Behind the Selfie Profile South Africa

#BehindtheSelfie with... Luke Peters

This week, we got behind the selfie with Luke Peters, CEO and founder of Gone Digital and the Gone Digital Academy, aimed at enhancing skills and resources in the media and marketing industry.
Peters captions this: “My golfing bucket list. #Scotland”
Peters captions this: “My golfing bucket list. #Scotland”

1. Where do you live, work and play?

Joburg, Cape Town and London.

2. Describe your career so far.

It's been one of learning and inspiration and enjoying the roles I have had. I’ve also been inspired by mentors that I seem to gravitate towards at each business where I have worked. I love to work in environments that involve passionate people. This has followed me around from where I started in travel and tourism through to being a media owner, then on the agency side and now as a business owner.

3. Tell us a few of your favourite things.

Travelling, Snow-skiing, golf, my kids – two girls.

4. Describe your average workday, if such a thing exists.

Typically, it starts at 6am, where I spend the first three hours of the day on the most important tasks ahead, touching base with my teams and setting us up for the day ahead. From there, it’s typically meetings and engaging with clients where possible. 4pm is typically the time I switch to ‘dad mode’ and spend time with my kids during daylight hours, doing things like reading, riding bikes and just hanging out with them. Once they're asleep, it’s a last clear out of emails and then settling down into a Netflix series.

5. What are the tools of your trade?

Solid Wi-Fi and an extended battery pack for my phone, which usually dies at 9:30am. I always say that I have a great smartphone but a dumb battery!

6. Who is getting it right in your industry?

I love to see businesses that work towards outputs. So the consulting firms really seem to get this right in my mind. In the media industry, I love to see how strong niche teams like Detonator Media and AdColony are working with clients.

7. List a few pain points the industry can improve on.

Too many agencies are still hung up about where you’re located and sitting in their office to get work done. This is so unproductive. I am all for teams that work together and being accountable for what they do, not where they are.
I’m also tired of businesses constantly saying that agencies need to be more creative or push the boundaries when they’re not willing to allocate sufficient budgets to this cause. It usually ends up with watered-down executions instead of something truly exciting.

8. What are you working on right now?

The launch of the Gone Digital Academy, the revised creds deck for our new markets, and how we expand our footprint further into the UK, which is a key territory for us.

9. Tell us some of the buzzwords floating around in your industry at the moment, and some of the catchphrases you utter yourself.

Guru. Ninja. Expert. Influencer. I’m not sure what buzzwords I use, but I’m sure my team would catch me out on this. I love playing buzzword bingo!

10. Where and when do you have your best ideas?

Driving in my car. Best times of my day!

11. What’s your secret talent/party trick?

Not being seen when I leave. [Ed: AKA ninja-bombing…]

12. Are you a technophobe or a technophile?

Technophile, but late adopter.

13. What would we find if we scrolled through your phone?

A plethora of kids’ games that I'm not allowed to play, or actually have any idea how to play.

14.What advice would you give to newbies hoping to crack into the industry?

You’re not entitled to anything so knuckle down, work hard, listen lots and treat every day like a teaching day.

Simple as that. Follow Peters on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, visit the Gone Digital Academy website, and follow Gone Digital on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.

*Interviewed by Leigh Andrews.

About Leigh Andrews

Leigh Andrews AKA the #MilkshakeQueen, is former Editor-in-Chief: Marketing & Media at Bizcommunity.com, with a passion for issues of diversity, inclusion and equality, and of course, gourmet food and drinks! She can be reached on Twitter at @Leigh_Andrews.
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