3 key agency challenges and 3 ways they’re responding!

The past 6 months have brought about seismic changes in the way agencies grow their business. Our client roster spans film, advertising, events, design and numerous other creative businesses. The Client Key are helping agencies deal with major challenges in today’s market. Here are three key issues and how many clients are responding.

1) The digital pitch era

Pitching isn’t an ideal situation. It’s costly, risky and you will know there’s usually a front runner before you even enter the room – or at the moment the Zoom! That being said, it’s often a small agency’s best chance to step up and showcase your creativity.

In a recent survey from Creativebrief, three quarters of clients said they were uncomfortable with the digital pitch process. People buy people. So, how do you create pitch chemistry without accidentally interrupting your new client on zoom? We’ve adapted our pitch strategy for the digital era.

Research – Our number one rule of pitching is NEVER respond without researching the brief and asking questions of the client. Most briefs are rubbish and need more exploration. Create a list of questions and research to get your answers.

Chemistry – There’s a reason chemistry meetings exist, and it’s not just so you and the client can get on. It’s about the wider chemistry in your team. Organise multiple fact finding sessions with different team members. Let the client see the wider team get involved and share their experience. Keep 10 minutes of each research meeting set aside for informal coffee at the end. You’ll feel like you’re annoying them, but remember, they’re about to commit large amounts of revenue with you and need to see you’re committed.

Interrogation – By now you’ll have realised the brief they’ve written isn’t really the brief. Without being rude show them you’ve interrogated their problem. You told us X but following insights from this conversation and this research we actually think the problem is Y.

Response – This one is down to you. If you’ve done step 1,2,3 then you should have the foundations to create a truly different and impactful response.

Pitch Chemistry – You’ll be introduced to the decision makers of the client at the pitch. You’ve met the team, they’ve met yours. Now is your time to shine. Having won over the wider team, be prepared for who else is in the room. Ask key questions to understand and align to your value drivers. Use these in your arsenal when you’re under the spotlight.

2) Engaging new clients

A large proportion of new clients come from various meetings, often over a coffee or a beer. So how do you engage new clients now? Would you commit £200k of spend without seeing ‘the whites’ of your new partners eyes? Has zoom fatigue (you heard it hear first!) ruined the opportunity to engage new clients?

We’re supporting our clients in new business with a clear strategy and a proven process that works for creative businesses. Now is the time to increase your new business function, widen your net and start at the top of the funnel. Research and lead generation need to come first. Followed by an extensive phone and email engagement campaign. Now more than ever there is a need to widen your pipeline.

Some traditional formats of B2B marketing aren’t available with clients working from home. So consider what else you can do? Campaigns? LinkedIn promotion? Blogs? Events? Targeted case studies? It’s often not easy but with a strategic new business focus you can create effective campaigns to support you during difficult times. Credibility and relevance are the key drivers to leverage.

3) Unwinding the pivot

Many creative agencies have (through necessity!) pivoted their business into new areas during the last six months.

Suddenly clients have multiple options that were not available to them before. Many of them cost far less than previous services. The challenge for creative agencies is to wean clients off the cheaper alternatives and return to usual business and revenue levels. Demonstrating your true value is essential.

It’s fine to develop what you do but is it inline with the core of your business? Will it hold up over time? Can you articulate the elevator pitch? If the answer to these is no then you’re creating long-term vulnerability for when the world suddenly shifts again. Unwind the pivot or redress the balance before it’s too late.

If you don’t have a strong brand proposition, that you can clearly articulate, now is the time to get one!

Every agency is different and therefore needs a tailored approach. If you take anything away from this it should be about finding time to implement a clear process, and strategy for sales and growth. New business success doesn’t happen on a whim or overnight, but with experience, planning, relevance and clarity.

The Client Key operates ‘A new way, for new business’, removing the need for an ineffective (and expensive) new business director and instead a fully resourced, more effective solution, for agencies. Perhaps consider who could do this in your team? How could you implement some of these ideas in your agency? If you don’t have the resource, give us a call!

Rob & Amy

The Client Key ‘A new way, for new business’