In just 12 months, Harley Cannard grew a $100 business investment into an international Digital Agency hiring 20 staff and delivering over $50 million in new revenue to his clients.
So, when sharing insights about how to harness the power of digital to create business growth, you can be sure Harley Cannard is speaking from experience.
'I'm not one to brag, but my business is a great example to show how being short on start-up funds doesn't prevent you from building a successful business online'
Formerly a personal fitness trainer, Harley saw the enormous demand for Digital Marketing and eCommerce optimization coming. Yet no one could have foreseen the incredible advances and acceleration of digital investment the COVID-19 pandemic brought with it.
'In many ways, the COVID-19 pandemic acted as a tipping point, making online buying not just a preferable way to shop, but in some cases a necessary one'
'They say it takes 21 days to form a habit and since early March, the entire world's shopping behavior has shifted from the real world to the digital world'
Having personally achieved the kind of rapid success sought after by businesses looking to recover and reposition in the wake of these changes, Harley Cannard explains that time-in-market is as vital as investment levels.
'There's an enormous opportunity for businesses to scale, expand and take their message and brands to the world'
'Time is the ultimate teacher and by leveraging data and learning how your customer thinks and acts, you can quickly gain insight and use it to create a competitive edge'
'Digital accelerates everything so for each day you're in it, learning and adapting, you're gaining a valuable advantage'
'But the opposite is also true if your competitor is more active online and gaining valuable insights, that gap grows just as fast, but you're at the wrong end of it'
Cannard recognizes that while eCommerce and Digital Marketing has started to attract even greater attention from every industry, with it comes the demand for ever-higher ROI from limited budgets.
'The whole world saw how Amazon hired 100,000 new staff to cope with exploding order fulfillment and can see where the tide is turning, but most industries have been thrown sideways and revenues are suffering'
'And as more businesses start searching for an agency to partner with, new, inexperienced, and untested players will emerge – offering the world, but without the skills or strategies to deliver'
Recognizing the need to remain ever-sharp and at the bleeding-edge of knowledge and innovation, Harley and his team are constantly testing and experimenting with new growth strategies. At the height of COVID-19 in Australia, Harley took a range of sanitation products to market on a threadbare budget and cultivated sales reaching over $3,000 per day.
'One of our organization values is to be Always Optimising', says Cannard.
'Showing you walk the talk is the big differentiator in the digital space and we're committed to never resting on yesterday's wins to guarantee tomorrow's success'
