The Indispensable Ad Agency

Paul Roetzer New Business Conference

How Marketing Talent, Technology and Strategy Gaps Present Invaluable Opportunities for Agency Growth “The marketing services industry is in a state of flux. As CMOs navigate the marketing talent gap, they are increasingly seeking performance-driven agency partners that are immersed in marketing technology and staffed with digital-savvy professionals. SMBs need partners that can deliver fully integrated […]

The Preeminent Thought Leader on How to Win Ad Agency Pitches

Win more ad agency new business pitches. It’s easier than you think. Peter Levitan has been described as a serial new business pitcher. He has delivered global, regional, and very local new business pitches for over 30 years. He has a Hall Of Fame pitch batting average. Peter ran business development and marketing at Saatchi […]

The Most Provocative Man in Advertising

Bob Hoffman ad agency new business conference

Bob Hoffman is one of the most sought-after speakers on advertising and marketing. He has spoken all over the U.S. and has been invited to speak at conferences throughout Europe. Bob’s “Spotlight Lecture” at Advertising Week Europe has drawn almost 50,000 views on YouTube. Bob was one of the keynote speakers at our inaugural Fuel […]

What’s the Most Dangerous Job in Advertising?

The Most Dangerous Job in Advertising

ADWEEK said the most dangerous job in advertising is new business chiefs. According to a recent Agency-Marketer Business Report from RSW/US, the tenure of a new business director is now 2 years or less. Only 26% of new business directors were viewed as successful. They are under a lot of stress and their position tends to […]

2015 New Business Conference to be held in Nashville, TN

The Music City Center, Nashville, TN

  The inaugural Fuel Lines New Business Conference for advertising, digital, media and PR agencies will be held the booming city of Nashville, Tennessee on October 8-9.  Nashville was recently named among the 15 Hottest American Cities for 2015 and was recently voted by Conde Nast Traveler as one of the top 5 cities to visit.  “The popularity […]

Fuel Lines New Business Conference 2015 to Highlight the New Drivers of Agency New Business

BIRMINGHAM, Ala., Jun. 9, 2015 /PRNewswire-iReach/ – Michael Gass, founder and president of Fuel Lines Business Development, announced the finalization of details for the Fuel Lines New Business Conference 2015, to be held October 8-9 in Nashville, Tennessee. A Super Earl Registration has already begun. “New business has been a problem historically for agencies. It’s made […]

Workshop: A New Approach for New Business – San Diego

ad agency new business workshop San Diego

The Primary Battle for New Business Has Moved Online.  This is a one-day regional workshop, co-sponsored by Fuel Lines Business Development, The List and The Brand Establishment, will be held on Friday, May 1, 2015, in San Diego, California. This workshop is designed to help agencies “jump-start” an inbound new business program within 30 days. A step-by-step process that’s been […]

Registration Now Open for Fuel Lines New Business Conference 2015

music city center ad agency new business conference

A new model for ad agency new business. New business has been a problem historically for agencies. It’s made worse with the paradigm shift in business development. The primary battle for new business has moved online. You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing […]

4A’s New Business Webinar

4A's ad agency new business webinar

How to Use Social Media to Attract New Business Gaining new business has always been a challenge for agencies – and now, with the paradigm shift in business development, it’s become tougher than ever. In a previous new-business CMO study, 80% of decision makers said that they had found their vendors, not the other way around. […]

Workshop: A New Approach for New Business

ad agency new business workshop orlando

The battle for new business has primarily moved online. This is a one-day regional workshop, co-sponsored by Fuel Lines Business Development and AAF Orlando, will be held on Friday, February 6, 2015, in Orlando, Florida. This workshop is designed to help agencies “jump-start” an inbound new business program within 30 days. A step-by-step process that’s been developed and […]

Social Media Isn’t Working for Ad Agency New Business

social media and ad agency new business

 

If your agency’s social media participation isn’t developing new business leads, it’s important to know WHY. 

From my experience, most agencies finally got on board with social media in 2010. They created their agency’s blog, Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram accounts and jumped in.

70% of marketers report that social media marketing delivers poor or average return on investment.

Many agencies thought that by merely having a social media presence, it would give them social media credibility.… Continue reading

Ad Agencies Need Systems to Consistently Produce Leads

Systems for Ad Agency New Business

Believe it or not, most small to midsize agencies are not organized to consistently generate leads.

Agency life is chaotic. Too much to do; to little time. The answer to this problem is to work smarter not harder by creating SYSTEMS for new business.

A system is a set of detailed methods, procedures and routines created to carry out a specific activity, perform a duty, or solve a repeated business issue.

Business development doesn’t have to be so difficult.… Continue reading

7 Benefits from the Right Positioning for Ad Agency New Business

seven benefits of ad agency positioning

The FOUNDATION of an ad agency’s new business program is its positioning.

When you have the right positioning it’s like fishing for a specific fish with  a particular bait. You know where the fish are, what bait is appealing to them, the right equipment to use and you have developed the expertise to catch the real trophies.

“By appealing to everyone, brands end up appealing to no one.  Standing for everything is the same as standing for nothing.” 

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How to Create Your Personal Brand Story for Ad Agency New Business

Michael Gass Ad Agency New Business

I’ve learned the importance of creating my personal brand story when I launched my own consultancy a decade ago. I had led new business for a number of advertising agencies before deciding to start my own consulting firm. This could have easily been one of the worst decisions of my life.

My advertising career had been spent working in only two markets, outside of Birmingham, Alabama and Nashville, Tennessee, I had zero awareness. Little did I know that I was about to start my new business at the beginning of one of the longest economic downturns since the Great Depression.… Continue reading

An Idea Platform for Ad Agency New Business

A New Business Idea Platform for Ad Agencies

Ideasicleˣ: The First Advertising SaaS Platform For Virtual Creativity.

If timing is everything, then Ideasicleˣ is the poster child. Just when the world closes down due to Covid-19, a platform arrives that helps accelerate creativity through remote work. I was intrigued enough with the concept, particularly as a new business idea machine, to reach out to its founder, Will Burns, to learn more about it.

“What the world needs now are ideas. Lots and lots of ideas.”

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Panic is Not a Strategy for Ad Agency New Business

Panic is not strategy for ad agency new business

How to implement sales intelligence for agency growth.

No one opens an advertising agency because they have a passion for sales. That’s why many agencies only have one dedicated new business specialist or include it in the laundry list of owner responsibilities. By not prioritizing additional revenue opportunities, it only gets done when work is slow or the worst happens.

Maybe your biggest client leaves and now a significant chunk of your annual revenue is gone.… Continue reading

Tips for Working from Home for Agency New Business

Home Office Ad Agency New Business

Your number one objective should be to maintain, if not increase, your engagement with prospects.

I’ve been working from home for almost thirteen years, but many of you are working from home for the first time. You’re having to adjust to a new work environment that includes kids, spouses, and pets. You’re probably having to develop new skills to successfully work remotely. The last thing you’re probably thinking about is new business.

But just because your environment has changed, doesn’t mean your commitment to growing your agency should change.… Continue reading

Great Onboarding: The Secret to 88% Employee Retention

employee retention ad agencies

How to cut employee turnover in half.

This is a guest article written by John Paul Strong, the owner of the Birmingham-based advertising agency, Strong Automotive Merchandising.  John Paul has developed a very robust onboarding process that I wanted him to share with you.

Their original roster of 10 employees and eight clients has exploded today, growing to more than 115 full-time employees and 250 automotive dealers. And it hasn’t gone without notice. Strong Automotive Merchandising has been recognized as a perennial winner in Birmingham’s Best Places to Work contest and as a Top 20 Agency among Google’s National Ad Partners.… Continue reading

Change the Rules of Competition for Ad Agency New Business

Michael Gass Ad Agency new business

“You cannot discover new oceans unless you have the courage to step away from the shore” – Nobel Prize-winning author André Gide.

I read an insightful article on why the focus of a company’s (agency’s) business strategy should not be upon its competitors. The article was written by Gabor George Burt, internationally recognized expert on innovation, creativity and strategy development, and the author of the book, Slingshot.

Burt states,

“In today’s marketplace, I would argue that doing something unprecedented is not just adventurous but imperative … eliminating competition by trying to beat it is dangerously shortsighted.

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Positioning is the Foundation for Ad Agency New Business

positioning for ad agency new business

Without a differentiated position, new business is much harder than it needs to be. 

Many small to midsize agencies have not addressed positioning because of either procrastination or, more likely, their unwillingness to make the difficult business decisions.

“Contrary to common belief, all agencies have pretty much the same basic capabilities, and processes. They all claim to have proprietary tools, and they may have different labels for what they do, but the approach is essentially the same at big or small agencies.”

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