Search Results for: insight

A Coronavirus Ad Agency Business Plan

Peter · April 8, 2020 · Leave a Comment

A Coronavirus Ad Agency Business, Marketing, and Personal Plan

Noah Kagan and my thinking on your coronavirus ad agency business plan.

You know who I am, right? Regardless, here is my Advertising Agency Survival Guide. Please read and make adjustments to how you run your agency. I want you to view the video below so my guide will open up in a new window.

Next, I am going to continue to write about what I think you should be doing. Yes, I admit it, I know what I am talking about. Plus, maybe, more importantly, I know WHO knows what THEY are talking about. Like the video below from Noah Kagan – AppSumo guy.

Do you know Noah Kagan? He is the Chief Sumo at Sumo Group — where he helps entrepreneurs kick more ass. Before that, he was employee #30 at Facebook, #4 at Mint, and worked at Intel.

Key Noah Kagan Coronavirus Ad Agency Business Plan Advice – Important Stuff

This one from me… I think that anyone over 55 should go mostly cash. I mean, what part of this economy is going to spring back in the next 12 to 24 months? OK, maybe DTC, oil, three retailers, three airlines, Uber, online learning… + Companies with mucho cash.

Watch your costs. This is the only thing that you can control. Make the necessary cuts early.

Market your ad agency. More blog posts, more insight-oriented content, PPC ads. How about some research in your expert categories?

Partner. Maybe even buy a cheap but smart small agency that adds to your overall offer. Are you “full service”? if so, get really full service and buy a PPC agency.

Help your clients with their payments before they cut you off.

Now, The Video, Recession Proof Business Strategies

Noah’s Main Points. My Interpretation.

Pay very close attention to your revenues and adjust your net income. Every 7 days.

Look at your agency website traffic and conversion rates, email signups (you have an email program (right?) and whatever you track. Pay attention to your brand.

Market your agency. Keep at it. But, be cool about it. No sales pressure. Insights, show empathy, please.

Have 20 months of capital for business. 12 months personal (at least). Look, I know that having cash is hard for some people. Like, you need to live. But, I am putting my pessimistic hat on. If we are about to go into a depression rather than a recession… be ready. I do not want to be a downer. But, this is the advice I give to my kids too.

And, Please Talk To Me

Remember the.. Advertising Agency Survival Guide.

The Smart B2B Referral Program

Peter · April 5, 2020 · Leave a Comment

The Advertising Agency B2B Referral Program – Is That Enough For Growth?

Is it just enough to “hope” that your B2B referral program will work? The answer… no.

I just got off the phone with an advertising agency leader in London. I asked, “Where have you been getting business?” he answered, as do most advertising agencies, “from our B2B referral program.”

Ah, the Holy Grail of the B2B client and customer to a friend to agency advertising agency referral. The idea is that if the agency does a good job, a client will tell their friends about the agency. Well, at least for this London agency the good news is that they have an actual, active referral program. Most advertising agencies just hope that their clients will make the nice, sweet B2B referral via fate. I am not a fan of “fate.” You shouldn’t be either.

The B2B Referral – Good News

Don’t get me wrong. I love referrals. The right referral will result in getting the right client with little initial business development effort on the part of the agency. Win-Win. It’s like a great blind-date. Does anyone remember the blind-date? As in, you didn’t meet (as in see and scope out) the referred person until he sat across from you at the Starbucks table? Very 1980’s. OK, back to now.

The B2B Referral – Really Bad News

For the vast majority of advertising, digital and on agencies is that counting on referrals is bad news.

Two simple and compelling problems:

Referrals are not predictable. Never. This isn’t good for any sort of business planning.
Referrals are not scalable. Never. This isn’t good for any sort of business planning.

Counting on referrals is a fool’s game.

I’ve counseled agencies on how to actually plan and manage a referral program — !!! As a part of their overall business development plan. Here are links to a couple of earlier blog posts about the advertising agency referral program.

Three – I will admit it – smart, effective and easy to activate B2B referral strategies from prior business development posts just for you.

Six Business Development Referral Strategies

A key to having a robust referral strategy is to make sure that your current clients are aware that you actually want referrals. Referrals from happy customers are one of best ways that B2B companies generate new business. OK, this isn’t a huge surprise. However, what is surprising how few companies have a dedicated strategy for fostering these valuable personal hand-offs.

Advertising Agency Coaches Are Pissing Me Off.

Peter · March 22, 2020 · Leave a Comment

$2,250 For A Group-Grope Agency Coaches Seminar? Huh? WTF!

One of my California ad agency clients passed on an advertising agency coaching seminar email solicitation. She pointed out that two of my advertising agency coaching competitors are charging $2,250 for agency managers to attend a group seminar on agency positioning.

Huh, I’m like, $2,250 to attend a group-grope seminar that could not conceivably recognize or focus on the very unique challenges confronting individual, as in very different, advertising agencies. I’m sorry about two things. 1) Any coach charging $2,250 for what I am sure is a mostly canned seminar (just an educated guess) and, 2) Exploiting today’s advertising agency marketplace in a very challenging environment. By the way, here is a bit of the sales copy:

Experience the confidence that comes with deep expertise

Orientation Week: April 20, 2020 / All course modules drop the week of April 27, 2020 / $2,250 per firm principal

OK, Back To Free.

Do you need confidence? I got that.

I’ve been advising and coaching my ad agency clients that they need to hug their best clients. Give some strategic thinking away. No obligation. Provide brilliant, market-relevant insights for free. Keep your client friends close.

Hugging. Here is my free offer. I’d love to talk with you about your current issues and, importantly, opportunities – for free / no obligation. We’ll do some scenario planning I know its tough out there – I have some rather strong ideas.

Want to move fast? Contact me here.

By the way, if you would rather spend the $2,250, let me know and I will pass you along.

Leverage My Real Market Experience.

I’ve lived through multiple advertising recessions (albeit lighter than this one) as a Fortune 100 account director and director of business development at Saatchi (New York & London); the CEO founder of two Internet start-ups and the owner of my own two-office advertising agency. Plus, I’ve custom coached over 100 advertising agencies.

SO — Take me up on my free offer. Let’s talk specifically about your agency (not in a mushy group format), its management, staffing, clients and growth potential. Use my brain and experience to help you to position your agency for long-term success. For free. I’m giving back. Zero obligation. Keep your $$$.

One more thing, if you are looking to reposition your agency, as in being specialized, something I think you need to be doing right now, here is a link to my very well-read post on advertising agency positioning.

The Advertising Agency Of The Future

Peter · February 22, 2020 · 1 Comment

What Does The Advertising Agency Of The Future Look Like? How About Your Agency?

The advertising agency of the future needs some serious planning and agility. No surprise here. But, what is surprising to me is the lack of attention paid to how to craft an advertising agency for the future.

Just for the hell of it. I’ll start with the good old days.

My first job in advertising was at Dancer Fitzgerald & Sample. Back in the 1980’s DFS was New York’s largest advertising agency. We were sweetly based in the iconic Chrysler Building. At that time, we did not spend lots of gray matter on thinking about the future of the advertising agency business because we were making a 15% commission on media and 16.5% on production. We had a sweet client list that included General Mills, P&G, RJR Nabisco, Sara Lee, Northwest Airlines (I ran the account and our annual profits were $6 million on $9 million in revenues), HP and Toyota. As you might expect, we were not too concerned about reinvention. All this client and revenue firepower helped Saatchi & Saatchi love and buy Dancer in 1986.

Today advertising is a radically different business and ad agencies need to be thinking about how to be positioned for a future where multi-year AOR clients; 15% media commissions; three primary media types (TV, print, radio); a positive global network effect and loyalty are attributes of the past.

Not to get too down, but today the advertising world is about project work, crazy price consciousness, competition from all sides (large consultancies, in-house agencies and your ex-Creative Director who does just fine as a freelancer).

Bummed Out?

Look, for many agencies, it is kinda fucked up out there. As the famous Chinese curse says,

“May you live in interesting times”.

But, but, there are still agencies that grow and make bucks. You can too.

So, in preparation for this blog post – yes, it is ultimately about how to position your agency for the future – I read a bunch of articles on “the advertising agency of the future.” Not too surprising, this is a hot topic.

Interesting (as in ‘Uh Oh’) the first page of Google has articles on your future from traditional agency killers like Deloitte, Accenture, Adobe, CMO.com (an Adobe site).

The agency industry perspective is not on Google’s page one. It isn’t until page two that Inc., AdAge, The Drum and the ANA get to chime in.

I stopped trying to find an actual advertising agency perspective delivered via this search term by the time I got to page four. Do the big guys (even WPP, Publicis, Omnicom, etc.) not want to discuss the future?

Some Findings On The Future on Advertising

Here are some of the highlights from my research. I’m listing these in random order. I’ll have my personal thoughts a bit later. [Read more…] about The Advertising Agency Of The Future

Getting Advertising Agency Sales Pitch Attention Via Hello Sir

Peter · February 3, 2020 · Leave a Comment

How Your Advertising Agency’s Sales Pitch Is Like An Indian Shopkeeper

I was in the Indian states of Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh and Delhi and Mumbai for the month of January. As a tourist, my attention was desired by many shop keepers, solo tour guides and taxi drivers.

The usual sales pitch come-on, the way for me to be enticed to turn and make eye contact, were questions. Essentially two: a questioning “Hello Sir?” or “Where are you from.”

While I always heard the question, I learned not to make eye contact in most cases as the ultimate offer being made was usually the same. I was being asked to enter a shop to buy something, generally, pashmina scarfs or a new suit, to receive an offer of transportation or some form of guidance. In some way, I was sad that I did not speak with everyone. That I dismissed their personal ‘pitch’ through silence. But, really, I had no choice if I wanted to get on with my daily plans.

Advertising Agency Business Development, It’s Sales Pitch And “Hello Sir”

Over the years, I’ve noticed that many advertising, design and PR agencies do little more than what the Indian shopkeepers did. These agencies simply find a way to wave their hands to say “Here we are” to prospective clients.

The agency sales message can be effective in getting attention for a fleeting moment, but the next set of words or information looks like all the other hand waving from other agency competitors. The agencies offer little in a customized sales pitch or insights that would help the client want to turn their head and want to hear more.

Sameness, or worse, being ignored, is a space that many agencies business development programs live in.

I’ll talk more about building strategic and action-oriented brand and message differentiation in the next couple of weeks. OK, I have actually been writing about this for years. But, I’ll deliver more direct ideas and collation of past thinking.

Most agencies have to get past, “Hello Sir.”

Hello Sir

Ask me how your agency’s sales pitch can break you out of the “pashmina” pack.