly figure out who to partner and collaborate with.

If you are going solo, my advice is to plan for all scenarios. Be prepared in case you don’t get enough business, but also if you’re busier than expected? How will you scale?

Many people think of AI as just generating content and images, but that’s only the first level. You can create an AI board of directors! Traditionally, a company has a financial director, an operations director, a CEO, etc. With AI, you can train a platform to give you advice from the perspectives of these roles. You input your results and challenges, and each ‘board member’ can offer tailored advice.

It’s more of an opportunity. AI will create projects and jobs, transforming roles rather than causing an unemployment crisis. AI pushes us to be more strategic. For example, if you want a blog, you still need to provide the right information: ideal client profiles, competitive insights, etc. It actually demands more work to get better output.

Some fear AI will make us lazy, but innovations often create more work. It’s like when laptops first came out. They were supposed to save time, but we ended up getting more emails and more work. Better tools often lead to more work, but the output is higher quality. A small business might start with ChatGPT, then think, “How do I connect this to my CRM, database, email, etc.?” Once it’s all linked, they’re effectively running AI agents, and people who can build these will be in high demand.

We’re moving towards artificial superintelligence (ASI), but until then, AI is trying to find clean, quality data, which is not always there. Companies like OpenAI are creating synthetic data, which is better than web data, to train AI. The same principle applies to marketing strategy: without the right inputs, you won’t get the right outcomes.

Podcasts inspire me a lot, but early on, Apple was a major influence. They approached marketing differently. Instead of focusing on product specs, such as RAM size, they sought to inspire people. They would ask people to “Think Differently”. They prioritised user experience, creating products that felt intuitive and easy. Steve Jobs’ marketing principles were brilliant, and he focused on the “why” rather than the “what.”

What made Apple stand out was their attention to the human experience. Apple stores were revolutionary. Rather than being cluttered with endless product options, the stores were designed for customers to experience the products hands-on.

Steve Jobs had a vision for integrating technology seamlessly into everyday life, long before people realised its potential. His influence extended beyond products to the entire customer journey.

He got marketing involved at the product stage. Even though he was known for being a tough manager, his marketing genius was undeniable.

Sales and marketing have to work together. Marketing builds awareness and attracts potential customers, but sales is what converts them. You need both.

Marketing lays the groundwork by building trust, establishing credibility, and creating demand. But sales is where the human connection happens. People don’t buy just because they’ve seen an ad; they buy because of relationships, whether that’s through direct outreach, networking, or strategic follow-ups.

Too often, businesses treat sales and marketing as separate silos, but that’s a mistake. They should be integrated. Marketing teams need to understand the sales process, and sales teams need to appreciate marketing’s role in warming up leads. If they don’t align, you get a disconnect where marketing generates interest in people who aren’t ready to buy, and sales teams waste time chasing cold leads.

The best approach is a seamless handoff, so marketing brings in the right prospects, and sales nurtures and closes them. Companies that bridge that gap see much better results.

A business website should be more than just an online brochure. It needs to be a dynamic tool that actively generates leads. Many businesses put so much effort into getting traffic to their website but don’t focus enough on what happens once visitors land there.

B2B websites, in particular, often miss opportunities for engagement. The key is to create a structured pathway for visitors, what I call a ‘commitment curve.’ Instead of expecting a visitor to go straight to the contact page, businesses should have steps in place to guide them through the process. This could be offering valuable resources like a free tool, a diagnostic quiz, or an industry-specific whitepaper in exchange for their details.

Using AI-powered tools like heat maps and conversion tracking can help businesses see how users interact with their site and optimise the experience. For example, if visitors are dropping off before completing a form, maybe the form is too long or not placed in the right position.

The best-performing websites have a balance between brand messaging and clear calls to action. There should be specific sections that address different customer types. A one-size-fits-all approach doesn’t work. If a company serves solopreneurs, mid-sized businesses, and enterprises, each audience needs a tailored experience.

It’s also important to follow up. Businesses often collect leads but don’t nurture them effectively. Automation tools can help ensure that once a lead is captured, so there’s a structured process in place to guide them toward becoming a customer.

I’m a big believer in networking, but I wanted to create an environment that feels more natural and fun. Too often, networking events feel forced, and people are just standing around, handing out business cards. That’s not how real relationships are built.

With padel networking, we bring people together in a different way. Padel is a fantastic sport, it’s easy to pick up, social, and fun. By playing together, people naturally connect and build trust. Then, after the game, we have time to network in a more relaxed setting.

This kind of event attracts like-minded professionals who want to enjoy themselves while making meaningful connections. It’s about breaking down barriers, having fun, and fostering genuine relationships. I’ve found that people leave these events feeling more engaged and open to doing business together.

If you're stepping out on your own in marketing, think about the key pillars of your business. You might be great at what you do, but if you don’t have a sales and marketing plan, you’ll struggle to grow. Many marketers can market for others but struggle to market themselves.

You should consistently invest time and resources into marketing, even when you're busy. A common mistake is neglecting marketing when client work picks up, then suddenly, you hit a quiet patch with no leads. Marketing should be continuous to keep your pipeline full.

Also, don't overthink things. Many marketers overanalyse and hesitate instead of just taking action. The most important thing is to get started and adjust as you learn.

Businesses ready to scale. Maybe they’ve got their operations sorted but lack a cohesive sales and marketing strategy. I love working with clients who are open to collaboration, eager to understand the “why” behind the strategies, and invested in their growth.

Sales and marketing aren’t things you can completely outsource as business owners need to be involved. I don’t just want clients; I want partners who are committed to making a difference.

My key focus is integrating sales principles into marketing, and vice versa. They’re not separate entities; they feed into each other. The sales funnel doesn’t stop at acquisition; client retention is just as important. Growing existing relationships fuels new opportunities. It’s about creating a continuous loop of value, both for businesses and their customers.