How did your Ad Agency's Growth Plan Work This Year?

4 steps to a better 2024.

A recent survey by Agency Analytics found that 42% of responding agency leaders cited growth in client acquisition and retention as their top challenge. It appears we are too stretched doing business to grow our own.?

As agencies become more stretched, we waste time responding to too many revenue opportunities while failing to apply our expertise in marketing to our future.

Piecing together several studies, we spend roughly 90% of our business development on “selling” to opportunities and only about 10% on the “marketing” needed to create awareness and differentiate ourselves before an RFP is issued. The opposite is true for our prospects' allocation of focus.

One reason for the current agency/prospect divide is that we are trying to sell ourselves when prospects don’t recognize a problem with their agency. As such, most prospects have no desire to hear why we think we are so great.

What if we were our agency's most important client for a few months? Consider the implications for 30 minutes. Consider the impact if you don’t.

4 Steps to changing your relationship with key prospects.?

?? Set an audacious goal. What SMART objectives will predestine the impact of your efforts?

?? Focus on prospects you most deserve to win over. What do you understand about your prospects that others fail to recognize and serve???

?? Ruthlessly define what makes your agency different and relevant.? Why do you exist besides making money? How does ‘Why you exist’ impact how you approach what you do? What solutions do you provide? What kind of agency are you??

?? Build a prospect-focused marketing plan that leads them to your solution; don’t lead with it.

? Accept that people don’t buy what you do. They buy who you are.?

? Understand the business problems they urgently need to solve.

? Challenge prospects' perspectives with unique insight.?

? Create opportunities for discovery of your insight.

? Be generous and selfless.

? Solicit attention and dialog to become a trusted advisor.

? Take your time. Enjoy the process.

I know this is social media, so at the risk of being captain obvious, please share your thoughts, challenges, and successes. Follow me if you want to read more about growing your agency.