When it comes to staying inspired, professionals rely on a variety of resources. Many turn to their coworkers and keep an eye on other projects at their company. Many turn to creative outlets, such as travel, for inspiration. And many pay attention to what others in their industry are working on, whether that is individuals directly working in their field or entrepreneurs who inspire risk taking.
Forbes Agency Council members – experts at PR, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies – follow influential bloggers, SEO experts and designers, among others. Below, seven agency professionals share who they recommend others pay attention to this year – and how to find others worth following.
Clockwise from left: David Kley, Brett Farmiloe, Solomon Thimothy, Ali Grant, Diana Wolff, Goran Paunovic, Kristopher Jones.
All photos courtesy of individual members.1. Rand Fiskin
A good person to follow for marketing and SEO news is Rand Fishkin. He always has great insight into the current SEO trends. The Whiteboard Friday blog from Moz, Fishkin's company, is also a quick way to digest what is going on in the marketing world. - David Kley, Web Design and Company
2. Noah Kagan
Noah Kagan was the first marketing employee at Mint.com, one of the first marketing employees at Facebook, and is now the Chief Sumo at AppSumo. He's a wealth of knowledge about marketing, life and tacos. He just launched a podcast that is full of good information and is definitely a voice worth listening to. - Brett Farmiloe, Markitors
3. Jeff Bullas
Jeff Bullas, a content marketing influencer and strategist, is the real deal. On his website, he constantly shares content marketing tips and tricks to help businesses and entrepreneurs be visible online and generate sales to succeed. - Solomon Thimothy, OneIMS
4. PR Couture
Our agency loves to follow PR Couture. Their industry insight is fresh and frequent, plus they just launched the Bespoke Communication Awards, which allows for industry professionals to be recognized. - Ali Grant, Be Social
5. Thom Craver
Imagine being an SEO for a major media company? Endless content, breaking news, working directly with top journalists. That's why I love following the career of industry influencer Thom Craver, senior SEO analyst for CBS Interactive. Following Thom's Twitter feed provides daily insights into how he's thinking about SEO and helping CBS get ranked at the top of Google. - Kristopher Jones, LSEO.com
6. Yves Béhar
Design is all about agility, and for this reason, Yves Béhar is a designer/entrepreneur that I like to keep an eye on. Founder and principal of fuseproject, Behar focus is across platform from product to brand development. As the designer of commercial products and founder of August, a smart lock company, his focus on sustainability, social good and problem-solving is critical to the market. - Goran Paunovic, ArtVersion Interactive Agency
7. Build Your Own List of Influential Superstars
It seems like every day there's a new list of "influencers" published. Skip the obvious and go hunting for people you get actual value from. Start by looking at who your marketing idols are following on Twitter, check out their posts, and then look at who they are following. Soon you'll be able to build your own list of superstars that provide you with consistent value. - Diana Wolff, LRG Marketing
