New Business Ideas: 49 Growth Tactics

NOTE: If you have any more please let me know and I’ll add them to the list!

1. Move into public relations

• When the economy slows down and media spending falters.
• Money spent by clients is usually all fee.
• If you’re not into this, move that way now.
• Expand that part of your operation.
• Stress with all your clients. It’s a real money maker.

• When business gets bad, this helps.
• You’ll do better
• When clients see you, they have more confidence in you.
• Always dress one notch better than your prospects and clients.

• Walk in business can often be strong and highly profitable.
• Many agencies in high traffic locations have reported surprising results by listing what they do: advertising, branding, digital, public relations.
• Key what you want and refer the rest.
• Walk in business is usually fee business which is good.

• Be clear about what you do.
• Too many agencies hide the fact that they’re an agency.
• Use a strong energy line as part of your corporate identity package.

• You help businesses grow.
• You move markets.
• You generate results.
• You return a lot for a little.

• Talk up new business with your staff.
• Get them hunting for leads.
• Ask everyone for three leads per month.
• Everyone who does, goes to lunch with the boss.

• Not always great at new business, but good to start building relationships
• What you need are relationships and your senior staff are in the best position to get relationships started.
• Senior staff are the ones who prospects want to see.
• Get them “sharking” for you on major pieces of business whales
• Get them a limited number of prospects to reach out to maybe 5.
• You land one; the staff member gets a great reward.

• Agencies have conflicts. Consultants have areas of expertise.
• Develop an area of expertise for your agency and work that vein hard.
• Prospects respond well to category experts.
• And industry experts can work ocean to ocean.

• Most agencies drive by good accounts all day long.
• Go “smoke stacking” for leads.
• Look for successful businesses close at hand.
• Remember the story of the prospector who was surrounded by acres of diamonds. But he stopped a foot too short.

• Used flight schedules to target key cities
• Follow one-flight rule
• Helps speed up servicing distant accounts
• A better story for prospects

• Relations are easy to make
• Use as referral base
• Don’t have to lead, just participate
• Good source of leads

• Charities attract big names from important brands
• Charities are on the look out for business leaders with connections
• Advertising agency leaders can be very important to charities
• Most charities represent a target-rich environment

• Easy to start
• Use social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter, and Linked In
• Quickly makes the author an expert
• Feedback is quick and simple
• Video add personality
• Helps if you offer value and have a point of view

• Historically effective
• Move to new medium on line
• Add diagrams and examples
• Distribute to leads as examples of our thinking

• Have an aspiration look
• Your office is you
• Most people believe a messy desk equals a cluttered mind
• Win the perception battle

• Look carefully at your corporate identity pieces
• Do the business card check
• Be sure and look the part from a design standpoint
• Say what you do

• Make it clear
• Make it distinctive
• Try to make it memorable
• Make it work for you

• Your front face
• Little effort pays big dividends
• Signage counts

• There is an art and science of getting referrals
• The importance of asking
• The power of a call behind a referral
• Write the referral letter yourself

• Check on your performance
• Use agency report card after 90 days, 6 months and 12 months
• Most upset clients will let you know if asked
• Most upset clients wouldn’t let you know if not asked

• Work from existing clients is 7 times more profitable
• Easier to win and easier to service
• How easy is it to sell cross-services at your place
• Many account managers refuse to let others in

• When ad business slows down the PR business expands
• Do you offer a full range of services your clients need
• Can you cross brand some internal services and sell direct?

• Great source of highly profitable revenue
• Difficult to sell to existing clients
• Not difficult to sell to prospects
• House in the same location, use same staff

• The most powerful line in new business – I recommend you stop advertising until…
• Reorients the review
• Solve the brand problem before solving the advertising problem

• Never again let a single source solution leave your building
• If it’s not integrated, you can’t take it to a client
• Easy to so
• Don’t try to sell with an empty wagon

• Clients love it
• I was thinking about you this morning and had an idea you might be able to use
• I sure miss working with you
• Reach out

• They have the money
• A specialized client
• Make a start
• Become an expert

• Clients want to hire experts
• What are you expert in?
• Build a specialty

• Easy to find prospects
• Time to talk
• Surprisingly little competition
• Don’t go to close. Go to meet. Build relationships.

• Read professionally
• Match one for one
• Keep a list of books you like
• The joy of being well-read

• Efficient to do
• Lots to leverage
• Easy to make one plus one equal three
• Have someone else do the search

• Great habit to get into
• Call behind each one
• The power of leaving voice mail
• Big shots read their mail

• More American and Japanese than European
• Best reminder
• Personal way to say I’m interested in you
• Sets up the call back

• Big source of leads and referrals
• The bigger the group the better
• Love having ad agencies join up
• Keeps you looking

• Go where the clients are
• Often find little competition
• Make relationships

• Companies in trouble are most open to new ideas
• Old agency/client relationships may not be able to stand the stress
• Fishermen know the value of casting where the water’s rough

• Many agencies don’t know how to keep up
• Any big client using distant agencies need local help
• Reach out larger accounts and position yourself as being able to work well with the lead agency
• You want to become Profitable #2

• Media and free-lancers know which agencies are in trouble first
• Reach out to them with an annual open house at your firm
• The best source of leads year after year come from the trade
• A thank you and a reminder that our clients are your clients and maybe some of your clients should be our clients
• Watering the grape vine.

• Free one-day planning session
• Call it the DayOne
• Senior management attends
• Full discussion on opportunities and trends

• Channel management is very valuable
• Teach clients how to compete
• Make a living off of Wal-Mart tactics

• Send a crowbar with a note.
• Pardon us for prying into your review, but …
• Search consultants hate it but clients like your taking the initiative
• Point out how your obvious expertise must have been overlooked

• Alert you to upcoming and just issued RFPs
• Give you time to partner up if need be
• Need to make sure you can win the RFP battle
• Most agencies aren’t aware of the upscale look of many submissions

• Promote your specialized services and knowledge base
• Do a key word campaign
• Low cost and surprisingly efficient
• Clients are not put off by it

• Don’t pioneer
• Go after clients who are using good agencies
• Pioneers are usually found dead along the trail
• Trying to pitch a client with an in-house agency is most often a lost cause

• If you don’t have one, get one.
• Goes out of date at a rate of 75% per year some change
• Keep it current weeding your crops
• Don’t mail without calling behind the mail

• You are already up to speed
• Use your expertise
• Don’t be afraid to try

• Pay for referrals that lead to a visit
• Make it fun
• You’ll be surprised at what your staff can find

• Brainstorm some solutions
• Do this after you have the appointment
• If you can’t find a big idea, do a Ben Duffy

• Maintain contact with the ones you lost
• Remember the 6 letters
• Start nudging them
• Find a project/opportunity to be of help

• Conduct a new business brainstorming session
• If you still need more ideas – CALL US!

World Leaders In Helping Marketing Firms Grow:

“There are many steps that you can take to increase your new business activity. Many agency professionals insist traditional new business methods are dead. They’re not. In fact, many are more effective than ever!”

Bob Sanders President Sanders Consulting Group