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My Week: Ian Malone of We Are Apps

July 25, 2014 | 5 min read

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In the latest of a series of features from Drum Network member agencies, Ian Malone, managing director of We Are Apps provides an insight into a recent working week…

Monday

I try not to work weekends anymore so that I can get the work/life balance right, so Monday mornings are about getting back in the zone. My current favourite to-do tool, the Wunderlist app, tells me that I need to do a couple of quotes for clients.

One of the quotes is for an amazing creative idea for an ad agency working with an art NGO. It has taken me much longer than expected, as we need to work out the production complexities. The other quote, for a current client looking to build on their current app success is more straightforward but, as usual with apps, a lot of thinking still has to be done to make sure that what the client wants can actually be delivered.

As well as our client work we are developing a product of our own to take to market. It’s a proximity marketing solution called Geemo and the afternoon is dedicated to sitting down with Laura, the production manager, to make sure that the software development and marketing are going in the right direction. This is a very different skill set than the one I’m used to. Having spent 20+ years working in advertising and digital marketing as a creative director, where the ‘product’ is a new campaign every few weeks, I’m now crafting a real product month-after-month.

Tuesday

Another huge difference in my new life as a product maker is funding. So today I’m working from home to give me time and space to work on the business plan and investment decks. We are seeking £350,000 to start with and the amount of work involved is often daunting. However, I simply need to look at our target list of potential uses for iBeacon-led proximity marketing and focus is quickly restored. This is an unbelievable opportunity.

After a hefty day of number crunching and strategic planning I’m now off to ‘relax’ at the Centurions networking event at Century. I enjoy meeting people, even when there is no obvious business opportunity, so although it’s technically work, it doesn’t feel as such.

Wednesday

Last night’s event was very productive with many new contacts made. You never know with these things where it will lead. I once sat next to someone at a Drum awards night which, one way or another, led to me appearing on BBC Breakfast TV talking about retail technology.

Most of our work comes from recommendation so we rarely pitch for work in the traditional sense, but this afternoon saw a new business creds presentation going extremely well. Very often with new technology there is a sense of just doing something because a new technology means you can. I disagree with this – unless you can give the end user a measurable benefit to their lives a new technology may as well stay in the box. Thankfully, the creative agency we presented to shares this viewpoint and some pretty exciting projects could evolve.

Right now though I have to put the excitement to one side and pick up my kids from school. As well as running a dynamic start-up, I’m also a single parent for half of the week so now I need to switch from CEO to Daddy-o.

Thursday

Another day working from the kitchen table to ensure our funding efforts are on track. This is a very different ball game to responding to a client brief, where everything you are required to do is laid out in black-and-white.

My own skills are in developing ideas and how to implement them. Working out how many sales staff may be required in 18 months time, and remembering to allow for their recruitment fees and workstation costs, wasn’t taught when I attended the School of Communication Arts. However, I now realise that ‘entrepreneurialism’ should be a key part of the education syllabus. As so many young people are discovering, you are now more likely to create your own job than rely on one being available from an employer. The current crop of start up evangelists running around Silicon Roundabout in Shoreditch would do well to take their message directly to where it could make the most difference – schools in West Bromwich; universities in Norwich, and every other educational establishment in between.

Friday

A week with two days out of the office has seen the meetings stack up. We are a meeting-heavy company. I guess it’s what comes from working in new, experimental fields where there needs to be collaboration. But sometimes it can feel somewhat unproductive.

Fridays are always wrapped with a production catch-up so that I can see the client projects are running smoothly and step in where an issue has been identified. Luckily this week has been very smooth indeed which means we can stop talking shop and start talking orders at the bar. Being in the middle of Soho means there are lots of bars and pubs to choose from but we nearly always end up at the pub next door, the Dog and Duck in Frith Street. See you there.

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