Listen to your clients, team, and advisors
Several
years ago, when I was working at another ad agency, I answered to a guy whose
personality was, let’s say, outgoing. It was my first ad agency job and I was
totally ignorant about how such organizations worked. I had worked for years on
the client side and in publishing, broadcasting, and event management. I was a
marketer, but the agency business was foreign to me. My mode of operation was
simple; listen to the client and my team and then make informed decisions.
For
Mr. Know-it-all, my listening moments were a problem. He perceived my silence
as a lack of confidence and a sign of weakness. His MO was exactly the
opposite. An agency veteran with a loud-and-proud confidence, his approach was
to dominate discussions and convince clients that he was the expert. Some
people accepted his exuberant confidence while others were just too afraid to
challenge him, feeding his personality. Back at the office, he had the ear of the
agency owner, a hunting and fishing buddy who liked his take-charge approach.
As
you might expect, he and I had issues. My approach was to listen to clients in
an effort to pin-point their challenges and then recruit my team to flesh out
and suggest solutions. A one-man expert, he liked to tell clients what they
should do and sell agency services. Needless to say, we had our moments.
That
job, and my experiences with Mr. Know-it-all, ended up providing life
experiences that significantly influenced who I became and how Brand
Acceleration now serves client needs.
First,
we recognize that our clients are the experts in their fields. They have
knowledge and experiences that we may not have. They understand their clients
and industries at a level that may be much deeper than we do. We’re marketing
experts and our responsibility is to ask questions, shut up, and hear their
challenges.
Next,
we remember that our role is to serve as an extension of our clients, bringing
ideas and solutions that are based on our experiences. As the owner and face of
the company, I rely heavily on the expertise and experience of my team.
Specialization helps
When
I started Brand Acceleration, it was because I recognized a disturbing trend in
the ad agency industry. Most relied greatly on their creative capabilities and
offered little or no industry counsel to their clients. As a result, the
business often went to the agency with the most interesting creative and the
lowest prices. Another trend was that the average length of the agency/client
relationship was a whopping 18 months. I thought that was pathetic.
Our
style is totally old school. By specializing in economic development and AEC,
we offer significant depth of knowledge about the expectations of our clients’
audiences. We win and our clients win.
For
example, our economic development clients love the fact that we have a deep
understanding of site selection consultants, real estate brokers, and c-suite
executives. We know how they interact with marketing tools such as web sites,
videos, social media, and advertising. This knowledge makes conversations with
our clients much better since they never have to teach us about their needs. We
speak their language and offer informed solutions.
Recently,
we deepened our team even further with the development of the Brand
Acceleration Board of Advisors. These industry leaders, including experts from
several industry categories, offer us outstanding insights that make us even
better. Watch for a detailed announcement about this amazing group.
So,
if you would like a marketing partner that offers expertise without the
bullying attitude, I hope you’ll give us a call. We’ll listen to your
challenges and offer knowledge-based solutions.
I’d
love to hear from you. Feel free to share your thoughts and personal
experiences below.
Have a
great week,
Jim Walton
CEO
Brand Acceleration, Inc.
Branding // Marketing Communications // Public
Relations
Indianapolis: 317.536.6255
Charlotte: 704:230:0394
Atlanta: 404.474.7980
Fax: 317.222.1425
Cell: 317.523.7380
Brand
Acceleration is a full-service marketing communications, brand management and
public relations firm with a focus on economic development, architecture,
engineering and construction.
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