In 11 years of business, we’ve learned as an agency what makes client relationships strong. We’ve seen it all. The good, the bad and everything in between.
We sat down to consider what our most valued partnerships have in common. We look for these things in our sales process. Here are the top 5 indicators of a solid agency-client partnership.
1. Know your goals.
Tell us what you want, what you really, really want. And be specific! What does growth look like for your business? “We want people to know who we are” isn’t a specific enough goal. If people knowing who you are generates leads for you, that’s a solid goal, but brand awareness in and of itself shouldn’t be the goal. Of course as your business evolves, what growth looks like for you might change. But when you first partner with us, it’s vital that you’ve defined what growth looks like for you so we can help you make that growth happen.
2. Know your identity.
Who are you as a business or brand? We realize that this can be fluid as your business evolves, but we see our most solid partnerships with businesses who know the audience they are aiming to reach, know what they have to offer, and have a strong understanding of their positioning in their industry.
We can assure you that we know who we are as an agency, and that we make it a priority to work within our strengths.
For this reason, we focus on solidifying partnerships that are within our areas of expertise as an agency. We will turn down collaborations that aren’t within the areas of expertise that define our brand. While we can work with you to define your brand, our most solid partnerships happen when clients have done the work and know their own brands inside and out. That way we can amplify your already-defined brand.
3. Have faith in us.
We know, this is a hard one. We fully expect to have to earn your trust. However, we also expect to be an extension of your team. What does this look like? In our healthiest client relationships, clients let us do what they hired us to do. They are open to direction and suggestions, and don’t micromanage minutia. We anticipate that the frequency of our solid communication with you about projects will build this trust and enable our ability to help you scale.
Please keep us informed about where you’re at with your goals and keep us informed as things change. We always want to have a strong understanding of how you feel about the partnership and the work we are accomplishing together. So tell us! We value your active and open communication.
4. Be open to new possibilities.
What does this mean? This means that we want you to be able to take (calculated) risks. This is what will grow your business. We are flexible, and we need to be able to move fast to see results. We make solid decisions quickly, we optimize quickly, and the results will follow just as quickly. Are you able to turn on a dime as we look at data and see a smart chance that you can take for your business? Our most solid relationships are able to adapt and move as we help them make efficient, data-driven decisions to further drive their results.
5. Solid creative is imperative.
Your results are heavily dependent on the quality of your visuals and content. If you have strong content, we can focus on adapting it, rather than starting from scratch. While we are able to design and tweak, it’s extremely helpful for your brand and your growth if you are able to generate solid content (photos, video, copy, images) or enlist us to create some for you.
We love when clients are a good fit. Do you think these top 5 things describe your business? If so, reach out to us and we will talk about partnering.