The official blog of Ignition Consulting Group
“Does new business have to be this difficult?” It’s a question Ignition increasingly hears from agencies around the country and around the world. Business development is in fact much harder than it used tobe. And it’s not just the economic recession that’s causing the problem …
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It’s a true and remarkable fact that 60-70% of a company’s market value is intangible; value created by how the brand is perceived by its customers. This phenomenon has been widely studied and plays out in dramatic ways especially in large consumer good companies. A study of brand equity by Prophet quotes former Quaker CEO John Stewart as saying “If this business were split up, I would give you the land and bricks and mortar, and I would take the brands and trademarks and I would fare better than you” …
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When it comes to your agency’s business strategy (positioning), the best place to start is to make sure you’ve struck the right balance between authenticity and aspiration. An agency positioning that’s too authentic is too backward-looking, too focused on where the business was instead of where the business is going. On the other hand, a positioning strategy that’s too aspirational is a shot in the dark based more on hopes than abilities …
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As a professional services firm, the ultimate business strategy is to not just be a category leader, but to create a new category; to be a category of one. The most powerful positionings create a new market, in which you are the leading – and only – provider. The alternative is to produce the same thing most other agencies produce; the stuff that the client community increasingly regards as “commoditized” …
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In groups of agency professionals around the world I have often asked the question, “What do clients really buy from your agency?” Their answers usually include things like “Solutions to marketing problems,” “Insights and innovation,” “Expertise,” and “Successful marketplace outcomes.” Not a single person has ever said “Time.” Because deep down inside we all understand that clients don’t really buy our time. Time is just a means to an end, not the end in itself …
The effects on your business of committing to a focus that makes the most of your strengths can be not just incremental, but exponential. It’s actually very similar to the growth pattern often seen in the digital world, sometimes referred to as the “network effect” …
When you shop for a car, you’re looking for an “outcome”, not a set of components that comprise an automobile. Imagine visiting your dream car’s website and finding in place of a compelling description of the car and its main benefits, an exhaustive list of features. Or worse, a list of the components that make up the car – the hood, trunk, wheels, doors, motor, suspension, drive train, cooling system, lighting system, gauges, sensors, ignition system, starting system, switches (you get the idea) …
Is an agency that is twice the expense of an in-house unit (even when accounting for internal overhead) worth the price? Actually, yes. The right kind of agency is actually worth 11 times the price. Here’s why …
Looking at agencies from the outside, a lot of business people presuppose that agencies must be hothouses of internal collaboration. Most of the time they’re not …
“What is it they do again?” That’s the reaction of many prospective clients looking at the list of diverse services listed on most agency websites. The truth is that the agencies with the strongest new business development records are those that don’t try to provide every possible service for every possible kind of client …
I’ve always believed that the greatest benefit of getting paid based on value instead of time isn’t that the agency has the potential to earn more money (although most do). It’s that a focus on results instead of hours has the potential to completely alter the dynamics of the agency-client relationship …
Because most agencies run their businesses based on hours and time, they have come to believe that what they’re selling – and what clients are buying – is efficiency. That’s nonsense. When you take your car to the shop, are you buying fast work or good work? You might answer both, but if you had to choose between one and the other, you would of necessity choose effectiveness. Efficiency without effectiveness is meaningless …
Eavesdrop on management meetings of firms around the world and you’re likely to hear a discussion about how to cut costs in order to increase profits. That’s the wrong discussion to be having …
As a agency brand, would you rather be moderately appealing to a large group of prospects, or intensely appealing to a select group of prospects? Most agency professionals would say the latter. But most often, their business strategy centers on the former …
Some agency executives bristle at the idea that their work is becoming “commoditized” by clients. Admittedly, “commoditized” is a strong word. So “devalued” if you prefer. The simple truth is that clients won’t pay much for what they consider to be widely-available services, and its killing agency profit margins. So instead of changing their business practices, many agencies just keep cutting staff, reducing benefits, etc. as though they’ll be able to save their way to success …
