The aroma of vegetable soup wafted up the stairs to my office. Moments later, my wife called, “Dinner’s ready!” “Mmmmm … I love homemade soup,” I thought. Rushing down the stairs and past the pantry, I spied a tube of crackers, grabbed them, and headed for the dining room. My wife sat at the table, [...]
I know you think you’re a good communicator but I’d bet you $100 that, when it comes to setting employee expectations, you aren’t as clear as you think you are. No matter how good you are -- you could be better. It’s not entirely your fault. You have several strikes against you. Agencies tend to [...]
Are you ready for some fresh company Christmas party ideas? Most agency owners feel kind of blah about their agency's annual holiday party. They spend a lot of money on it but don't really feel like their employees really appreciate or look forward to it. Of course, when I ask them what they do, they [...]
I work with over 200 agencies a year and the ones who are really crushing their AGI goals are the ones who have blended digital and PR into their shops. The addition of PR into a traditional ad shop (even one who has made the leap to digital) brings all kinds of new revenue opportunities [...]
Looking for the silver bullet for agency new business efforts? I could sell a great new business person to agency owners all day long. They don't just want one -- they hunger for one. In fact, they're so hungry for that killer salesperson that they'll gladly pay a premium salary and perks to 8-10 losers [...]
I work with hundreds of agency owners a year. We spend a lot of time talking about what's working and what's not working. If there's one common frustration among agency owners it's the hunt for the perfect new business specialist for your agency. I hate to tell you but your hunt for the new business [...]
<A guest post by Rosemary Breehl> Smart Ad Agency principals are getting a seat at the CEO’s table and they’re doing it by building client relationships. It’s a new day out there for all of us. Competition is tougher. There are now “ten marketing dogs chasing that one corporate car.” CEO’s today are under terrible pressure [...]
Have you ever wondered what your agency employees want from their boss -- AKA you? I just spent two days with a room full of account executives, teaching them how to add more value to their agencies and their clients. As part of the conversation, we talked about improving employee relations and the difference between [...]
Every good agency is big on planning for their clients. They facilitate strategic plans, they build marketing plans and they guide clients through the process of developing a digital strategy that can be woven into their overall communications plan. But agencies stink at planning for themselves. Which is why I created a one page business [...]
Every agency owner knows that they need to devote more time and attention to their business but they're so busy helping clients with THEIR business, it's tough to carve out the time to take care of your own. Any time I chat with an agency owner, they admit they struggle with the same issue -- [...]
