Andy McCaul is co-founder and managing director at The Bigger Boat, a Yorkshire-based integrated marketing agency.
Founded in 2010, The Bigger Boat expanded its services in June 2023 with the acquisition of Scriba PR, a B2B PR and communications agency.
With more than 20 years of experience marketing strategy and digital marketing, Andy McCaul shares all the lessons he’s learnt across his life and career so far…
Which single daily habit or practice could you not do without?
Exercise and breaks. With three young children on top of running a business, free time is a rare commodity. But you need to find it where you can, whether it’s a walk at lunch or a run after the kids go to bed. I find it helps reduce stress and improves decision-making.
What’s been your luckiest break?
Meeting my now business partners. I met Lee, The Bigger Boat’s digital director, stacking shelves in ASDA. At that point, we weren’t hatching a plan to start an agency – that came later when I left university and eventually figured out I loved marketing, particularly digital marketing.
After starting out in the print industry, I joined an agency and began working with Doug Main, our creative director. Lee had, by that point, become a web developer and we all started working together. It wasn’t long before we figured out we were good at what we did, and that we could do it for ourselves – rather than for someone else.
What’s your best failure?
At a similar time to establishing The Bigger Boat, we also set up an ecommerce business with some other partners. Although it eventually failed – mainly due to the cash needed to scale – we learned many lessons along the way.
When you run a business like that, you can test whatever you want whenever you want, with no complications. If you have an idea, run with it and see what happens. It accelerated our understanding of ecommerce and marketing this type of business. And when the marketing spend is your own money, you really focus on the return on investment (ROI). Things are very different when you have ‘skin in the game’, as the saying goes.
What is the best investment you’ve ever made, either financial or time?
Setting up The Bigger Boat. I’ve always likened it to having kids – there are amazing highs and a variety of challenges and struggles along the way. Of course, there’s more to worry about too. But I wouldn’t go back or change any of it. Lots of great things are hard work.
Which podcast or book would you recommend others to read and why?
The podcasts I listen to usually have nothing to do with work. My favourite podcast is Athletico Mince, which is utterly nonsensical and hilarious – the hallmark of the great Bob Mortimer. I generally listen to stuff that’s funny for a break because laughter is a great stress reliever.
I’m reading ‘The Illusion of Choice’ by Richard Shotton at the moment. It’s about psychological biases that influence what we buy. There are some great tips in there for marketers, especially for creatives and copywriters.
What one piece of advice would you give your 21-year-old self?
Stop messing about in the print industry and do that digital marketing diploma – it’s going to change your career.
Who or what has had the single biggest influence on your working life?
It’s a mix of different things along the way, from a good upbringing and education to early work experience all geared towards customer service and hard graft. I would say that the good people you work with in your early career can really help to shape you too. I was fortunate to work with some great organisers and some excellent client service people – both equally helped me.
But if I had to choose one, the biggest influence would be my family. My dad ran his own business, so when you grow up around that you’re exposed to the risk and rewards that come with it. You also learn it’s not a 9-5 job – my Dad would regularly take client calls on holiday. It wasn’t ideal but if a client needed urgent help, he’d do it. When running your own business, there’s a level of dedication required that you become accustomed to.
Tell us something about you that would surprise people.
When I was younger (a lot younger), I had my own decks – Technics 1210s, of course – and started DJing. For some unknown reason, I could naturally mix and taught myself how to do it in a few days. This was before YouTube existed, at a time when you figured stuff out for yourself.
I spent a lot of my student loan on vinyl, particularly 2000s house and trance. I was absolutely convinced this would be my career – until I got a job and realised I quite liked having weekends off and being able to hear properly.
If there was one thing you could change about your career, what would it be and why?
I would’ve started in marketing earlier, but I still would’ve gone to university. I wouldn’t change my degree in biology, as it turned out to be a brilliant foundation for digital marketing, believe it or not.
What does success look like to you?
Happiness – with the team producing great work for clients, they’re enjoying what they do and the clients trust us and stay with us. The quality of what we do is so important, but really, the outcome is happiness for everyone involved. You are at your best when you enjoy what you do.
