graywolf

The numbers are enough to make you howl.  Our recent survey shows:

  • 59% of Marketers told us they have been consolidating agencies recently.
  • 63% indicated they expected this trend to continue.

Marketers say

  • At the same time, 88% of agencies say they are getting more aggressive with new business strategies.
  • Accordingly, 79% of Agencies indicate the industry has become more competitive over the past 3-4 years.

Agencies say

Condensing opportunities for new business combined with agencies pressing harder for those opportunities: it’s a recipe that demands future-proofing your agency!

Over the past five weeks, our posts have focused on animal traits in our infographic, 8 Animal Traits You Need to Future Proof your Agency, which are important for being a stronger partner to your client.

The final three traits we will cover for future-proofing your agency address the need to be a stronger competitor.

The first of these competitive traits is savviness, and the Gray Wolf is an excellent example of a savvy competitor.

Gray Wolves are outstanding hunters.  They have a highly organized social structure that fosters cooperation when hunting.  Key to their success is communication within the pack.

Hunting alone, a Gray Wolf is capable of catching and killing a deer.  But, collaborating with the pack, wolves can prey on much larger animals such as elk and moose.

In agency new business, the hunt is about communication, process and collaboration.  Make sure your “pack” is primed to bring in the BIG game.  Just a few recommendations include:

  • Be deliberate in your communications.
    • Establish a strong-point-of-difference and articulate it clearly.
    • Develop thought leading content and publish it.
  • Establish a disciplined process for agency new business.
    • Identify targets and accurate contact information.
    • Insist on persistence and consistency in making contact with prospects.
  • Use the strengths of your “pack” to maximize collaboration.
    • Dedicate resources for identifying decision makers in target companies.
    • Establish responsibility for consistent outreach and follow-up to make connections and develop relationships.
    • Send in your strongest hunters for the close.

 

It’s not too early to be future-proofing your agency as we make the turn toward 2016.  Competition is sure to continue intensifying. 

Gray Wolf

Be aggressive.  Be Savvy.

BE THE GRAY WOLF.

Mark is a 30-year veteran of the consumer packaged goods, advertising, and marketing service industry. Mark started his career at DDB Needham in Chicago prior to earning his MBA from the J.L. Kellogg Business School at Northwestern where he majored in Marketing and Economics. Prior to starting RSW/US in 2005, Mark was General Manager for AcuPOLL, a global research consultancy. Sneider worked in Marketing for S.C. Johnson and KAO Brands. Sneider has been invited to speak at numerous Agency events and network conferences domestically and internationally including the 4A’s, Magnet, NAMA, TAAN, and MCAN. Sneider has been featured in prominent industry publications including Adweek, Media Post, e-Marketer, and Forbes. When not working (which often seems like not often), Mark likes to run miles, go to church, and just chill with a hard copy issue of Fast Company.