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The New Business of Advertising

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Half of Advertising Agency Staff Hates Pitching

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frownAn Advertising Agency Staff That Hates Pitching Isn’t A Good Thing

A 2013 study by the research firm Provoke Insights confirmed what we all know. The advertising agency new business pitching process can be debilitating.

From Provoke:

“… approximately half (47%) of advertising professionals surveyed by Provoke Insights say they are dissatisfied with the current internal approach to pitching.

47%. Ok, pitching is intense. So, what else is new? Pitching is also intense for architects, nuclear power plant designers and fighter jets salespeople. Writing, presenting and winning (or losing) pitches is intense.

It can also be exhilarating (more on that a bit later.)

Other findings on pitching:

Issues include: “unrealistic timelines” say 66% of respondents / “long work hours” say 65%

And, because Provoke is a research company who paid for the research, we get this nod towards having insightful insights:

“Forty-four percent of advertising professionals stated that if there were better availability of research and data, pitches would run smoother and (be) more successful.”

Here’s more on what resources agencies say they need to kill it:

support_need_to_pitch

 

By the way, I posted about how to use free, smart internet based tools to create insights here: 13 Free Big Data Tools For Advertising Agency New Business.

Back to exhilarating.

  • Pitches are a major way agencies win new business. Ya gotta be in the game. Maybe Droga5 can get away without pitching.
  • Pitches make sense if they make sense. Don’t pitch just any account just for the sake of pitching.
  • Pitches are team sports and, importantly, build team spirit.
  • Pitches help agency staff stand out and be stars. Especially important in larger agencies.
  • Pitches are fun to run if you know what you are doing and have a solid plan.
  • Pitches, winning pitches that is, can make the agency happy and richer. A good thing.
  • Pitches hone agency thinking; highlight skills and help agencies think about what the agency actually has to offer or needs to build for the future. I think that the benefit of forced introspection is underrated.

The full report can be read on AdRants.

I’ve tried to make the art and science of pitching more successful and even fun. Just read my book. Look up top to learn more and make that all important purchase that will lead to more — wins.

 

The Advertising Agency Model, New Business, Pitches and CMO’s

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displayOnce again some great data on what CMO’s think about advertising agencies and the pitch process from pitch consultant Avi Dan. Head over to Forbes to see the article, “What are 10 great ad agencies of 2013 according to CMO’s?”

Avi conducted an online survey in November, 2013 with 1,850 CMO’s to determine their ranking of leading advertising agencies and to get insights into their views on what it takes to win a pitch. While its nice to see my hometown boy Wieden + Kennedy be ranked as the best agency, I don’t find this information that useful. Maybe it is to a top 100 brand but it isn’t to the other 10,000+ clients out there or the other 4,000 agencies. [Read more…] about The Advertising Agency Model, New Business, Pitches and CMO’s

Advertising Agency Business Development Seminar @ Portland Ad Fed

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Agencies love their friends, their Rolodex’s (yes, we still use this word) and claim that they win more business from referrals than any other new business method. 3 reasons why:

  1. Friends are friends and friends have friends.
  2. Friends should recommend you.
  3. Current and past clients should recommend you. See “The One Number You Should Grow” from the Harvard Business Review.

But, there is a point when you run out of friends with friends and then its time to actually do some real business development. That’s why Rebecca Armstrong, Principal and Managing Director at NORTH; Ryan Buchannan, CEO eRoi and Peter Levitan, CEO Peter Levitan & Co. — oh, that’s me are speaking on how to grow your friends, contacts and prospect lists.

It is: An Advertising Agency Business Development Seminar – “New Business Is More Than A Big Rolodex”

Date: November 21.

Place: Portland, Oregon

Info from The Portland Advertising Federation (yes, new website coming soon….)

Need some language:

The more prospective clients you get to know, the more new business you will win. It’s that simple. Or, is it? New business is a presentation and hands-on workshop designed to help advertising agency management and employees create enlightened new business programs that will get more meetings and build relationships with the right prospects.

We will work together to examine and discuss a range of business development techniques used by successful agencies. We’ll explore list building and how to create and deliver compelling client insights that will grab the attention of the client-side decision makers you want to meet with – well before they put out that RFP. This seminar is for all agency employees because new business should be an agency-wide goal.

Adobe Helps With Ad Agency New Business

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Adobe recently released the important insight-rich study, “Digital Distress: What Keeps Marketers Up At Night”,  on how marketers view digital marketing. I urge you to read the PDF of the full report: adobe-digital-distress-survey.

The good news for advertising agencies is that clients are not getting their 7 to 8 hours of REM a night. Tired means that you have significant pain points to aim at with your new business strategy.

Here is Adobe’s sleepless in marketing chart. It is rich with business development messaging points for agencies. The chart shows the gap between what marketers view as important vs. their level of satisfaction.

The first agency-related finding that jumps out to me is the gap between desire and fulfillment in marketing Creativity and Innovation. Hello, agencies, this is your sweet spot. But, you know that. In fact, there is so much fuel here that any agency could jump on just any one of these points (that means develop some relevant focused insights) to make a compelling case to get a meeting. Use some of my free insight tools to make that case.

what keeps marketers up at night

 

If you have a couple of minutes, check out Adobe’s animated infographic. It could be something to share with current or prospective clients.

How To Position An Advertising Agency – Part II

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position an advertising agencyWelcome to Part II of How To Position An Advertising Agency. Here is Part I. It’s a good place to start.

Positioning An Advertising / Digital / Design Agency Isn’t Easy…

I know, I’ve positioned and re-positioned my own agency and do this for my ad agency clients. Here’s what you are up against.

Most advertising and digital agencies do essentially the same things for a living. Once you’ve decided on advertising or digital or integrated or mobile you are up against many other advertising, digital, integrated and mobile agencies.

Most agencies fear not being able to offer all things to all clients.

Differentiation itself may not be all that it’s cracked up to be. “The general challenge for any brand in any market is that what is differentiating is often not motivating and what is motivating is not necessarily differentiating.” This from Michael Moszynski, CEO of London Advertising (more on London later.)

Clients have a very short attention span. They might not spend the time required to read your carefully crafted copy. In this case, being concise would help.

The Power Of A Powerful Advertising Agency Position

[Read more…] about How To Position An Advertising Agency – Part II