Hi, my name is Akber Khan, and I am the Marketing Director for Rutland Capital Partners.
My Quick Intro (1 min reading time)
Born and bought up in West London, I am trained and passionate in helping businesses grow by marketing their products and services on and offline.
I’ve learnt the long, hard way, how to grow a business the quick and easy way. It’s not as hard as some people make out.
I am Google Adwords and Analytics certified, married and have three young children.
More detailed bio (6 min reading time)
How I cut my teeth
In my early 20’s, I set up and ran an affiliate marketing business, growing it from a single product to over 100 in my first year. We were rocking! We did great for years, but I mismanaged my money, squandered valuable income on things my business didn’t need and eventually, reluctantly, had to close it down. I felt gutted, sad, upset, ashamed, all at the same time, but determined to learn from my experiences.
It was this exposure to marketing where I recognised how relevant advertising is, not only for local but for global businesses – I learnt how in the future, it will be an absolute necessity to a company’s growth, to sell your business’ products and services online, rather than an option. We have to evolve of we will be left behind.
From Radio Shack and Rumbelows in the ’90s (remember them?) to the more recent closures of MFI (Furniture and Kitchens), Borders (Books), Comet, Tie Rack, Blockbuster, Staples, Maplin, Poundworld, Toys r Us, BHS, Woolworths, Thomas Cook and Mothercare. These brands are gone, and they all failed to change their business model.
This is where innovation in marketing – creating marketing funnels, improving conversions, targetting your ideal clients, having an appealing value proposition, all make a difference to your survival.
Since that first business, my focus has been on specialising in paid online advertising, which has led me to work with many global brands ranging from high-end fashion to airlines to hotel groups and charities.
Working in these big industries, I’ve learnt not all businesses understand who their ideal clients are. Surprisingly, when I ask business owners who their perfect client is, they say random things like men. Or anyone. Or accountants. Or people that want to travel. That’s too random. In a world that tracks every move people make, it’s easy (if you can get to the data) to be much more specific.
Like, my ideal client is, a 55-year man, who is retiring within the next 2 to 5 years, lives in London, earns at least £40,000 per year and loves travelling.
My passion has always been in the field of marketing. Every business is different and has different ways of marketing. My experience has helped me to add value by recognising quickly what works and what doesn’t. Often the answer is to simplify the current system.
An example of this was when I helped a global serviced-office provider to reduce the process for its customers to get more information. This small action helped to triple conversions for the company and led to them hiring new staff to handle the customer enquiries.
Family Man
My father taught me that the one constant in life is family. I am blessed with a very supportive wife and three beautiful children that I learn from every single day. They are the source of my determination, and why I get up every morning. For this, I am grateful.