Since Glen Wilson is one of only two colleagues on Australian soil, starting this spotlight blog with the exact place he was born and raised seems like a good idea. Mount Isa is an incredible place to grow up in. It’s miles from anywhere and in the heart of the desert, otherwise known as the outback. It’s a mining town with an endless sky of sunshine by day and an infinite number of stars by night.
Its small population of just under 20,000 people didn’t mean that it was a dull time for Glen as a boy. On the contrary, he says it was honestly the best time of his life. Simple and fun! Everyone knew everyone.
“I loved sport. I lived for it. Living in a mining town there wasn’t much to do so I did everything. I was very, very active. I didn’t sit still. I was the school captain of my high school.”
Psychology
After high school, Glen became a police officer, allowing him the chance to experience some amazing things. This included handling police dogs for 14 years. It became his mission to understand canine psychology, which opened an interest in behavioral psychology in general.
“I think my 18 years in policing have given me a good background in understanding people. I am an avid student in behavioral psychology and that, coupled with my life experiences, has given me a solid foundation in communicating with people.”
It has helped him immensely in all aspects of his professional and personal life, understanding why and how dogs—and people—do the things they do.
He Loves His Colleagues
He likes to be a joker on occasion and to have fun with friends and colleagues alike. He believes humor is the glue that holds people together, bringing a smile to their faces. Glen loves the camaraderie at Solutions 8. He connects well with his workmates and goes on to say that the caliber of the people not only on a professional level but also on a personal level is second to none. While he might live on the opposite side of the world, he feels such a great connection with them all, believing it is the secret sauce of the company!
Glen’s Role at Solutions 8
“I am a Senior Google Ads Strategist/Account Executive. My role is to analyze the performance of high-end accounts and continue to improve them week-over-week, month-over-month. This involves a lot of data analysis, crunching numbers, and trying to find ways to improve performance in our Google Ads campaigns.”
Solutions 8 is constantly assessing all advertising spending from a holistic point of view in order to assist our clients that use other advertising mediums and show them how those mediums are impacting their global media efficiency ratio—all money in, money out—and how Google Ads assists with that global number.
Analyzing Google Ads performance is a constant struggle. Google is always moving the goalposts, so to speak, as are the other marketing platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, and Twitter (now known as X). Trying to determine attribution to marketing spend in Google Ads is becoming increasingly difficult.
“It is a challenge that keeps me highly motivated and continually yearning to learn and acquire more knowledge and tactics in using Google Ads,” says Glen, ever the motivator.
From Policing To Solutions 8
We’d like to find out more about how our Senior Google Ads Strategist and Account Executive came to Solutions 8, especially after such an adventurous career in the police force. Where did it all start?
After leaving the Police Force 14 years ago, Glen embarked on a digital marketing career. He had been using Google Ads in the early days, running his very first Google Ads campaign on a Cat Training Ebook using affiliate networks and cutting his teeth using old-school Google Ads techniques.
From that point on, he was involved in the digital marketing ecosphere, helping large and small businesses with their Google Ads marketing.
“I first heard about Solutions 8 from a Shopify Challenge I saw on Facebook, about 3 years ago. It was a 3-day challenge and their USP was their approach to Smart Shopping. I knew it would be a free 3-day event, and there would be a pitch for a course at the end, but I never buy courses,” he says quite convincingly.
“I bought the course.”
Glen then embarked on an 8-week journey with John, Kasim, and the other attendees including our Strategist Usama Khan who took part in that same course. When it ended, Glen went on his merry way but kept an eye on the YouTube channel and Facebook channel to monitor any news or updates. One day, after watching a YouTube video of Kasim’s, the CEO asked for people to come and join him and his company halfway through.
“Their giving nature and attitude had always resonated with me and I thought to myself, I’m going to reach out.”
And the rest, as they say, is history!
Communication is Key
Everyone is open to helping one another and that is the primary reason Glen wanted to work at Solutions 8. To be on the cutting edge of the latest knowledge in advertising and to have the chance of working with some of the smartest people he has ever had the pleasure of working with is another reason.
He takes his work seriously, and as he points out, results matter in our industry. Being forthright and matter-of-fact when the time presents itself is first and foremost. His easygoing manner makes him a reliable member of the team and his colleagues appreciate this about him.
What Time Did You Say You Get Up?
Because he is on the opposite side of the world and has to start his day anywhere between 2:00 and 4:00 AM, he gladly admits he loves the flexibility of being able to work from home.
Getting up that early is not for the faint-hearted, so Glen must have some go-to tricks that keep productivity to a maximum, surely. It sounds easy enough when he explains it: He gets up, splashes water on his face, puts the kettle on, jumps on the computer, and away he goes.
“Mornings are great for me because I am a good sleeper and generally wake up quite refreshed if I can get in seven to eight hours [of sleep].”
When You Live in the Best Place in the World
It must help that Glen currently lives on acres of bushland surrounded by a national park and a farm on the Sunshine Coast. This beautiful piece of paradise extends over 70 kilometers (that’s about 43 miles for you non-metric folks) of the Pacific Ocean in Queensland. The northern end of this coastal region is called Noosa and Glen is about seven minutes inland, in a bushy area named Doonan.
No doubt this peaceful corner of the world allows him the luxury of sleeping so well. It also gives him the freedom to hit the gym three times a week and climb the mountains in his area. The views are breathtaking, he says. Any traveling he does tends to be to visit family and friends locally. His favorite places in the world are Sydney, Melbourne, and Perth.
Our Senior Strategist adds that he really enjoyed Edmonton in Canada which he visited when he was 19. And more recently, he discovered that Switzerland and Austria would be cool places to go to and he could even perhaps live in Canada for a stint.
Family Life
His family would certainly miss him though. He is an extremely proud father of two amazing children from a previous marriage, Danni and Nicki. He now lives with his partner Julie, whom he adores, and her two teenage girls. They’ve been together for eight years. Julie is the travel organizer for the company, Iron Man. She makes travel arrangements for executives and professional athletes in the Australasia region. The family wouldn’t be complete without a King Charles Cavalier Spaniel called Jaxy (baby). After a long career of having very aggressive and well-trained police dogs for a large portion of his life, Glen must find it incredibly relaxing to have Julie take the reins for this furry one.
Miscellaneous
Any other interests, Glen?
He loves going to amazing restaurants and eating amazing food.
Anything else we should know?
He wanted to be an airforce pilot when he was a kid.
Any future plans?
His experiences in the police force were so interesting he should write a book!
Favorite dinner guests?
Elon Musk or Sam Altman (hanging out with these two visionaries would be cool!)
The Office Set-Up
Where he works: Glen’s work environment is a fully self-contained shed where he doesn’t bother any of the family. He has an insane computer set-up with five monitors—all serving their purpose—and a system that runs through what he does constantly. There’s a secondary workstation in the lounge where he chills with a laptop with three further monitors. He watches training videos to keep up-to-date on the latest in the industry, YouTube, of course, and Netflix on the TV while he plugs away on stuff he doesn’t need to focus on deeply.
While he admits it’s not the most recommended way of doing things, he finds that he is at least doing some stuff in his downtime.
“When the brain says stop, I will watch some mindless Netflix show where I don’t have to think about anything.”
Now, anyone reading this might think that not focusing on one thing at a time is detrimental. There are a lot of productivity videos out there and no doubt, Glen has seen them all. He has a very good explanation to verify why he does what he does. It is something that defines him and will probably never leave him.
“For 14 years, I had to constantly analyze my environment when working my police dogs. I think my brain is so used to doing so many things and looking at so many things all at once, and choosing between the priority of importance of action … that it is now my normal behavior in my daily routine.”
Jani Kahukiwa
