BY CHRISTOPHER ZULLO
Some people out there can’t understand why it is such a big deal for a business to switch agencies, when another agency may be better at helping them break through to that next level of success. It’s kind of like moving from a home that you’ve loved but have grown out of. It can be sad, scary, stressful and for a lot of us, the fear of the unknown is enough to keep us hanging on to a part of our business that no longer serves us the way we need it to. As a boutique advertising agency, our focus is always on the client and the newest, most cutting-edge ways to get eyes on our clients’ business. Media and how it is bought and sold is evolving all the time and it gets more and more exciting as the tech and the AI is refined. New minds are sculpting the way media is traded in a more open, fair, and honest way so that agencies don’t have to choose between retaining their employees by screwing their clients, or gouging clients to make more money to buy their next Lamborghini.
Our media buyers are always optimizing campaigns so that every dollar allotted to a campaign is stretched and maximized to its fullest potential.
Buyer beware, at least with the newer agencies, of the chop shop mentality. The pandemic really shook the industry to its core, and everyone felt the need to pivot because so many millions were home streaming their entertainment. Thousands lost their jobs or quit their jobs to start new agencies, without the proper knowledge of how to buy media to benefit their clients. One would negotiate rates as cheap as they could get it (old school, linear broadcast way of thinking) and then jack the price up as much as they could and send the invoice to their client. Other agencies would farm out all of the media buying and creative and just manage it, instead of acting in their client’s best interest to make sure they are getting exactly what they need. Another old school way of thinking, and these agencies are all but defunct, the, “get as many clients in as possible, bill them, if they’re not happy, screw them we’ll get another one.” Behind them are the agencies that refuse to change their model or refuse to adapt to the times that are changing and enhancing before our eyes. Remember when I said, “fear of the unknown?” There are agencies that are so stuck in their antiquated ways that they are afraid to change, (check out our other blogs Old School Mentality and Problems With Legacy) when the entire industry is changing and asking them to come along for the ride.
As a business owner, you are the entrepreneur that had a vision and took the chance and risked it all to get to where you are today. If you’re happy with where you are and don’t want further success, then these blogs and ad agencies as a whole are not for you. But you are the type who craves further success and growth for your business. You aren’t happiest when resting on your laurels. Change is good. Say it with me, “change is good!” Change and growth, optimization and innovation are the ways that a company like Amazon went from an online bookstore to a global juggernaut. A company so massive and well known, I’m sure even tribes with no outside human contact are ordering from them. Not really, but you get the metaphor. Amazon didn’t grow because they refused to stay where they were. The innovated. They took something so pigeonholed and saw the writing on the wall…and now the CEO and founder, Jeff Bezos, is flying around the planet in orbit. Change is good.
Yeah, but what about loyalty to your agency that has been with you since the start?
Do you pay your agency invoices in loyalty? Do your customers pay you in loyalty? Loyalty is a great quality for personal relationships and a two way relationship with your customers. When you’re trying to grow your business and have an agency acting like an anvil chained to your ankles, how do you expect to grow? If you have an agency that specializes in one thing that was the best form of media thirty years ago, do you think that same thing still works? With all the new ways to reach people, still think it’s the same? When you take a step back and look at your business and the way people used to advertise, do you think the Yellow Pages is where you’re current conversions are coming from? Advertising is so targeted to the person you are trying to reach, it’s borderline scary. Scary in a good way, more like thrilling. Another good thing about a client centered boutique agency is, we don’t use the spray and pray method. We’re going to localize and follow trends to get you in front of the people that want to be your customer. They’re out there actively looking for you, we’re just going to get you in front of them faster.
Our company believes in the ever changing and more customized approach to advertising. Optimizing our clients’ campaigns means our eyes are always on how the campaign is performing and where the best mediums to place your advertising dollars are. The creative that you agree to is also going to play a huge part in how well your campaigns do. We’re always trying to push the envelope to see how many people we can get to notice your brand. We like the unique, out of the box type of creative that will leave people talking or at the very least thinking about your advertising. That’s effective advertising. We believe in that type of advertising because that means people are talking about YOU, not us. Conversions start to happen, and customers start to populate your business, which in turn means greater success for you. Now ask yourself, does my current agency have that capability?
So, while you may be a little timid to start your transition from your agency that you’ve been with for a while, if they aren’t helping you to disrupt your industry, ignite your business, and dominate your competition, are they really the right agency for you?