Move Your Agency’s Image From the Dark Ages Into the Light
Think about it: How would prospective clients describe your agency?
Would they come away from a visit to your website or sales presentation thinking: cutting-edge, industry-leading and ahead-of-the-curve?
Or would the perception be: dull, irrelevant and just like everyone else?
Based on our observations, the latter is more likely than the former.
It’s amazing how many agencies that successfully deliver advanced strategic thinking, cutting-edge creative and future-focused marketing campaigns to their clients don’t use these things to sell themselves. It’s like the shoemaker who has no shoes.
Think about it. The typical agency website has an “about” section, creative samples, client list, case studies and menu of services. Their sales presentations include most of the same information. It’s not all that different from what agencies did in 1999. It doesn’t inspire confidence as we enter the 2020s.
Here are three things you can do to move your agency marketing into the decade ahead and beyond.
1. Let people make their OWN way through your website.
No two prospects are alike. So why force everyone to experience your website in the same way?
Your website should be less like reading a novel and more like a trip through a theme park.
People feel uncomfortable when they’re forced through a web experience that doesn’t offer many choices. They prefer the freedom to map their own journey so they can explore things when and how they prefer.
Think about it like a trip to Universal Studios, Harry Potter fans expect to be able to get to their favorite attractions right away. Similarly, roller coaster enthusiasts want to be able to get from one to another as quickly as possible, bypassing other types of attractions that get in the way of having an enjoyable experience. Some people prefer to wander the property with their kids.
When you design a new website, start by developing personas of all the types of people your agency wants to do business with. Include the things they could need to know and experience to get them to contact you after visiting your site. Then design your user experience to provide all the options and pathways required to facilitate their own journeys through the discovery process.
Planning, designing and developing this type of site takes added time, thought and effort. Consider it an investment in not just showing — but also demonstrating — to prospective clients how creative and cutting-edge your agency really is.
Tip: Use heat maps and other online tracking tools to make sure your website is delivering on the experience you intend and that visitors want. It will help identify barriers to optimal journeys through your site.
2. Get to know prospects before meeting with them.
Take time to understand prospective clients by tracking their interactions through your marketing journey.
- Did they request a call after visiting a web page about 360-degree marketing? Pull together the right people and information to discuss this complex topic. Also, ask questions when scheduling the call to make sure it’s the only thing they’re interested in discussing.
- Did they sign up for a webinar about trade show planning? It’s likely they’ll want to learn about how you can help them with their next event. Take things to the next level and show them how you could up their game and help them stand out at their next trade show. A real-life example is worth a thousand words.
- Do they regularly interact with your social posts and content about improving their sales process? It’s smart to brush up on your sales enablement talking points before calling them. A little advance preparation goes a long way toward demonstrating that you care about clients.
Take things to the next level. Before meeting with them, ask prospects to complete a questionnaire that helps you get to know them better. If you use Mobile Locker’s app to build it, it will be more of a fun learning experience rather than a dull and tedious form. It’s a great way to show you want to understand prospective clients and their needs. It’s also a way for you to introduce the cool, cutting-edge and creative experiences you are able to develop for them.
3. Make your presentations personal.
- Do you have a standard pitch deck?
- Do you modify it by changing the title and date — and maybe adding the prospect’s logo?
- WHY?
People don’t have the patience to hear about — and be sold — things they don’t care about.
Tailor your sales pitches to address the relevant issues individual prospects are dealing with. Explain how your team can solve them.
Why talk about your agency’s stellar creative skills when someone wants to hire you for your smart strategists? It takes time and attention away from what they care about. It also waters down the messages that matter.
Once you develop the components for personalized presentations, distribute them through Mobile Locker’s sales enablement system. It makes it fast and easy to generate custom sales content on the fly, with or without wifi. It also makes it possible to change direction on the spot if you identify a new sales opportunity.
Tip: Close your sales presentations with a menu of your agency services. It shows prospects all you can do without boring them with unnecessary information. It could extend your discussion into new areas.
