Anyone lucky enough to have the insult “a jack of all trades” thrown at them will also be plastered with the stigma that it’s somehow a bad thing to be a handy, versatile, multi-dimensional, collaborative, student of life.Wait... Shouldn't that be something that's celebrated?

The original phrase was not intended to be an insult and has since been diverted from the original intention towards a more negative connotation. The original phrase was intended as a compliment to a playwright who was found hanging around the theatres in his early years. He would always play a role in helping with the stage, the set, and the costumes. He would remember lines and try directing.

This so-called jack of all trades was in fact, William Shakespeare. The full phrase is “a jack of all trades is a master of none, but oftentimes better than a master of one.” It was a compliment.

While a master of a trade is indisputably a highly skilled and highly valuable member of our society there is certainly a place for those who can become versatile and lend a helping hand in various shapes and forms. In fact, that place is deep-routed in entrepreneurship.

How is being a jack of all trades beneficial to entrepreneurs?

If you’re a jack of all trades, typically you’re able to take your destiny into your own hands. If you find yourself in a situation where you can’t progress much further from where you are, you’re more likely to learn the skills required to accomplish the task. That very nature is innately what entrepreneurship is all about.

If you’re someone who’s a jack of all trades you may also be someone who subscribes to the “done is better than perfect” mentality. This is another key resource that entrepreneurs leverage in almost everything they do.

That’s certainly not to say that we shouldn’t strive for perfection with your work, but if you’re at a crossroad where you can either spend 30 hours to make something perfect or spend 30 hours to make 3 items acceptable, you’ll almost always go further by completing 3 tasks to an acceptable level. You can always revisit them at a later date to further optimise and refine it all.

If you’re someone who can handle the responsibility of multiple roles, especially when you’re the founder, you’ll be able to go further before enlisting the help of specialists. Which, may I remind you, comes with a price tag!

Why do you want a jack of all trades in your business?

If you’re looking for your next hire, maybe consider a jack of all trades. These types can always bring a unique dimension to meetings by drawing analogies between verticals and helping by asking important questions from all angles. After all, success comes from the answers to the important questions.

Some roles actually NEED you to be a jack of all trades. For example, in marketing, if you’re not able to leverage a range of marketing techniques you’ll be bound to the limitations of what you’re capable of. I’m sure I don’t need to explain why that’s not healthy for startup life.

And sticking with digital marketing, a fast-paced, never resting and always-changing landscape, you need someone who can move with the trends and adapt to the times.

Why do digital marketing campaigns need to be diverse?

If you think about your own digital marketing. You may be engaged in social media posting, blog writing, and maybe even running some ads. But unless you’re doing all the right things in the right order at the right level of quality, you won’t be able to pull any meaningful return from it. And while I really don’t want to dishearten you, this is the harsh reality.

Allow me to explain using an example: Let’s say we have a new handbag company with an awesome line of products ready to hit the market! It’s not enough to have the best products, they’ve still got quite a few things to tackle before they can consider their marketing campaign a success.

To list a few we’re looking at; product photography, building a website, social media posting, email marketing, and online advertising. And that’s just the non-negotiable must-haves.

We haven’t even looked at SEO, influencer marketing, or graphic design for digital assets such as promotional brochures/leaflets!

Wouldn't it just be ideal to be able to hire one person that could take care of all of it?

This is exactly why we’ve crafted our subscriptions to the sound of this song.

Why is Qwerty Digital a jack of all trades?

With all of the points above, comes a big fat honking “YES WE CAN!” from our team here at Qwerty Digital.

While we understand that big businesses expect the best of the best from agencies, and are prepared to pay the price tag for that, we understand that small businesses need the William Shakespears of the world to get them through their startup stage.

That’s why we offer our flexible subscription which gives our clients access to a variety of digital marketing capabilities in order to actually make any meaningful results come from the efforts.

Our subscriptions are time-based, meaning that on a month-by-month basis we switch focus towards what needs to be done in order to effectively set up and optimise a meaningful, well-oiled digital marketing machine.

Reach out to us HERE to start a conversation about how we can help you with your digital marketing ecosystem.