#ecommerce What do Eurovision, 22,000 keyword combinations for duvets, and the overly expensive county of Surrey have in common? They’re all part of the career story of this week’s Struggle Bus guest: James Ullman, VP of Sales at NP Digital. (Hope the Gaffer Neil Patel) does not hear this. James’ career has been anything but linear. He started in TV production with the BBC, ITV, and Sky, working on shows like Later with Jools, the BAFTAs, Outtake TV, and even the Eurovision Song Contest. From there, he spent the next two decades in digital marketing and sales at Yahoo, Periscopix, Omnicom, Smartly, and now NP Digital.
🎤 Quote #1: “I’m not an expert, I just know enough to be dangerous.”
And maybe that’s the point. James is the first to admit he’s not a “deep in the weeds” specialist. Instead, his superpower is connecting with people, whether selling services, building teams, or just finding that moment of empathy that makes a relationship click.
Along the way he’s also:
Studied sport science (and briefly coached tennis).
Fronted a band (he calls it a mildly successful musical career).
Founded Media Rocks, a charity spin-off from Law Rocks.
Raised three kids.
Perfected the art of surviving Surrey’s house prices.
🚍 On this episode of The Struggle Bus, James and I cover:
The agency world then vs. now: why building 22,000 keywords in Excel felt revolutionary.
Why sales isn’t a dirty word, and why “people still buy from people.”
The curse and blessing of imposter syndrome: how you can thrive on stage but doubt yourself in the office.
The rise of AI, “search everywhere optimization,” and why vulnerability might be the new growth hack.
Why careers aren’t straight lines but more like Queen songs, full of chaos, breakdowns, and sudden guitar solos.
🎤 Quote #2: “The secret of life? Put your phone down. Talk to people. That’s how you rise above the crop.”
James is living proof that struggle is your skillset & doesn’t need to be neat or linear. If you embrace people, performance, and a bit of chaos, you can not only survive, but actually enjoy the ride.
If your career feels more Bohemian Rhapsody than Easy Like Sunday Morning, this one’s for you.
👉 Listen here:
Sponsored by:
Omnisend - The smartest, simplest and most cost productive way to run email marketing. ( I am on a webinar with them today - DM for deets)
Eurobase - Ireland's best kept ecomm secret. Perfecting Global shipping for over 30 years. Making complex look simple. Stupid look good. De Minimis problems? Contact Julie Colclough
Strike Digital Up for medium agency of the year next Friday - Good luck guys !! And a newly promoted COO to boot - bravo Ciarán Walsh
#StruggleBus #DigitalMarketing #Ecommerce #Sales #PeopleFirst #Podcast
