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As your business grows, you may hire an agency – a PR agency, a branding agency, or a sales training agency. This is new territory for many entrepreneurs. You may find it difficult to differentiate between your choices, and even after you’ve confidently hired the right group of experts for you, you may find yourself wondering how to get the most out of your investment.
I was in your position. I have hired agencies, worked with almost every type of agency and was an agency founder twice. In every phase, pre-selection, selection and implementation, these are my insider recommendations for a successful agency relationship.
Even before you start searching
It may surprise you to hear that some of the most important work begins before you even contact the first agencies.
Be prepared to identify a few things internally, including your budget, your end goals, and your ability to work with an agency. Also identify your internal KPIs. You may not know how a particular agency will report, but being able to share your own measurements is an important step towards success.
I often hear people say that they don’t want to share their budget. We always have it with us on our first call because you could be wasting your time with agencies that are out of your budget. I think this is an important discussion. If you don’t know how much an agency costs, a quick Google search can help you. If you really feel like your budget is so big that you’re worried that disclosure will cost more than you need to spend, you can get around this by splitting your mid-range budget.
Your end goals may include business goals and agency goals. It’s important to share Why You hire an agency because it really helps an agency plan to be an effective partner. Agencies don’t want to fail either.
Also, make a list of questions you will ask. Personally, I think a lot of people focus on the wrong questions and everyone asks the same questions so the answers are simple.
Instead, dig deeper and ask questions like “What challenges do you think will help us achieve our goals with an agency?” “What are the characteristics of your favorite clients?” and “What do your average clients pay?” These Last question about the agency’s average client is important for an easily overlooked reason: you don’t want to have an agency’s smallest budget. Ideally, your budget will be at least in the top 20 percentile or higher of the average customer; The top customers get the top team talent and top service.
You’ll have other things to consider, like the makeup of the team, past successes, and the like, but consider delving deeper on the first call. It will really help you narrow down your choices. You should also determine how you will rate your top three agencies. What are the three most important features you will base your choice on? This will influence your selection matrix.
Choosing your agency: combining intelligence and instinct
As you narrow your search to the top three agencies, you will try to determine the differences. I first recommend that everyone on the selection team create a 3x3x3 selection matrix.
In column A, list three important considerations of your choice. The top row in the BD columns lists the names of your agencies. This is where things get interesting. Each person on your selection committee will weigh each of these considerations, with three being the most important to them and 1 being the least important to them. For example, the CEO might weight budget the highest at three, but the person who works most with the agency might weight cultural fit the highest at three.
If you rate each agency from one to three in each category, you use the multiple of each category multiplied by the score, then add each score together and have a clear winner.
You can rely a little on your gut feeling. Don’t ignore this. The signals you perceive may well indicate how you will work with the agency, and that may be the signal you should give the most weight to.
Three questions that keep the agency relationship at a high level
Now that you’ve chosen experts to help you on your journey, remember: everyone wants a successful engagement. Your agency is at your side. Each group learns to work together, especially at the beginning. The first phases of the collaboration will set the tone. Assuming there is no reason to think otherwise, consider your agency to be an expert.
You may not be familiar with the latest data or trends that influence an agency’s recommendations. So if something doesn’t seem right to you or you don’t understand a recommendation, be sure to ask for context instead of changing it. Instead of saying, “Please change it to…”, change the question to “Please explain this choice to me.” This question provides an opportunity for both of you to learn from each other.
When a delivery is nearing completion, especially if there has been a lot of back and forth, the final question before approval should be, “What else do you think we should change professionally?” Sure, your agency has the best all along professional advice is offered, but sometimes when there are a number of exchanges and requests for changes from you – the client – to please you during a collaboration, she may have picked her battles. This question opens the door to the finishing touches that can differentiate between “excellent” and “remarkable.”
If there is a problem, be it at work or a change in conditions that requires a change, my best advice is to view your agency as your solution partner. People who work in agencies are drawn there because they like to make a difference. She want To make you happy. They live from it. You can encourage this instinct to work for you by taking a collaborative approach. Even if you are frustrated with the agency, you can achieve a productive outcome by asking your agency how they have handled this in the past and what steps each team needs to take to achieve this resolution.
Hiring an agency is a huge effort, regardless of your budget and the goals you want to achieve. Agency partnerships are often best when they are collaborative. Small steps can make a relationship even more productive and your results more impactful than planned.