Our Founder and CEO, David Reimherr was asked by The Mad Marketer to share some of the marketing insight he has picked up over the years. This is what he had to say.

The very best piece of advice that I have gotten during my career in marketing has been to always keep learning and never, ever think you know it all. I can’t credit this advice to one person, because I’ve heard it from so many great people. Instead, I’ll talk about some of the amazing people that I continue to learn from every day.

I still remember back when I was 24 years old and doing fairly well in my sales career, and literally saying, “I think I am in the top 5% of sales people in the country.” I am a little embarrassed to admit this, but it was where my head was at the time. I couldn’t have been more wrong.

To look back at what I was doing at that time, and how I was thinking- it’s laughable. So whenever any sort of similar thought creeps into my head these days, I always think back about that time and tell myself, there is always more to learn. And really, all I have to do is think back 2 or 3 years and see how much more I know.

This is advice I would give to anyone in any profession, but when it comes to marketing, I say you would be a fool to think you have it all down. In our industry, tactics, tools, the marketplace, best practices, new ideas etc… are changing and developing at such a rapid pace, that if you are not always on top of the latest information, you will be behind the game in 6 months. It’s a little daunting, but at the same time it’s very exciting. I know if I just keep consuming awesome advice these amazing experts, I will continue to gain a competitive edge on those that don’t share my passion for learning.

To add to this, step outside of the box and learn from people in different fields and different industries. I have learned so much from the likes of Richard Branson, Tony Hsieh, Bo Sacks & Daniel Pink amongst many others, that are not necessarily in my space, but I have been able to apply so many helpful ideas from their wisdom and life experiences. Always know that people who have been there and done that, have been there and done that!

In regards to my marketing field, I would like to share the biggest influences on my continuing education over the years, and many of whom I still learn from every day. A special shout out goes to Joe Pulizzi from Content Marketing Institute. Not only have I learned the ins and outs of content marketing from him and his awesome team, but from just watching how he lives his life and treats his employees, he has given me the blueprint of how to combine success with integrity, and not letting ego take you over. To stay with content marketing, a few other people that deserve mention are Marcus Sheridan From The Sales Lion, Andrew Davis, Jay Baer, Michael Brenner and Gini Dietrich (and if you haven’t taken the time to hear all these people speak, do yourself a favor and do so). A few other experts that have helped keep me on the cutting edge, are Michael Stelzner from Social Media Examiner, Ann Handley from Marketing Profs, Kevin Kneble, Alicia Lawrence From WebPage FX & Jon Loomer.

To close, I’d like to share some of the books I have read that helped me, some in the marketing field, and some not, but all worth the read.