Hi. John here. Nice to meet you. I work with ad agencies who want to improve their business development success. Full-service business development, prospecting strategy, marketing decision-maker lists, marketing automation, workshops, training, and support. Win more clients and better clients. Click To Schedule A Call
Many people think that cold prospecting is the only tactic for agency growth. Unfortunately, response rates from prospecting have been declining for years. Win rates are low. The investment in people and pitches is high, and the disruption to the... Read more →
When I talk to ad agency leaders about their new business struggles, I hear things like in and outbound marketing, cold calling, referrals, pipeline, and many other tactical challenges. There is no doubt agency business development is hard and getting... Read more →
Marketers say the first thing they do when considering a new agency resource is to ask friends and colleagues for recommendations. Wouldn't it be great to have some influence on those discussions? Wouldn't it be smart to have your own... Read more →
Content will continue to be one of the top marketing tactics, and it should be for agencies as well. How can agencies create lots of good content to market themselves effectively? It seems to be a universal challenge, but it... Read more →
With a little less than a month to go, the clock is running out for any additional revenue this year. At the same time, the holiday season distracts many good prospects from your outreach. It’s an anxious time for business... Read more →
I believe it is more important to know what a marketer wants rather than what an agency wants to tell them. By knowing what they want; their top challenges, pain points, and goals, an agency can adjust their positioning to... Read more →
What will agencies do in 2020 to break through the clutter and capture the attention of those elusive, increasingly skeptical marketers? What can agencies do to separate themselves from the growing herd of competition? How can they make a compelling... Read more →
I help agencies improve their business development and acquire new clients and better clients. Typically, agencies get to a point where their lead sources dry up, inquiries disappear, RFPs stop coming, and people sit idle. We all know that feeling.... Read more →
Strong growth or recession? Increasing ad spend or cutbacks? Data or creativity? In-housing growth or decline? Talent feast or famine? Human or AI? Republicans or Democrats? What will 2020 bring? There are so many variables in the marketplace today, more... Read more →
Sure, many agencies post on Facebook, tweet a bit, and publish on LinkedIn. Some buy keywords, and a few do actual advertising. Any kind of marketing is good, but for the most part, few agencies actually develop a marketing strategy... Read more →
An agency is no different than any other business. It exists to make a profit. As such, business development or sales is no different than other company – in theory. In practice, it is much different. It’s a complex, rapidly... Read more →
I was looking at an agency's Google analytics to see their traffic sources, LinkedIn in particular. In the past 12 months, they got about 52 referrals from LinkedIn. Of those 52, 16 might be valuable – 10 to the home... Read more →
An essential part of any business development program is finding the right prospects. There are many ways to identify potential companies and marketing decision-makers. Finding the right candidates, whether you are adding to your current list, expanding into new territory,... Read more →
The dreaded words, No. All that time and effort to identify, pursue, and engage a prospect only to end up in a No. But…No. Can I…No. Maybe you…No, no, no. A brutal end to a long series of activities that... Read more →
You already know that marketing automation continues to grow in popularity as marketers spend more of their budget and allocate more of their staff to integrate it into everything they do. The reason is the impact it has on so... Read more →
The economy is up. Businesses are expanding. Marketing spending is on the rise. If you do not see an increasing number of leads, it may be time to pivot toward the sectors that are driving the economic boom. Not every... Read more →
Now is the best time to evaluate your BD program, reset for the second half, and plan for next year. Traditionally the summer months are the slowest time for business development, vacation; annual plans are in mid-stride, budgets for the... Read more →
This is a cautionary tale. Today we are all susceptible to hackers, scammers, and other nefarious people. And every day they get better at spoofing their victims. I have received hacked LinkedIn messages urging me to click on the link.... Read more →
What is fascinating about the ad business is that new business people come in all shapes and sizes. Each can be as successful as the other or succeed in one place and fail in the next. New business is often... Read more →
You’ve built a successful agency with great people and award-winning work. Your awesome clients love you and have been loyal for years. You’ve received best place to work awards every year. You’ve got a team of superstars who keep the... Read more →
