GUEST PROFILE  ·  Social Media  ·  Creator Economy

Every Post Matters.

Adam Clyne is Founder and CEO of Coolr, the independent social-first agency he launched in 2017. Cannes Lions winner. 150+ team across London and New York. Clients include McDonald’s, Amazon, Samsung, and Bacardi. The agency that gave Burger King permission to act like a person online.

Discover the Episode
The Business of Marketing Season 3  ·  Episode 66  ·  35 min

“Social is not a support channel. It is the main event, and most brands are still adapting.

Adam Clyne is the Founder and CEO of Coolr, the independent social-first agency he launched in 2017 after two decades in digital communications. With 150+ team members across London and New York, Coolr works with McDonald’s, Amazon, Samsung, and Bacardi on organic social, influencer, and community strategy.

Clyne spent 20 years in digital communications before founding Coolr on a single conviction: that social media deserved an agency built natively for it, not adapted from a traditional model. The agency’s breakout came with a Burger King Twitter activation that became one of the most-liked brand tweets ever and won Coolr a Cannes Lions Grand Prix for Social Media & Influencer.

He has grown Coolr from a London start-up to a two-market, 150-person business, while maintaining the one value that has never changed: caring about every single post. That standard is written on the kitchen wall in vinyl at the London office.

20+ years
2017–Now
Coolr
Founder & CEO. Built the UK’s leading social-first agency. Cannes Lions winner. 150+ team across London and New York.
2016–2017
TheLADbible Group
COO. Led UK’s largest youth publisher across social, reaching 400M+ per month.
2015–2016
Weber Shandwick
Head of Digital, EMEA. EMEA Digital Consultancy of the Year 2016.
2012–2014
The Economist / TVC Group
Commercial Director. EMEA Digital Agency of the Year 2013.
2009–2012
TVC Group
Global Commercial Director. Opened New York and Paris offices.
2005–2009
Kindred (Geronimo Communications)
Commercial Director / MD Creative.
2002–2005
The Lab
Founder / MD. Youth and fashion agency.
150+Team Members Across Coolr’s London and New York Offices
1Cannes Lions Grand Prix for Social Media & Influencer, Burger King
2025Year Social Media Viewership Will Overtake Linear TV for the First Time

“Big agency brains, publisher speed.

How he thinks 03 convictions
01Social is now the primary media channel, not a support function

“Social media viewership is going to overtake linear TV viewership in 2025.”

This is not a digital trend. It is the main event. Brands that still treat social as a channel to push campaign content are losing the cultural conversations their audiences are having without them. The agencies restructured around social as the primary storytelling medium are building the most durable brand equity.

02Permission to act in real time is the most valuable thing a client can give

“No one had really had permission to act and behave like that before.”

The Burger King Twitter activation worked because Coolr had genuine permission to respond and participate in culture as it happened, not to wait for approval cycles. That permission is rare. It is also what separates social-first thinking from social media execution.

03Caring about every post is the standard that separates good agencies from great ones

“We care about every single post.”

Campaigns get attention. Posts build relationships. The standard of thinking and craft applied to a major campaign launch should also apply to Tuesday’s community management reply. Consistency at the post level is what earns the right to have the big moments land.

Hear Adam on
The Business of Marketing
Season 3Episode 6635 min