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Advertising Agencies: “Do Not Pitch”

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Cruise around the world of advertising agency new business consultants and you will often hear that ad agencies shouldn’t ever have to pitch for new business. The “pitch” for not pitching is that if you do a well-targeted, brilliant in-bound marketing program you will get direct “I love you, I want you” incoming from all the qualified new clients you desire. Cool. You’ll get all the new business you want without the cost and hardship of pitching.

This “win without pitching” dream does come true for some agencies. And, I do discuss how to build and run targeted in-bound programs with my clients. These programs include the hyper-targeting of specific clients and selected categories and the employment of SEO best practices (understanding your target market; smart keyword strategies; use of longer posts; syncing your blog, Twitter, LinkedIn and Slideshare, channels; leveraging YouTube.)

However, for the vast majority of agencies, in-bound marketing simply isn’t enough.

Telling Advertising Agencies “Do Not Pitch” For New Business Is Simply BS

I’ve been involved in advertising agency new business since my first pitch (we won) for Western Union’s EasyLink email service in 1984 (yes, this was the first commercial email service — just a touch early.) I’ve run business development at Saatchi and my own agency. Guess what, unless you are the darling of ADWEEK; just won the Gold Lion and some Clios; do Apple or Samsung or Coke advertising; have some form of secret sauce (you are the first ad agency to actually get mobile advertising with ROI proof); have an outrageous database of marketing friends for continuous referrals or are well-know as a category expert…

Fuhgeddaboudit. Chances are rather high that you will have to pitch the accounts that you want. Sitting back and waiting for those love-child clients to call you ain’t going to keep your agency afloat. Wishing that you will never have to pitch is lunacy.

So, please, win without ever pitching? Maybe for the 1%. But, not the other 3,999 agencies.

My bottom line? Learn how to win more of the pitches you should be invited to. I’m going to start to write about how to pitch. It will be a good “pitch” for my business.

And…. Here is how to position your agency so you might win those pitches you are invited to.

Yo!… Don’t miss any of my brilliant (LOL, but I mean it) thoughts on new business.

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Ad Agencies: Who Owns Your Pitch ideas?

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crestlogo1There is nothing I loved more during my advertising career than pitching. I loved the chase, the idea that we could come up with really brilliant thinking and work in a compressed timeframe and the camaraderie of the pitch process.

What I didn’t love was the feeling that I was often giving away our big ideas. It sucked.

To dig into the legal aspects of the issue of who owns your pitch ideas, I interviewed Sharon Toerek for Advertising Week’s blog. Sharon is an intellectual property and marketing law attorney who specializes in the advertising industry at Cleveland’s Licata & Toerek.

Read the post on Advertising Week Social Club.

By the way. I’ll see you at Advertising Week, as in next week, right?

Finally, A Fcking Ad Agency Blog Worth Reading

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I’m talking about The Escape Pod’s blog.

The Escape Pod

Ok, its not the only ad agency blog worth reading, but, hey, lets face it, how many of these word-rich-self-loving missives ever enrich anything? Ooops, I’m being harsh.

 

In my line of work I read (well, actually scan) a bunch of ad agency blogs. Note to my clients: I actually do read your blogs, I swear it!

Ok, for all of you other ad agencies. Here are some thoughts on what to do and some reasons I like The Escape Pod’s blog.

  1. Please be fun to read. Fun does not have to mean witty (although Escape Pod is witty) — it just means fun (which can also, for me, mean intellectually stimulating.)
  2. Have a (fresh) point of view.
  3. Have a personality. Its OK if your blog sounds like a human wrote it.
  4. Don’t parrot everyone else. We’all don’t need more words on how to blog; the joy of  responsive design; Twitter for marketers; or the post (this is real) -> “The New Landscape of Content Marketing” from one of Chicago’s leading agencies. Note to self: I might err on this “don’t parrot” thing, since this post is about an agency’s blog.
  5. Enlighten me: Like “Behold the Power of  Video Demonstration” does, even if it isn’t what you’d expect a creative agency to love.
  6. Get the idea of Portland.
  7. Oh, and have a really smart kid.

One more point. Have an agency About page that moves the reader.

Bottom line? The Escape Pod is interesting and makes interesting advertising. Interesting is good. Interesting sells.

_______________________

Email me – look up and left for an email link – and lets discuss how your agency will never do irrelevant (as in not strategic) blog postings.

Design Week Portland: Dye, Nike, Ziba, Tanner, SkyLabs, Sandstrom & Me

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dwpDesign Week Portland is a powerful, super groovy, smart, fun, inspiring, happy week-long event celebrating the best of Portland’s super groovy (oh, I said that) design scene. I’ll be moderating “Dissecting Design” for the Portland Advertising Federation. The panel includes some of Portland’s design super stars. Here’s the event copy…

 

Design happens. Not.

While great design comes from a place somewhere between our intellect and soul, it doesn’t just happen. Dissecting Design seeks to understand how great design is achieved using processes and design systems that take us from an understanding of client or consumer need to initial designs to iteration to the production of the final product.

We are very pleased to be able to discuss how big ideas get turned into brilliant design with some of Portland’s leading product and graphic designers.

 


DATE: Wednesday, October 9, 2013
TIME: Networking/Arrivals 4:00p/Program 4:30-5:30p/Networking 5:30-6:00p
VENUE: EcoTrust Building
COST: $25 PAF Members/$35 Non-Members

Get tickets  here. Seating is limited.

Why Bezos Is Good For Advertising

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I worked in the newspaper industry for five years from 1995 to 2000. I started the online newspaper New Jersey Online for Advance Internet which went on to use our blueprint to build an additional 10 online entities across the U.S. (Note, I am not responsible for the design of the current website.)

I was hired by Jeff Jarvis who knows more about the business of newspapers and online newspapers that anyone in the industry. So, when I heard about Jeff Bezos buying the Washington Post, I immediately headed over to Jeff’s well-read blog, “Buzz Machine.” While Jeff hasn’t really weighed in in-depth yet, he will and I am going to follow his evolving views on this purchase. As you can see from his “Hot Off The Presses” blog post, he is “hopeful.” I am too. As an early internet publisher, I watched Bezos build Amazon starting in 1995. It was a very exciting time to watch this visionary.

I think that newspapers which have been run by ossified old white men who couldn’t get out of the way of Craigslist and all the other revenue killers, can now sit on the sidelines and watch a real leader move paper-based and online newspapers to the next level.

This will be good for the advertising industry as well.

I think that paper newspapers will be around for the next few years (my bet not much more than an additional ten.) They will continue to play a big role in our local news ecosystem as they have always provided a powerful daily platform for local advertising which online advertising hasn’t yet replaced. Many have pointed out that the Amazon machine has hastened the demise of the local retailer. That may be true. But, local retail has also been hurt by the slow death of local advertising options. Bezos may just be the guy to reverse that trend.

For another take on the Post, head over to Jason Calacanis’ piece, “Why Jeff Bezos Bought The Washing Post Six-Theories.” .