[Podcast] Mastering the Landscaping Vertical

“Eventually, we stopped the shenanigans and got vertical."  –  Rob Murray, Founder and President of Intrigue Media

(🎙️ listen now)

This was a fun one. Rob Murray is the co-founder of Intrigue Media, which has over $5 million in annual revenue and serves 110 clients. 

Here’s what we cover in this episode:

• Rob’s crazy founding story from DOOH to a specialized agency.

• How showing up in the community and doing thought leadership sparked initial growth.

• Rob’s approach to marketing, sales, and business leadership.

• The challenges of hiring sales and how to incentivize them.

Here are some actionable key takeaways for agency founders:

• You have two ways to position your offering: vertical versus horizontal. 

• Create a sensation that your agency is everywhere. Think: parties, events, community, and lots of speaking.

• Try to uncover unconscious beliefs you hold about your business to break harmful patterns; journaling is great for this.

🎧 Listen to the episode now:

• Podcast Website 

• Apple Podcasts 

• YouTube 

• Spotify

• Amazon Music

Sharing is caring! If you enjoyed this episode, please consider sharing it with a few friends who might find it useful. Thanks!

Best,

CQ

P.S. Please rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, and be sure to hit the subscribe button!

Frequently Asked Questions

What does Rob Murray mean by "we stopped the shenanigans and got vertical"?

Moving away from a scattered, unfocused approach, discussed as originating from a DOOH background, toward committing fully to vertical specialization, a turning point that shaped Intrigue Media's growth into a $5M revenue business.

How did community presence and thought leadership spark Intrigue Media's initial growth?

By showing up consistently at events, parties, and speaking opportunities, creating a sensation that the agency was everywhere, a deliberate visibility strategy discussed as foundational to early traction.

What are the two ways to position an agency's offering, according to Rob Murray?

Vertical versus horizontal, a fundamental positioning choice discussed directly in the episode as one of the first decisions shaping how an agency ultimately grows and differentiates itself.

Why does Rob Murray recommend journaling to uncover unconscious beliefs about a business?

Because unexamined beliefs can quietly drive harmful patterns without being consciously recognized. Journaling offers a way to surface and confront those beliefs directly, breaking cycles that might otherwise go unnoticed.

What challenges did Rob Murray discuss around hiring and incentivizing a sales team?

Real, practical challenges explored directly in the episode, reflecting the difficulty of finding the right structure to properly motivate sales hires within Intrigue Media's specific specialized model.