Improve Your Marketing Results by Treating Your Own Agency Like a Client
You’ve probably heard the old saying, “The shoemaker’s children go barefoot.” For most marketing agencies, their own marketing plan often sits collecting dust while the team works hard to attract new clients and serve the clients already on the roster.
Your agency’s marketing is likely the last thing on an ever-growing to-do list. You’re busy and stressed, so it’s ok if your initiatives stay on the back burner, right?
Well… in a word, no.
If you hope to grow your business, treating your own agency like a client is one of the best ways to move to the next level. It’s time to practice what you preach to new clients!
Define Your Brand
One of the first things you should do is determine what sets you apart from your competitors. If you can’t define what makes you different from every other agency, imagine how challenging it might be for your prospective clients.
One of the easiest ways to make your agency stand out is to clearly define your philosophy. Why do you do what you do? What do YOU provide your clients that no one else can? Is it your experience in a particular industry, your rock star design team, or your extraordinary customer service? Whatever it is that you do better than anyone else, make sure that this is front and center in your marketing.
Additionally, look at your visuals— have you created a cohesive color scheme and consistent use of your logo? Does your website look sharp and updated? Is it well organized and easy to navigate, and is your logo prominently displayed? You want anything associated with your agency to be instantly recognizable to current and prospective clients.
Build Your Ideal Client Profile
The thought of narrowing your client pool might be scary, but working with the people for whom you can provide the maximum value will save you time, money, and headaches.
To determine your ideal client, look to your current clients-- who do you love to work with? Which clients’ industries or clientele mesh well with your team’s skillset or with your agency’s ethos? Who’s easy to work with, and who incites panic when their name pops up in your inbox?
Figuring out who you want to work with will help you refine your internal marketing so you can target the exact audience you want to work with, making it easier to connect with the clients that are right for you. For instance, if your audience spends the majority of their time on LinkedIn, it doesn’t make financial sense to invest in Facebook ads. Maybe your audience responds better to video than more traditional content-- a YouTube channel might be a good use of your time and energy!
Create a Schedule— and Stick to It!
Is there anything more frustrating than creating a great marketing plan for a client, only to have them deviate from your carefully crafted schedule just a few months after you presented it? You explained the importance of consistency when building a customer base, but they just didn’t seem to understand, or worse, they don’t care.
Finding the time to work on your own agency’s blog or organic social media presence can feel like an inconvenience at best. You’ve got client work to handle— surely that should take precedence over your own agency’s plan? You have to pay your bills!
Well, if you want to continue to build your hard-earned audience, you can’t slack when it comes to your own business’s online presence. Set aside time on a weekly or monthly basis to schedule that blog post, client newsletter, or organic social media post. (If you truly don’t have time to handle it, consider outsourcing the work.) If you become a familiar presence to the businesses that fit your client profile, you’ll be the first place they turn to when they need help.
Be Your Own Best Customer
Is it time-consuming to treat yourself like a customer? Yep. But it can pay off in the long run. And, like most habits, it will soon become second nature to prioritize your own marketing efforts. You might even enjoy the time dedicated to building your business!
If you’d like to outsource this task or any other, we’d love to help! Click here to set up a time to chat with me about our services!