Antwerp, July 26th, 2016

Based in Antwerp, Belgium, Marbles is a digital communications agency that primarily works with clients from Belgium and parts of The Netherlands. A close-knit staff of eight, the team at Marbles could be considered more of a family unit, one dedicated to conquering all kinds of digital tasks including UX, site design and development, SEO, online advertising, and inbound marketing.

While Marbles is a self-described digital agency, the team likes to maintain the perspective that every digital element must contribute to the overall business vision of their clients. All pieces of the puzzle need to come together, and Marbles takes on that task with enthusiasm. We chatted with two of the team members at Marbles; Flor Holvoet and Tim Berghmans. Both Flor and Tim offer a range of diverse skills to the agency and the team’s clients. Flor holds the title of Chief of Customer Happiness while Tim is the Account Manager. Responsible for different tasks within the agency, both Flor and Tim have something in common; a clear passion for this industry, something that is conveyed in their thoughtful responses.

If you could describe your agency in 3 words (descriptive adjectives) what would those be?

Smart, agile, and evolution, as in we’re constantly evolving. We work on a trust basis while being flexible. If there is no trust, we can’t work together. It’s an important rule to finding new clients.

What is a campaign you worked on that was especially successful and why?

In June 2016 Mazda invited all companies in Belgium to send in their motivation to try the new Mazda MX-5 roadster. The top companies with the best motivations would then win 10 cars to drive around for a week. This was not really work for clients, but it was a great challenge for us to do on a ‘Creative afternoon’. Every two weeks we reserve a half day to spend on whatever we like. This keeps the energy flowing in the team and boosts our creativity.We created a video to express our motivation. The result can be seen here. Mazda liked our submission a lot and we won. Everyone in our team got a car and we ended up driving around as far as Switzerland.

What does the word creativity mean to you?

Flor: To me it means being free to spend time on things you deem important at any given time in the day. We came from a past where we had lots of projects going on and pressure to perform. It was less of a creative environment than the one we want to build for our team. We are embedding a margin of error as well as margin of creativity. This concept allows more time than we had before allows us to explore different possibilities. Performing under time constraints leads to doing it the only way you know. With more time we can explore more creative and innovative solutions.

Tim: I can find creativity in finding solutions for all problems. The disruption in the world is something that fascinates me a lot. Even in this day of advanced technologies there are still processes that are done in odd ways. There are immense possibilities to automate and disrupt the system. Combining apps/ technology and automation to me is a form of creativity and one that constantly interests me.

What is the greatest challenge working in this industry?

Tim: The expectations of the client can be difficult. Many claim to know digital and marketing and that is often a difficult part in the evolution of the project, when the expectations are too high.

What do you do to stay inspired?

Flor: I stay ahead by following certain people online. I also like to attend events. We have a federation of web agencies here in Belgium where they invite speakers and international guests. I went last year and attended conferences. It’s about learning and making friends in the industry.

Tim: LinkedIn is a primary source for me. I follow certain inspirational people, companies, and magazines. We also use Slack and have a set channel that is dedicated to websites or projects that inspire us.

What do you like to do in your free time?

Flor: I love to travel. I try to do this as much as possible. Outside of working, I’m passionate about it and when I have time I do my own side projects. I also like swimming and biking when the weather is nice.

Tim: I have a two-year old daughter so she occupies most of my time. I’m more of a family man and recently bought a house, which I’ve been working on.

Which countries excite you most in terms of digital creativity?

Flor: Denmark is one of them. I studied in Denmark for half a year and developed a relationship with the country. People have time and money to be creative. These factors make a strong environment for innovation, entrepreneurship and startups.

Tim: I‘ve always liked Scandinavian design, including both graphic and interior design.

What advice do you often give to people who are starting to work in your same field?

Flor: Stay ahead of things. This can be a challenge for me as well, but it’s not possible to survive the industry without constantly educating ourselves. It’s crucial to be learning all the time and to stay on top of the trends. What worked yesterday may not be the best solution for the next day.

Tim: Evolution is key. The field changes at such a fast pace that we must stay on top of things and keep evolving. I also advise young people to do side projects. Expand your own area of expertise and get to know the other areas. Someone could be a great UX designer, but it’s important to understand the other parameters.

Where do you see the future of the industry in five years:

Flor: Over the past five years we saw the rise of the apps. Everyone wanted to make apps, to have their brand in people’s pockets all the time. The fact of the matter is 95% of apps are not used. Technology is becoming more on-demand, as in brands will come at you when you need them and only then. A good example of this is when Apple shows your boarding pass when you’re in the airport. The technology is clever enough to automatically give you that, and makes it smarter than the current app. This on-demand trend in the bots is very much here to stay and I believe will be a very important part of the next five years.

Tim: The CEO of Google Belgium gave a talk a few months ago on the Internet of things and how it’s going to be the next big thing. It’s what a lot of people are saying. Currently we still have a lot of dumb objects that do things for us. We have toasters that still burn our toast 90% of the time. The idea of the Internet of things is that a smart toaster will always produce the breakfast you want. Smart objects will begin to take over. But the products have to be even smarter than they are currently.

If you could work anywhere in the world, where would it be?

Flor: I find myself inspired by big cities and the active environments. I would choose a skyscraper loft in NYC.

Tim: Either Rome, Paris, or Amsterdam

> More about Marbles digital agency

> More top digital agencies in Belgium

> Follow Marbles on Social Media:
https://twitter.com/marbles
https://plus.google.com/+MarblesBe/posts
https://www.linkedin.com/company/marbles

> Follow Flor:
https://twitter.com/flrvt
https://be.linkedin.com/in/florholvoet

> Follow Tim:
https://twitter.com/timberghmans
https://be.linkedin.com/in/timberghmans

Account ManagerAntwerpclientsCreativityEvolutionFlor DenmarkFlor HolvoetInternet of thingsLinkedinon-demandPeopleProfilesprojectsSmart objectsSocial MediaTechnologyTim BerghmansUX designer