How To Attract Better Quality Agency Clients In 3 Easy Steps
The number one challenge digital marketing agencies face when it comes to scaling their business is attracting and signing more, high-quality clients.
Digital agencies, on average, win only 13% of their sales-qualified leads.
That’s a pretty low number and a fairly serious problem when you’re trying to scale your agency and grow your clientele base.
As a digital agency owner, you believe in the quality of your work and you know your team can deliver great work for your clients — so why is it so hard to articulate this to a prospective client?
The number one question our Digital Agency Coach clients ask is ‘How do we win more, better clients?’ The answer, it’s all about your pitch.
Over the years, we’ve asked over 250 agencies ‘’Why should I buy from your agency and not from anyone else’? Almost every single one had the same response.
What does your pitch sound like? Is it full of jargon and buzzwords, like ‘Creative Thinkers’ and ‘Trusted Advisors’? Or maybe you differentiate your marketing agency as being ‘Full Service’ or ‘Not Full Service’? We’ve heard it all, and to be frank, so have your clients.
When a client is scouting for a new digital agency, they often interviewing 3–5 simultaneously, before they sign just one. They’re sitting through pitches and wading through phrases like ‘Partners Not Clients’ and ‘Open. Honest. Transparent.’ to find a true connection with the agency they think is the right fit.
Put yourself in the client’s shoes. If all the presentations and offerings look and sound the same, and are filled with cheesy buzz words, it’s hard to tell each agency apart. Chances are, the client will simply choose an agency they feel they have chemistry with. Or, more likely, they’ll make their decision based on price.
So, how can you create a sales pitch that’s guaranteed to win clients? We’ve looked at the work of Doug Hall — a chap who analysed over 4000 propositions and discovered three key common denominators in an agency’s sales pitch that increased the likelihood of landing a sale by up to 40%.
Understand your customer in detail. Get to know their niche, their industry and their product, and then offer a measurable and overt business benefit as part of your pitch. Make sure your value proposition meets their needs.
Pull together two or three dramatic points of difference your marketing agency has against your competitors. Avoid overused agency jargon and make sure these differences will genuinely separate you from the rest. Most importantly, tailor your differences to the pain points of the client and their business.
Agencies are typically really good at this bit. Wrap up your pitch with evidence that you are able to deliver on your promise. This is where you use your awards, case studies and testimonials to prove you are the team for the job.
Now you know what makes a good sales pitch — it’s time to implement these changes and start growing your digital agency!
If you need support or guidance growing your agency and would like personalised, 1:1 help achieving your goals; Digital Agency Coach offers bi-monthly Mastermind Groups.
You’ll collaborate with a team of like-minded professionals, access powerful resources and templates, and benefit from 1:1 coaching sessions, all designed and guaranteed to scale your agency.
I'm an ex-agency founder now coach and mentor to digital agencies and trusted by Google and Forbes to deliver agency growth programs across the globe.
