So, with most of our prospects unavailable, I decide to focus on internal new business clean-up, and what I uncovered startled me…
We were lacking the cornerstone of any new business push – a clear positioning and personality.Our biggest ambassador – our website – exuded neither. Our new business touch points (and there are so many more of them these days) were also a bit dated and out of sync. A mild panic began to settle in… What’s our elevator pitch?
The hits kept on coming – as the last time anyone at the agency had attended an industry event was months ago. We even had free tickets to a massive event earlier in the year but apparently no-one had time to attend? Opportunities missed – and in any case, isn’t networking better than not working?
Nobody else other than the previous new business manager had seemed to be involved in any initiatives and this was also a bit disturbing. Everyone at an agency is an ambassador and as such need to have a newbiz role, no matter how small.
Oh, and that phrase I hate - “low hanging fruit” Well, I also noticed that we weren’t doing enough for our existing clients and nurturing their business. Again, opportunities missed.
It wasn’t all bad news. It warmed my heart to learn that we had some extremely talented staff with rich backgrounds with some big brands and award winning work. We just weren’t bragging about them enough. If there’s one thing I’ve learned over the years, clients hire people, not necessarily their agencies…
And we also had some great case studies demonstrating some fantastic creativity, solid metrics and positive results for our clients - just that they needed writing up….
What I’ve written above will probably sound very familiar to many of you newbiz guru’s out there – only that these scenarios come up all too often in the agency world and love it or hate it – the buck stops with us.
JC Fantechi is the New Business Director of digital marketing agency, The New Black.
Coming up in part 2 – The best – AND worst – in disruptive new business marketing
