How Brands Take a Stand
Let’s look at some different ways organizations have taken a firm stand.
What Agency Edge Research Can Tell You About Your Clients
"The first step to adequately serving your clients during an economic downturn is understanding who they are and how they will handle uncertainty. Do you know which categories your clients fit in?" In this piece I recently contributed to Business 2 Community I discuss how your clients might respond to the coronavirus pandemic and how [...]
Not Finding Your Ideal Clients? Maybe You’re Looking for the Wrong Things.
At the beginning of most of my engagements, I start by sending the client team a questionnaire that helps me establish a baseline understanding of how the agency approaches business development—strengths, weaknesses, skills, and areas of resistance. In it, I ask them to describe their ideal client. Here’s a sampling of what I hear more [...]
How To Shore Up Your 2021 Business Plan
"By prioritizing your people and striking a balance between strong core operations and flexibility, you can set your team up for success, no matter what the new year brings." In this piece I recently contributed to Forbes.com I discuss how to create your business plan for 2021 amid uncertainty.
Who are you learning from?
Agency people are lifelong learners. If you aren’t — odds are you will be “counseled” out of your role if you don’t own the joint and pushed out of the day to day, if you do. We can’t afford to stop learning in our world. It’s simply changing too quickly and to keep up, we [...]
Virtual Events Good Business For You and Your Clients
As an agency owner that serves the travel, tourism and hospitality industry exclusively, I have been tracking the data on when face-to-face group meetings and conventions will return. My clients depend on it! The good news is face-to-face events will return. The better news is innovation is happening at a rapid pace in the meetings [...]
A bad fit pinches
We have all bought clothes that weren’t quite the right fit. Whether too tight, too big or whatever the issue — they are uncomfortable and when you are wearing that misfit of clothes — you are very aware that something is not quite right. In fact, pretty soon, the pinching, sagging or snugness is all [...]
Noticing the signs
A couple of years ago, when we were able to be out and about and travel the world, I went on a photo safari vacation to South Africa with my daughter. We spent the better part of a week in the bush, coming face to face with prides of lions, serene giraffe, wild dogs right [...]
Demystifying Business Systemization: Figure out which systems will create the biggest impact in 20 minutes or less.
If you've been in the business world long enough, you know of systems. Perhaps you've read The E-Myth, Traction or another book and are fired up about them. But HOW? Where should you start? You're busy and so enmeshed in everything your business does that even thinking about which processes to systemise first is overwhelming. [...]
How do you avoid losing your star players?
Every day I talk to agency owners who are worried about losing a key employee and every day another key agency employee walks out the door so it's easy to see why finding and keeping talent is the #1 pain point for most agencies today. Unfortunately, having a laid back culture, flex time and more [...]