Subscribe using an RSS feed reader or by email.

Smart, witty, provocative – that’s adman Rory Sutherland, current Vice Chairman at Ogilvy and one of the most entertaining brains you’re likely to meet.

I came across him at TED, the worldwide confab of technology, entertainment, and design leaders which now freely distributes highlights of their conferences on the web at this site. Anytime you want a little juice for your head, go there.

Meantime, sit back for a few minutes and be enthralled by Rory Sutherland’s take on perceived value. It’s a hoot.

Do you wish you could read your clients’ minds to know what they really think about your agency? Do you know how they feel about your creative product, or if that new hire you just made is working out? Do you know for sure if they’re thinking of putting the account up for review? Or what if you knew just what it would take to get more or maybe all of their business?

Agency principals who have the answers to these and similar questions are the ones presiding over growing, thriving agencies. Because ignorance is not bliss.

Grant Consulting is about making your agency work the way you want it to. We’ve perfected a proprietary process to get straight answers to tough questions from your clients that you can use to keep them happy, grow their accounts, and lead to new and more profitable business.

We call it the Client Perception Study™ and we’ve been doing it for agencies around the country since ’92. In every case those agencies are now larger and more profitable than ever, even considering the economic rough patch we’ve just been through. In several instances we’ve actually saved accounts that were about to go out the door.

With our Study, everything is account-specific; there are no meaningless generalities. This is not a one-size-fits-all “survey” clients have to fill out. There’s no, “Responsiveness decreased from 4.7 to 4.6.”  What the hell does that tell you?

Instead, with the Client Perception Study:

· You’ll know who at your clients thinks what about your agency so you can fix specific problems and         perceptions

· You’ll signal to clients your commitment to on-going improvement

· You’ll have a tangible way to enhance value and justify cost because you’ll be managing for results not just effort

· You can use the results – many agencies do – as the key tool for staff performance reviews

Think of it this way: how many clients can you afford to lose? For probably less than you spend on client travel and entertainment, you can find out exactly how to manage your accounts for maximum profit and longevity.

To find out more – what it costs, what you’ll receive, how it’s customized on a client-by-client basis, etc. –  call Joe Grant at 239/394-8220 to chat about your particular situation. No obligation whatsoever.

By the way, we’re happy to put you directly in touch with other agency principals who use our Client Perception Study to grow their revenue and profits. Call 239/394-8220 and we’ll give you the scoop.

PS. How’s your new business these days – not winning all the new accounts you think you should? Our Lost Prospect Reports™ and recommendations can pinpoint problems and give you the information you need to get back on the winning track. Ask us about it.

Subscribe using an RSS feed reader or by email.

Well, after spending my entire adult life in the agency business and the last 16+ years consulting exclusively with agency principals, I’ve come to a conclusion about the single biggest mistake agency CEOs make.

It’s this: You won’t win the race unless you field the best horse you can.

Obvious, for sure, but think about it. In agency new business pitches, if you have the best people, you win; in Creative, if you have the best people, you win; in Account Service, if you have the best, you keep on winning. Have the best in your agency or on the track and you win. It’s as simple as that.

But it’s also why so many agencies fail to finish in the money. What holds agencies back more than anything else is bad hiring.

Not hiring ‘mistakes,’ BAD HIRING.

Though this appears to be a blinding glimpse of the obvious, I’d argue it isn’t so to agency CEOs and owners who often nudge hiring decisions downward to department heads with less-seasoned judgment, or to HR directors with little more training than they’re a ‘people person’ who demonstrates an uncanny ability to remember birthdays. CEOs, especially as an agency grows, too often abdicate their single most critical responsibility affecting the agency’s character and success: hiring the best.

Not so at an agency I know hovering around $50 million where the CEO will not sign off on a hire until he personally has taken the candidate to lunch or dinner. Why a meal? Because there he can’t escape what he knows can be an uncomfortable and often banal conversation wherein he can learn, often painfully, a lot about the candidate. He’s written off many $100 dinners that halted a hire at the 11th hour and claims it’s the best money he spends.

Sure, it can be awkward engaging in mindless chit-chat with someone up for a back office slot, but you’re a good judge of values and character – will this person deliver sound judgment affecting hundreds of thousands of dollars of agency income? Will he or she forge lasting deep relations centered on trust and honesty – both in and outside the agency?

You know, community theaters spend more time auditioning amateur actors for roles they’ll play for only a few weekends than most agencies do discovering if they’re getting just the right person. Too often it’s enough merely to “fill the position” when you should be putting the aspirant through as tough a grilling session as you’d give the ‘dude’ wanting to marry your daughter. Because it’s at least as important.

Hey, and if money’s in the way, veto those budget line items like buying new computers. More sophisticated equipment in the hands of the less skilled will only make your agency look inadequate faster. Instead, invest and then reinvest in the one thing that will always move you ahead: the best people you can get.

This is a great time to scout and enlist new talent. There’s more available (and affordable) cream out there than there’s been in a long while.

You can’t name anything that has more impact on your agency’s run for the roses than making your foremost priority hiring the very best.

Subscribe using an RSS feed reader or by email.

Subscribe using an RSS feed reader or by email.

NOTE: We Tweet almost daily with insights and links of interest to ad agency folk. Click “Follow Me on Twitter” in the column on the right.

—

Bosses. Job satisfaction surveys say the #1 reason people stay or leave a job is the kind of boss they have. That’s even more important than salary.

So I was thinking yesterday about some of the bosses I’ve had or worked with. They all – every one of them – wanted to do a good job. But there were some who sabotaged themselves and their agency’s success, usually with a runaway ego or blinding pride.

There was the guy who absolutely refused to change what he knew were destructive behaviors. So a group of us, taking our families’ futures directly into our hands, staged an intervention to help him realize how he was hurting the agency and everyone in it. I’m not talking about a he’s-drinking-his-lunch intervention (he shunned alcohol; too bad, it might have helped!). No, his problem was extreme moodiness, swings from hyper-micromanagement to total apathy, temper tantrums (full-scale: throwing things, screaming, threatening to fire everybody on the spot). He refused professional counseling and last I heard he’s still limping along with a just a small staff. The rest of us left years ago.

There was another agency CEO who demanded every single communication be passed under his nose for approval. Talk about no empowerment! Work was always in queue for approval; things were constantly jammed up and late. Anything that mentioned money or implied the agency would be obligated in any way was subject to his OK or veto. He trusted nobody.

One more example: an agency CEO whose habit is to always reject all projects with “not good enough.” Many are plenty good enough of course, but she believes people are intrinsically lazy and never give their best unless they’re scourged like Roman slaves rowing a galleon.

For the record, I’ve worked with and for some really wonderful bosses, too – who understood that the work is best when people are positively motivated, happy, and can grow daily in competence and confidence.

What should you do if you’re in a tough spot? First, learn all you can from the situation. Keep your head held high and do your best to contribute and grow without sacrificing your dignity or doing damage to your soul.

But remember also that life is too short to work for a card-carrying jerk. Never let your fear of finding another job, even in these times, imperil your sanity or your health. You are not an indentured servant.

So what does a good boss do? Get some ideas by reading Style Matters: How to Behave When You’re The Boss on our website.

Subscribe using an RSS feed reader or by email.

It’s raining as I write this, and it reminded me of what a drag it can be for kids stuck inside on a dreary, damp day. It’s depressing.

But when I was growing up and it rained, my Mom encouraged me to do something different, something to help eliminate the blanket of lethargy and apathy which often accompany drizzly days.

You can use a similar ploy at your agency.

Use wet sloppy days to solve nettlesome problems, break out of ruts, and get ideas flowing. Stick with me – this may sound hokey but I guarantee something productive will come from it.

Come up with a list of rainy-day projects. Some suggestions:

• Task groups or individuals to generate a minimum of 10 ideas to increase the value of their work for clients without increasing cost or unbillable hours
• Offer a small gift, maybe some sort of traveling trophy, for the largest number of computer files dumped or most kilobytes liberated by day’s end
• Hold a contest – each department comes up with ideas to improve its efficiency and communication with another department
• Then there’s the old standby: develop money-saving, productivity-increasing ideas, e.g. how can we develop low cost training programs?
• Plan something different for this year’s Christmas party (always fun to do in the summer)
• Start a book club – read business books and report on them to the staff with a focus on discovering improvements you can implement

Put a time limit on these “rainy day” challenges so other routine projects get done. At the end of the day have a beer-and-chips session to regroup and present any “awards.”

Here’s the point: it’s all about ideas. It’s invigorating to break out of routines on an otherwise dreary day and come up with a bunch of smart solutions. A little bit of fun like this will actually lubricate your brain so it’s easier to solve other problems. Try it.

By the way, a rainy day is a great opportunity for the boss to surprise everyone and order in lunch, too…

Your 2 cents

These were just a few thoughts that came to mind as a steady rain continues to fall outside. So what do you think? Got any suggestions to share with others reading this? Please comment below.

Subscribe using an RSS feed reader or by email.

Imagine meeting three ad agency partners for the first time in a nice private dining room to get acquainted before facilitating a strategic planning session the next morning. As the evening goes on things get so tense that one of them screams, throws the bread basket in another’s face, and storms out not to be seen again that night.

Hmmm.

When we’re brought in to diagnose why an agency is stuck in neutral, the first thing we check is how healthy the executive team is. Or not. A single meeting is usually all it takes to see if the family is dysfunctional. And if it is, the whole agency culture is usually infected.

The problem children always stand out: they’re the excuse-makers, the naysayers (“We tried that before and it didn’t work”), they throw boulders in the path of progress. No matter what, they’re blameless when something goes wrong. . . or so they’d have you believe.

What to do?

First, remember that this is a business, not a counseling or rehab center. So put your emotions aside. If the senior team has an ineffective, overly-entitled member who effectively deselects him or herself from contributing to the agency’s success, don’t allow one person to hold the whole place hostage.

I’ve seen entire agencies scuttled by just one soured individual. Don’t let it happen at your place.

And don’t make excuses for not taking action.

Cost too much to buy them out? There’s always a way to set up a payoff over time; believe me, it will be cheaper in the long run. Been with you 20 years or more? So what. If they no longer contribute commensurate with their salary, it’s time to go. Seniority, after all, is about the past, not the future.

Too painful? OK, so you go through a rough patch working out the details of departure – isn’t that better than waking up every day with the problem over your head and seeing the agency falter for the next 5 -10 years?

Then there’s the “It will hurt them too much” excuse. Of course it will. But if they’ve risen near the top of your agency then they’re talented, capable, and smart. . . and they’ll find something else, no doubt a lot more satisfying. A new environment or challenge will be best for both them and your agency in the long run – how many times have you seen that happen when others left?

Easily 75% of our consulting work is bringing focus to dysfunctional agency leadership teams. Occasionally that means facing the music and making the changes that, believe me, everybody – staff, vendors, and even your clients – know are necessary.

By the way, the story at the top is true and had a good outcome. The food-fighter eventually left and went on to thrive in his own business. The other partners reconstituted and the agency continues to prosper.

You can write a happy ending, too.

Subscribe using an RSS feed reader or by email.

If you think the ad agency business as we’ve known it will be soon returning to normal so you can relax a little this summer, forget it.

OK, so we’re seeing ‘green shoots’ in the economy as Bernanke says – little glimmers here and there that we’re no longer flat-lining. But when we emerge from this tunnel the scenery is going to be quite a bit different. It’s delusional to think we can pick up right where we left off before the economic balloon shriveled.

Times have changed.

Instead of waiting for things to improve, why not use the next few months to re-cast your agency for 2010 and beyond?

• First, create a true strategic plan. With teeth, more definitive than merely “make more money than last year.” Set hard milestones and accountabilities with consequences for performance or lack thereof. Ad agencies aren’t wishing wells where you hope things magically get better; they’re businesses and should be run that way.
• Fix the nagging internal ops which always seem to sabotage your efficiency. You know what’s not working – eliminate the bottlenecks and soft spots. Now.
• Purge mediocre or over-ripe staff who are no longer growing. Too harsh, you say? Well for the times ahead you need fresh vigorous talent who’ll lead your agency into tomorrow, not back markers hung up on how easy it was in the good ole’ days (it’s an ideal time to hire because there’s a lot of recently displaced top-notch talent available who can really impact how you attract and keep better clients. See It’s Time to Hire.
• Reorganize to meet today’s client needs and changing markets. Don’t be held hostage by old agency models dating back to when mass media and 15% commissions were king. Take a clean sheet of paper and redraw your agency structure around what works best for clients, not what’s easiest. You’ll never go wrong doing that.
• Analyze your fees and client agreements then adjust as necessary. It always amazes me how afraid agencies are to raise rates when so many of their costs are going up. Stop complaining about how hard it is to make a buck and instead hike your rates so you can stay healthy. Courage, men!
• Digital, social media, i-tech . . . They’re’ not add-ons, folks, which you can claim you’re competent in just by hiring a person or two. They’re where things are right now and the springboard to, well, who knows?

Of course you don’t have to change anything at all. Hey, as clients begin to spend again and the pressure abates, you can schedule more afternoons for golf, right?

Or. . . you could dedicate some of those golf afternoons to concentrate on what has to change so your agency can get ahead of the curve. You can use part of the summer to make smart decisions and reposition your agency so it won’t be a victim of the times, technologies, and changing tastes – to make it a leader not a follower.

Then again you could just flop into a hammock and wait for things go “back to normal.”

Went to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame yesterday in Cleveland. God, it was great; almost too much to take without requesting supplemental oxygen as the memories flooded in from my death-defying youth. . . or what I remember of it anyway (!).

There are so many impressions to share, but one that bubbled to the top was how similar rock ‘n roll is to advertising.

Well, sort of.

The Hall’s multi-media experiences and displays make it clear that a rock band’s success was highly dependent on how outrageous they were, how many taboos they shattered, how uncomfortable they made the establishment, and of course produced words and music that spoke to the very soul of their audiences. The costumes, make-up, stage design, coarse words, driving beats, stunts. . . all are highly expressive forms of communication. And, highly effective, too – making their mark on their target audiences that has lasted generations.

Isn’t advertising supposed to be like that? Powering a message at a specific audience, stopping them dead in their tracks to feel something, and maybe even do something. When you experience good rock music, at the least you want to get up and move and dance. Now how powerful is that? Just imagine if advertising could be that evocative. . .

But alas, as we all know, it rarely is because the really good stuff – the uncomfortable, over-the-top edgy stuff – gets shot down before it leaves the agency, and sometimes even before it gets out of Creative. “The suits upstairs won’t go for it.” “The client will never buy it.” “It’ll never get past Legal.”

I confess: I’ve killed a lot of unborn children in my time. I, and other folks like me who’ve made a career in advertising, told Elton John to forget the goofy glasses and outfits and just play the damn piano like the classical pianist he was trained to be. We instructed David Bowie to look like a man instead of wearing a dress and wig. Janice, don’t scream like that; it offends people. Hey, ZZ Top – shave, will ya?!

Today I stand with the Pro-Lifers. Don’t kill the fetus before it even breathes! Let the ideas, crazy and bold and raw as they may be live, for Crissakes.

If advertising is going to survive as a “collective” experience, i.e. where we all get the same message and react pretty much the same way (as people do at a rock concert) then we can’t be afraid of any idea no matter how scary or whom it might piss off. OK, sure, it’s got to mean something. But please can we drop  the politically correct crap and get on with the business of effective communication?

And if I see another damn flyspeck legal disclaimer at the end of a TV spot I’m going to throw something at it.

Your 2 Cents

Agree, disagree? Are all the good ads stillborn because they might offend somebody?

Subscribe using an RSS feed reader or by email.

A few stories from some agencies we know with suggestions to avoid similar fates.

When you read these you may think, “No way.”  Well, way. I’ve been in the middle of straightening these messes out as an “agency shrink” and though there’s a shade of obfuscation in each tale to identities , be assured they’re all true.

Agency T: A high-energy place, a big independent in a large town with brand new offices and just now coming off a couple of flat-to-awful years. Sounds good so far, but here’s the problem: the 7 VPs do everything they can to avoid each other – some actually brag they haven’t spoken in months! They have no regular meetings. Sadly, several say that even though they’re paid well, they hate coming to work because they dislike their colleagues so. They simply can not work as an effective group and so the agency misses opportunities and is a pretty miserable place to work for a lot of people.

Agency D: In business 18 years, 28 people on staff. Scraping by but they’ll probably survive today’s soft economy. Unless, of course, the owner’s unmitigated and TOTAL lack of trust in his 4 senior players doesn’t scuttle the ship. He says he can’t stand to even look at them they’re so incompetent, unreliable and disengaged. He hasn’t done anything about it because (1) “it might upset our clients” and (2) “it’s hard to get good people.” Folks, I’m not making this up.

Agency V: Dad now in his 60s started this place and did well (the biggest Mercedes, house in the mountains, and everything’s paid for). Brought his kid in a couple of years ago right out of college to begin to take over. The problem: Dad’s so afraid the whole thing might crumble that he’s paralyzed about doing anything differently than he did 25 years ago. This guy could be the poster boy for the Risk Aversion League and as a result the agency’s dying. Clients are bailing and there’s no new business to speak of. There’ll be very little left for the kid to run.

Warren Bennis, who has made a career studying why some leaders are great and others fail, would probably tell you these agencies are in serious trouble because of titanic leadership breakdowns. Let’s look.

There’s no shared dream at Agency T, only personal agendas. It’s the CEO’s job to blend differences in style and provide direction and meaning to achieve a common unifying mission. Bennis tells the story about the Manhattan Project and George Kistiakowsky, a great chemist who later served as Eisenhower’s chief science advisor, who threatened to quit because he couldn’t get along with a colleague. Project leader Robert Oppenheimer simply said, “George, how can you leave this project? The free world hangs in the balance.” Conflict, even with brilliant and diverse people, is resolved by reminding people of the mission. Works especially well at agencies.

How’d you like to work at Agency D where the owner doesn’t trust his key people and they don’t trust him? How this guy came to hire so many people he dislikes and distrusts would keep Dr. Phil happy for several shows, but the point is if you’ve got trust you can ride out all kinds of storms. Trust starts with the CEO generating and demonstrating faith in the senior team – if it isn’t there it won’t be anyplace else in the company.

Over at Agency V, Dad’s gotten way too comfortable. I call this the WAS disease – We’ve Arrived Syndrome. If the top banana isn’t fueled by urgency, risk taking and experimentation then the agency is careening toward perdition. The son wants to diversify and maybe acquire some competitors (they’ve got the cash), but Dad won’t agree to it. Too risky. Bennis says willingness to risk failure to achieve results is at the heart of all successful ventures. I’d add that success stops when risk ends.

Full disclosure: Warren Bennis’ short article, The Secrets of Great Groups, was the inspiration for these opinions.

Your 2 Cents

How about you – have any horror tales you’d like to share? Morals to the story are highly encouraged so we can all learn.

Subscribe using an RSS feed reader or by email.

More and more I’m convinced the path to agency success is specialization.

Face it, agency-types are burdened by hubris. We’re too quick to say “Sure, we can do that,” and we probably honestly believe we can. One agency I know actually has this mission plaque hung in their lobby: Whatever the Client Wants.

But this kind of delusional thinking is what costs agencies tons of cash as they unrealistically respond to client needs. They’ll claim they do PR by hiring a “people person” to head a one person department, promote a computer game fiend to web designer, or anoint someone who knows how to text as the Digital Strategist.

Agencies that will do anything for anyone are like short order diners – they’re good at slapping out eggs & toast or meatloaf with mashed potatoes, but you wouldn’t expect them also to confect a delicate French sauce to accompany your Dover sole.

To channel Gordon Gecko for a moment, focus is good. Two quick stories will illustrate.

An agency in Indiana had a basket of different accounts some years ago. But their biggest one marketed highly regulated and complex products like ag chemicals and advanced technical equipment. They began to focus only on  “technical and scientific products” and now 5MetaCom is a profitable leader with a national reputation in a narrow but target-rich field.

The Max Borges Agency in Miami tells their whole story in 4 words: Pure Tech, Pure Results. Owner/founder Max will tell you, “All we do is get hits for tech gadgets. That’s it.” Sure, like most PR firms they could easily slide into hawking any kind of product but their strategy precludes distraction and they market themselves as experts.

And who doesn’t want to go to an expert? You can be an agency that’s expert in high tech gadgets, hospitality and travel, not-for-profit hospitals, or even petroleum drilling rig mud pumps.

I don’t buy that agencies will never know an advertiser’s market as well as the client does. That’s merely an excuse for mediocrity and bogus in our age of specialization. Clients want you to really know their market. . .  so you’ll concoct opportunities and flood them with proactive ideas.

Consider: the essence of strategy is sacrifice. To be an expert and reap the good stuff – including high fees, a reputation for effectiveness, and prospects begging you to take them on – you’ve got to sacrifice the dog and cat accounts that suck up so much time and money and yield so little, and concentrate instead on the one industry you know. . . where you do it better than anybody else.

That’s not hubris, by the way. It’s sound strategy. And yes, like most things requiring sacrifice, there’s payoff down the road.

Subscribe using an RSS feed reader or by email.

Just came from The Innisbrook Group’s semi-annual meeting in Miami. Innisbrook is a collaboration of geographically diverse integrated marketing and public relations firms whose principals get together a couple of times a year to share ideas, best practices, marketing expertise – and even screw ups. It’s all about learning.

Agency groups make a lot of sense, especially if you’ve come of age at just one agency. They provide a) a way to profit from others who may have already solved the same problems you’re facing, b) camaraderie, c) a forum to discuss issues you’d be uncomfortable getting into with even trusted staff, and d) a chance to get out of the office a couple of days to do some big picture thinking. And, yes, you’ll have e) some laughs and maybe even squeeze in a round of golf or something.

Usually there is a guest “expert” or two at the meetings (that’s how I know Innisbrook – addressed them twice, but invited this time as a favor so I could hear one of the speakers myself).

Friday the gang listened to Chrs Heuer of AdHocnium give an overview of social engagement strategies, i.e. social media, for ad agencies. Terrific stuff. Later Dave Ramos of the Dashboard Group presented his process of focusing on One Thing. Saturday morning Tom Attea, formerly of Y&R and IPG, gave an inspiring pep talk based on his new book, The Secrets of Successful Creative Advertising.

There was also time for each agency head to present a brief review of what they’ve been up to lately, including sharing new business development tips, and for the group to do some collaborative problem solving.

Any topic is fair game at these things. But I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention there was some hootin’ and hollerin’, too. I witnessed certain agency big shots dancing on tables with belly dancers at Taverna Opa on South Beach at dinner Friday. Then Saturday the group took a Duck ride on the Miami waterways.

Hey, if you’re not a member of an owner’s group you’re missing opportunities to learn, develop relationships with peers, and have a little fun. Expenses are usually moderate; dinners, meeting rooms, etc. are typically totaled then divided by the number of agency honchos attending.

Over the years I’ve delivered seminars or speeches at several owner groups. Here are a few you might want to check out (and no doubt there are others): AMIN, AMR, ANNI, MAGNET, MarketPower,Worldwide Partners. Don’t forget the AAAAs – as a member you can participate in their Forum groups.

And if you’re interested in the Innisbrook Group, get in touch with member Will Flynn at Franklin Street Marketing in Richmond.

Just tell him “Joe sent me.”

Your 2 Cents

Comment or plug your group here. Are these agency owner’s groups helpful? If you belong to one, what’s been the best learning experience for you?

   Subscribe using an

One day when I was managing an agency near Cleveland, an RFP came in from Moen, a major manufacturer of bath and kitchen plumbing fixtures. We had a can’t-miss shot because we had a “mole” on the inside – a next door neighbor of one of our people not only worked at Moen, he was on the selection team.

The Moen boys were obsessive about the process – lots of Dos and Don’ts. One stood out: no speculative creative work of any sort will be permitted. Our inside guy said if anyone showed creative they’d be immediately disqualified.

On the final presentation day – one of those God-awful things where the 3 finalist agencies sat together in a crowded lobby near enough to the conference room to hear occasional laughter – our turn came and we flawlessly presented strategies and plans. But no creative.

Next day I got an awkward call with the news they’d chosen someone else. Damnit, we were wired – what did we miss?

The mole later admitted that in their presentation the winning agency whipped out spec creative and the business unit GM thought it was the coolest stuff he’d ever seen. He made a unilateral decision to ignore the rules because “they were the most creative.”

It scarred me for life. Ever since I’ve been generally in favor of presenting spec work.

Yes, when you do spec you risk being off the mark, misunderstanding product attributes, blundering into forbidden areas, or using a color the CEO’s wife doesn’t like. Some say you sully your most valuable asset by giving it away free (this always seems to have more to do with ego than money).

But friends, it’s worth it.

Sure, if it’s obvious someone wants to see creative just to harvest free ideas, of course don’t do it. A Memo of Understanding about how you the agency will proceed during the selection process, including who retains ownership of ideas, is not unusual and may save your bacon. Some prospects will pay you a pittance – never enough – just to ease their conscience. Make sure you keep the usage rights.

Clients love seeing their name in lights, right? Slap their logo prominently on binders, in PowerPoint, on boards, and on anything spec larger than you’d ever intend to use it.

And you can’t feature too many shots of their product. These are their children, their grandkids, their livelihood and seeing them in new ways blown up and comped (always show print ads at least twice actual size) is cheap flattery that works almost every time.

Prostitution, you say? I don’t know – you’ll have to decide.

After the Moen experience I never hesitated to include spec on every subsequent pitch including when it was forbidden. Sometimes it worked, sometimes it didn’t. . . but we were never tossed out because of it.

I say the more spec the merrier as long as your strategy and planning is stout. You’ll showcase your talents (“Creative wins accounts and Account Service keeps ‘em”) and give them some juicy stuff to talk about. Leave the spec work behind after the pitch, if you can.

Never forget the mission: win a new account to keep and grow. Smart agencies find plenty of ways to recover acquisition costs later.

Spec is the sizzle; when you win the account you can start billing for the whole steak.

Your 2 Cents?

How do you handle spec work at your agency? Have you ever broken the rules pitching an account? Share your stories in the Comments section below.

What an adventure! 

When the new year dawned I got about as close as ever to crafting a New Year’s resolution and decided to figure out My Face, Tweeterizing, Snipe, and all the other whiz-whaz out there. Reason? To (a) become more conversant with “social media” so we could better advise our agency clients on its use and impact, and (b) see if any of it made sense as an outlet for my own juices.

After all, you don’t want the world to pass you by. 

Advertising is absolutely all about staying au courant, and even better, being outré. (See? Right there I used two French terms in one sentence – progress!) Staying cool and with it can easily become too demanding as more pages fly off the calendar. And since I just recently discovered my first gray hair, taking action became imperative.

After lots of fumbling we’re now on the grid with Plaxo, Linked-in, Facebook (which I use exclusively for only personal-family stuff), free video conferencing on Skype, and this blog. Twitter will be next.

This blog is still very much an experiment; there’ve only been a dozen or so posts – its “voice” is yet to ring steady and true. But we’re feeling our way and slowly picking up subscribers, many of whom were familiar with Grant Consulting Associates. We drive some in from our website, others from speaking gigs, and of course consulting engagements. . . but, my God, there are so many more out there!

Michael Gass who blogs on Fuel Lines writes almost exclusively about drumming up new accounts for agencies. . . via social media. His article and interview “Ad agency having explosive new business growth by leading with social media” will get your blood running.

I’m fascinated with the entire social media scene. I believe that on the timeline of technology we’re still living in caves, with the prospect of all this digital conjugation altering and improving our lives in quantum-leap ways.

Of course there’ll be plenty of bad with the good, including here on gRantvertising – lots of experimentation and failure – but it’s indubitable that advertising and marketing as we’ve known it will never be the same. Like air travel last century which recast business and personal relationships at 500+ mph, what we can and will do digitally will rewrite our story. Big time.

So I’m glad you’re along for the ride. Hope the occasional shutters and jerks don’t make you want to exit.

Next stop: Twitterville!

Your 2 Cents

Tell me and others reading this blog if and how you’re using the new technologies to promote your agency business.

Subscribe using an RSS feed reader or by email