| What is your background, in terms of agencies, accounts, and client-side experience? | |
|---|---|
| Colin Ranieri, VP of Finance | 20+ years in accounting and finance for companies that provide online market research, digital marketing and advertising, and social media marketing. |
| Will Sears - Sr. Brand Experience Director | I worked as the in-house communications director at an environmental non-profit as well as a professional association. I handled full integrated projects in-house, using vendors minimally, which helped me learn to do a lot with a little. I worked at a full-service agency as an account director in Indianapolis focused mostly on web, video and content development. They then acquired another smaller agency which I led in the interim of finding a new president for it. So, the body of experience from non-profit in-house to being full-service allowed me to see the 360-degree view of what it's like to be on both sides of a client/agency relationship, and also how to now be a partner/friend to clients in a way that makes them know we're on their side and want to help make their lives easier. |
| Chase Fitzgerald, Senior Account Director | I've been at MBA for 6.5 years. Worked for an SEO/blogging agency previously, then a small ad agency before that. |
| Tiffany DesMarais, Senior Account Director | Experience in public relations working with national and global technology, hospitality and real estate brands. She graduated Summa Cum Laude from University of Florida with a degree in Journalism, then moved to New York City and embarked on her public relations career, working with brands such as St. Regis, Waldorf=Astoria and Trump International. Tech experience spans highly technical areas like security software, display technology and wireless infrastructure to lifestyle categories like fashion, connected home and lifestyle tech. Previously worked in higher education communications, as a contributing writer for lifestyle magazines, at a real estate, hospitality and lifestyle focused firm in NYC. |
| Chase Fitzgerald, Sr. Account Director | 6.5 years with Max Borges Agency. Previous work in an ad agency & a blog/SEO agency. |
| Matt Shumate - SVP, Account Services | I've been with MBA for 11 years, starting as a media relations-focused Account Executive and moving more into higher level client strategy and agency operations. Prior to MBA, I was in automotive advertising for a little less than 2 years. |
| Brad Hobbs - Vice President of Account Service / GM Miami | MBA for 8 Years. Specialize in outdoor, health, fitness, sport and start up tech companies. Role is traditionally of a consultant with strong emphasis on product launches and top of funnel brand awareness. Pitched and won global AOR for Polar and N.A AOR for Strava, both were larger pitches pitting MBA against much larger agencies like Golin Harris, Zeno Group, Allison and Partners. Previous experience all in sports management and marketing, as General Manager of a Minor League Hockey Team and a brief stint working in the MLB/NHL in marketing/sales. |
| Max Borges, CEO | I have not had direct client side experience for the past 10 years. My roll has been that of CEO and COO though some of these responsibilities are getting passed over to Matt Shumate now that he is SVP. |
| Lindsay Stuart, VP Business Intelligence | 10 years of experience in the industry; agency work has focused on consumer technology, travel and hospitality clients. For a short period, I worked internally in marketing at a medical device manufacturing company. The largest accounts that I have worked on include Jarden Corporation, Cricket, Lifeproof and Travelpro. My areas of expertise are in marketing strategy, digital strategy, social media marketing, marketing analytics and reporting & measurement. |
| Trisha Nieder, Senior Brand Experience Director | MBA is my only agency experience. Prior to working here, I worked in events, fundraising, and sponsor management. Account experience includes Polar and Strava as well as OGIO, Booq, Turcom, Zepp, Wicked Audio, and other smaller brands like Wren, Blackfire, patchnride, and Astro Twist. At my past job I managed FIJI Water, Carnival Cruises, BP, Tupperware, Zenith Watches, Piaget, and other smaller brands. In all roles to date I have been client facing and the main point-person on accounts - both for client day-to-day interactions as well as strategies and reporting. |
| Jordan Marcus, VP Business Development | I've focused on new business for my entire agency career. Everything from B2B - B2C technology both hardware and software. My account work is limited only to client consulting and problem clients. I try to pass as much of the day to day work off to account teams so I can focus on client acquisition. |
| corrado amenta - director of operations | 14 years at MBA. always been more behind the scenes on operational side of things with a few exceptions of a couple of creative projects from time to time. |
| Louvella Ivanoff, Director of People Services | First time working in a PR agency, previous experience working in professional services (outsourced HR services) both internal and client-side. |
| Don Earle - Director BD | none |
| Craig Gottlieb - Director | 2 years at Max Borges Agency working on accounts including Fellowes, ExoLens, Strava, Roli, Kent Displays Boogie Board eWriter, Brooklyn Bedding, Haier, Lifeprint, Wicked Audio, Renogy, Astro Twist, More Technologies. 1 year at BBMG, Snr Director Client Parnerships - a brand strategy firm with a focus on purpose driven brands. Clients included Target, Pepsi, Nestle. 8 years at Questus, Director Business Development - a full service digital creative agency with client including Almay, Valvoline, Universal Theme Parks, Time, NY Times and Fox Sports. Scope included website design, social media, ad creative, integrated marketing campaigns/platforms, market research/customer insights. 8 years in business development starting as a hunter/Director and becoming a VP managing a team and leading the pitch process at Tradewell and IGT Corporate Services. I was selling corporate trading/barter of excess inventory for media. |
| Craig Gottlieb - Director | Max Borges Agency - 2 years with clients including Fellowes, ROLI, Strava, Kent Display's Boogie Board eWriters, Haier, LifePrint, Brooklyn Bedding, Renogy and Astro Twist. BBMG - Snr Director Client Relations - 1 year - Brand Strategy Consultancy - Clients include Pepsi, Nestle and Target Questus - Director Business Development - 8 years - Full service digital creative agency (integrated digital campaigns, web design, market research, SM, etc) Clients include Universal Orlando, Almay, Valvoline, Fox Sports, NY Times. IGT Corporate Services and Tradewell - Started as AE and rose to VP Business Development - 8 years - Corporate barter/media trading - This is where I can my sales chops. Clinets include Motts, Valvoline, John Deere, Bell Sports, Friendly's Ice Cream. |
| What has been your role in the new business and organic growth efforts of the agency? | |
| Colin Ranieri, VP of Finance | Limited so far, but will expand with focus on pricing and client profitability. |
| Will Sears - Sr. Brand Experience Director | From day one, I have been assigned to accounts and have become a leading upseller at MBA - not in a competitive way, but because it's a rush for me. The great opportunity for me to grow our efforts falls within the new services I'm now helping lead at MBA, which haven't been previously offered in a structured way -- video, web, etc. Content marketing is also on the rise. While production work is largely driven by a project model and can ebb and flow based on an infinite number of reasons, these services are offering new revenue streams that have never before existed. My challenge and opportunity now is to both scale our capabilities as an agency and as a team, while arming the overall team with education about how these efforts are both sold and executed. |
| Chase Fitzgerald, Senior Account Director | I have a strong role in new business. |
| Tiffany DesMarais, Senior Account Director | frequently involved in creating proposals, pitching business, etc. from discovery to negotiation to onboarding. |
| Chase Fitzgerald, Sr. Account Director | I have a strong role in new business. |
| Matt Shumate - SVP, Account Services | My main involvement is in leading the RFP pitch development process on the new biz side. This includes assembling pitch teams, delegating responsibilities, and ultimately making the call on what makes the cut to production. I've also been borderline obsessed with codifying the process to streamline pitch development so that it's teachable, scalable, and repeatable. Right now, our version of that is a bit too complex, and we need to simplify it to make it something everyone adopts and rallies around. |
| Brad Hobbs - Vice President of Account Service / GM Miami | Pitch lead from discovery, RFP, all the way through to in person pitch. Digest RFP, assemble team, finalize presentations/strategy, in person presentation lead. Specifically match potential pitches with where my expertise lies. Constantly pursuing organic growth opportunities. Difficult with budgets and capabilities with some of our clients, but on bigger accounts we have seen success. Grown scope and retainer with two of our larger accounts. Raising one from $7500 retainer to $22K per month, and the other a 55% growth in monthly billings. |
| Max Borges, CEO | I oversee the biz dev function but I do not participate in pitches or presenations. We have a 4 person sales team that does the prospecting and selling and our account services departments constructs the strategies/pitches. I look at it as account services creates the product, biz dev sells it. |
| Lindsay Stuart, VP Business Intelligence | I have been highly involved in new business in the past 2-3 years. In the past, I have been focused on strategy development with a focus on digital. In the recent year, our approach has shifted toward a stronger focus on research insights that lead into strategy development, which has been my area of focus for new business/organic growth as of the past 6 months. I am involved in the initial planning phases, the research, strategy development, project management and I also participate as part of the final pitch team. |
| Trisha Nieder, Senior Brand Experience Director | I usually get brought in once a lead has been established. Presently I work with the pitch team and usually take on the role of developing specific concepts or campaigns for a strategy. On many pitches I've also helped develop the overall strategy. In addition to these, I also design the deck and create mock ups and visuals to help present ideas clearly. Finally, I attend the pitches - in person or one the phone - to present various strategies and ideas. |
| Jordan Marcus, VP Business Development | My focus has been specific to new business including proactive prospecting, managing the incoming, leading the pitch process and pitching. I also manage a team of 3 business development associates. |
| corrado amenta - director of operations | not much |
| Louvella Ivanoff, Director of People Services | Supporting - in terms of helping the team identify training opportunities, organizational design to support efforts, etc. |
| Don Earle - Director BD | Prospecting for new clients via internet, Linked In, phone, email, skype, in person, trade shows |
| Craig Gottlieb - Director | I devote my entire time to new business development. I find leads, lead meetings along with account leads and manage the sales cycle through to closing. Focus on organic growth has been minimal because this has always been a function of the account team. I have asked to be part of the process and have recently been included for our client Fellowes. We have expanded the account both in scope and number of brands. Much of this has been thanks to the great job of the account team. |
| Craig Gottlieb - Director | I focus on new business development. I'm a hunter but also handle all aspects of the sales cycle.At times I've led meetings and built presentations and proposals in partnership with our account team. Other times I've brought in the lead and Jordan or the account team have ran with it. For organic growth, that has not been something the agency was very open to and felt that was the role of the account team. Fellowes has been the exception. I've been included in the process and we've expanded the scope for our initial brand, ExoLens, and added on SitStand. This is a result of the great work from the account team. With that said, I think it is always important to have a BD focused person involved in any of our key accounts to help grow the business. |
| As if you were writing to a prospective client, describe the agency in no more than 3 sentences: | |
| Colin Ranieri, VP of Finance | We are consumer technology specialists with an extensive history of growing clients' brands through our focused knowledge of the industry. We offer dedicated teams who will become champions of your business and who have the expertise to successfully present your product to those resources which can amplify your marketing and advertising message. |
| Will Sears - Sr. Brand Experience Director | Max Borges Agency is the only agency in the country exclusively focused on consumer tech media relations - no one does it better. In recent years MBA has added more services to supplement media relations services, demonstrating the agency's ability to offer more nuanced offerings based on client needs. Now, the agency has formalized its core offerings in a way that position MBA to be a robust partner in a variety of services - from market analysis to strategic consulting, and content distribution to content creation. |
| Tiffany DesMarais, Senior Account Director | We are a technology focused PR agency that works with some of the most innovative companies in the industry from startups to the Fortune 500 . We help brands tell their story and grow through services like branding and positioning, content creation, thought leadership, social media marketing, influencer and media relations, and digital advertising. |
| Chase Fitzgerald, Sr. Account Director | Our agency gets tech better than any other agency and pairs brands with a team who is truly passionate about the product. We remain agile throughout our entire relationship with the client to ensure that we're always looking for new ways to improve our service and results. |
| Matt Shumate - SVP, Account Services | This is tough as we don't have a very strongly articulated USB. The Max Borges Agency helps innovative consumer technology brands identify, influence, and impact people in meaningful ways. We thrive at understanding where a person's lifestyle intersects with technology that will have a profound impact on their life. We architect insight-driven campaigns that make this moment happen. |
| Brad Hobbs - Vice President of Account Service / GM Miami | Difficult, we don't have an elevator pitch. Regardless of category of prospective client I try to relay three key messages and depending on conversation it might be worded in a variety of ways with the core themes the same...Relevant expertise. Passionate partners. No bullshit. |
| Max Borges, CEO | We are the number 1 consumer tech communications agency in the world. We have tools and capabilities that no other agency has including our own broadcast studio(where we broadcast live tech segments to major outlets every day), media events and product catalogs that keep our clients in the news. |
| Lindsay Stuart, VP Business Intelligence | We are an integrated communications agency with a unique understanding of the technology landscape. As techies ourselves, we understand what motivates customers to invest in your technology and fall in love with your brand. As your strategic partner, we will use this knowledge to craft the right message, reach the right people and execute on the channels that matter most. |
| Trisha Nieder, Senior Brand Experience Director | MBA is a communications agency that gained success with a focus on consumer technology and getting results for our clients. Over the last 12 years we've continued to grow into a full-service agency that provides strategy, planning, execution, and consultation for media relations, digital marketing, and creative content for our clients. We rely on data and research when creating strategies and also when reporting success and adjusting for improvement. |
| Jordan Marcus, VP Business Development | Our strength is helping brands make the jump from an early adopter audience to the mainstream market by building awareness and engagement. Through leveraging relevant influencers, journalist and creating meaningful content we establish credibility and develop a brand persona that speaks directly to the target audience. |
| corrado amenta - director of operations | We live and breathe technology because we understand it has the power to shape our lives. We are driven individuals determined to leave a mark in this world by working with technology brands who's products improve life. |
| Louvella Ivanoff, Director of People Services | We're a full-service communications agency specializing in consumer technology. |
| Don Earle - Director BD | Max Borges Agency is a public relations and digital marketing agency. We are the top tech PR firm in North America with a 100% focus on consumer electronics, accessories and innovative technologies. We have offices in SF, NYC and Miami. |
| Craig Gottlieb - Director | Max Borges Agency is a technology and innovation focused communications, creative services and digital strategy firm. We do a really nice job of grasping the technology and general lifestyle media and help technology innovators become market leaders. Clients include AT&T, Cricket Wireless, Voxx, Fellowes, Misfit and Polar. |
| Now bring the agency to life. You have certainly been through this exercise, however applying it to your agency can be quite revealing in understanding more about your "DNA". If the agency were a car, what kind would it be? What color? Why? | |
| Colin Ranieri, VP of Finance | A black Hummer. We find a way around any obstacle. |
| Will Sears - Sr. Brand Experience Director | Max Borges Agency is an entry-level Ford Expedition. It has a lot of power for the price and will climb any mountain to get to the top. There are bells and whistles to add on if a client has money, but because most people just want to get to the top of the mountain they don't think to ask for other cool features -- or to upgrade to a Navigator. The color? White. Because we have no defined processes (which will be changing!), it's always a blank slate in the beginning of projects/accounts regardless of the scope, and any mud or scratches we incur are therefore hard to cover. |
| Tiffany DesMarais, Senior Account Director | Reliable, speedy, just a few neat bells and whistles but has the basics nailed. |
| Matt Shumate - SVP, Account Services | Aspirationally, a blue Tesla. Intelligently designed. Forward-thinking. Disruptive. Game Changing. In reality, I'd say we're more of a big truck with 4 wheels on the back axel. We're more heavily leaning on execution vs. strategy and can be tough to turn on a dime. |
| Brad Hobbs - Vice President of Account Service / GM Miami | Black 73' Corvette. Strong, well-built engine, top of its class in its day. Not all the bells and whistles of a modern day luxury car...lacks the dazzle with no apologies. I'd like to think if you put us in a room with the agencies we are pitching against we'd be the loudest, most aggressive bad ass among a bunch of industry snobs that live off lots of talk and no action. |
| Max Borges, CEO | If I'm describing it today, it's a ferrari with mud tires, seats 7 people and gets great gas mileage, sometimes. In other words, too many features without a unified purpose. |
| Lindsay Stuart, VP Business Intelligence | A red Jeep. We tend to take the less-frequented path to our destination. We're scrappy and willing to get around the obstacles that stand in our way. We're not afraid to take risks. We care more about getting to the right destination than looking good while getting there. |
| Trisha Nieder, Senior Brand Experience Director | MBA is like a black Prius. A Prius because it's a hybrid but is probably the most accepted of cars that features a bit of the old as well as a bit of the new. It's a blend of technologies/services, although isn't pushing too far into the future (e.g. like a Tesla) and is playing it safe to better appeal to the mass market. It's a bit between being something totally innovative and new, and being something that's actually fairly common and becoming more of a trend. I kept it black because it's sleek and not flashy. |
| Jordan Marcus, VP Business Development | The agency would be a BMW M3 in black with a peanut butter interior, that is in the middle of an engine rebuild. The car is made for a very specific individual, someone who knows exactly what they are looking for. Its the perfect combination of award-winning design, cutting edge technological engineering and unparalleled craftsmanship. It is too expensive and complicated than what a weekend enthusiast would be able to afford and appreciate. Yet it is overlooked by someone considering something much more expensive and well-known who doesn't understand that it offers more power and better handling than many of the cars considered in a higher class. |
| corrado amenta - director of operations | Black Eleanor (customized 71 mustang). We dont have fancy gadgets and features to get distracted with (like most new cars have). Instead, what we have is RAW power under the hood with all parts focused on one simple goal. Deliver the driver what he/she desires most. Performance. |
| Louvella Ivanoff, Director of People Services | A red Camaro that thinks it's a Ferrari. Strong personality with little regard for others on the road. We have aspirations to be best-in-class but realistically we've kind of just been playing it fast and loose. |
| Don Earle - Director BD | a red porsche. We are shiny, fast, nimble and showy. |
| Craig Gottlieb - Director | I'd say the Mazda 3 because it is a great priced high-tech car with features typically found only in models costing nearly double. We are not too flashy, but still cool with our tech focus. Clients get large agency results/work at a more reasonable price. The car would be black because that's our color. A Mazda is the car you would always consider, but you would need to look into it further. You might not of thought of the Mazda until someone suggested it. MBA usually needs our BD team out there making sure we are part of the consideration set. |
| As best you can answer, in which client categories does the agency have the most robust experience? Please list what you think are top 2 - 4, prioritized by those that best meet these 2 criteria: 1) You have the most robust experience (including case studies); 2) You have most new business potential (there's business to go after vs. a very small category or one that spends little on agencies). Note: we’re looking for “categories” as traditionally defined by clients (i.e., automotive, grocery retail, travel, retail banking, packaged foods) vs. “agency-invented" categories such as challenger or lifestyle brands. | |
| Colin Ranieri, VP of Finance | Consumer technology Really large fans |
| Will Sears - Sr. Brand Experience Director | (1) audio, (2) wearables/fitness, (3) gaming, (4) weird startup tech items |
| Tiffany DesMarais, Senior Account Director | 1. home technology 2. iOS accessories/products 3. sports/fitness technology 4. wearables |
| Chase Fitzgerald, Sr. Account Director | Fitness/wearables Brick-and-mortar retail Challenger brands |
| Matt Shumate - SVP, Account Services | Consumer Tech Fitness Tech Audio/Home Theater Mobile Technology |
| Brad Hobbs - Vice President of Account Service / GM Miami | Health & Fitness / Outdoor Audio (Home and Personal) Home Connection Apple accessory |
| Max Borges, CEO | 1.) Consumer technology - that's all we do with maybe 3 exceptions out of 50 clients. This includes subcategories including health and fitness, wearable tech, connected home, audio, drones, 3-d printing, etc. This can now include categories like automotive - especially electric vehicles. |
| Lindsay Stuart, VP Business Intelligence | Technology - within that (Wearable Tech; Fitness; Audio; Smart Home; Mobile) |
| Trisha Nieder, Senior Brand Experience Director | 1. Health, Fitness, Sports 2. Audio 3. Smart Home 4. Gaming |
| Jordan Marcus, VP Business Development | Consumer health and wellness (hardware, apps, consumer goods) Smart home (tech hardware, apps and major appliance brands) Audio (mobile, home, car) |
| corrado amenta - director of operations | 1 - Fitness/Wearable tech 2 - Home/Lifestyle tech 3 - Music tech |
| Don Earle - Director BD | 1) Consumer Technology: phone accessories, wearables, health and fitness 2) Innovative technologies: anything that is new and interesting to tech focused media or lifestyle media telling a tech perspective |
| Craig Gottlieb - Director | Wearables/Fitness is our top category with clients Polar, Misfit, Strava and others. We have the most robust case studies. I still feel there are opportunities in this category, but it can be limiting do to client conflicts. We've been able to sign Strava, Martian Watches and others so there are definitely still opportunities here. Audio - We have a ton of experience with clients including Marshall, urbanears, V-Moda and Raumfeld. As far as growth, I feel there are clients that will be fine with our client roster, but others will feel it is a conflict. SoundUnited is a current opportunity that may have an issue with our current roster. Gaming/Storage - We have a lot of experience with clients including Steelseries, Maingear, MSI, Ultra and Vuzix. I've not worked on enough gaming leads to know if they have an issue with current clients. VR sits well here and we are in talks with some companies. Computer storage companies are a good target too. Many work with large agencies and have large budgets. We came close with PNY and Lexar. Apps - This is an area where there is a ton of opportunity. Are experience is not great. We have Strava, but it's fairly new. We also have experience with innovative new products/creating a category and reaching target audiences with new tech. So I listed this for the revenue opportunity, but case study strength is a concern. |
| Which 3 - 5 services does the agency most often provide these clients? | |
| Colin Ranieri, VP of Finance | Media relations. New product launches Messaging and content |
| Will Sears - Sr. Brand Experience Director | (1) Product launch media relations, (2) Tradeshow representation/coordination, (3) Content creation, though limited to a number of channels at present and (4) Strategic planning |
| Tiffany DesMarais, Senior Account Director | media relations influencer relations social media marketing |
| Chase Fitzgerald, Sr. Account Director | Media Relations Influencer Relations Content Creation (social media) Communications Strategy |
| Matt Shumate - SVP, Account Services | Media Relations Social Content Production Influencer Relations |
| Brad Hobbs - Vice President of Account Service / GM Miami | Media Relations Strategy Development / Consultation Influencer Relations Storytelling/Content Creation |
| Max Borges, CEO | Media relations and digital marketing covers about 95% of what we do. |
| Lindsay Stuart, VP Business Intelligence | Media Relations; Social Media; Influencer Relations; Content Development |
| Trisha Nieder, Senior Brand Experience Director | 1. Media Relations (mostly product focused; some clients receive bigger storytelling media opps) 2. Content Creation (Facebook, Instagram, Blog) ---- Includes Photo, Video, Copywriting 3. Digital Advertising (Facebook, Native) 4. Strategies and Consulting 5. Reporting - For some clients, reporting is a way we offer consulting and strategic insight. |
| Jordan Marcus, VP Business Development | Media Relations Social Community Management Content Creation |
| corrado amenta - director of operations | 1 - Media Relations 2 - Social Media Content Strategy/Production/Delivery |
| Don Earle - Director BD | Media Relations Digital marketing and advertising Experiential / activation projects Creative services |
| Craig Gottlieb - Director | Media Relations, media relations, media relations :) We also handle social media including content creation and events for some but not all. |
| List the top few agencies that you do/will compete against most often. | |
| Colin Ranieri, VP of Finance | Edelman Havas Ogilvy |
| Will Sears - Sr. Brand Experience Director | Edelman, Shift Communications, varies based on geography and client category |
| Tiffany DesMarais, Senior Account Director | Edelman & Zeno Group Olson |
| Chase Fitzgerald, Sr. Account Director | Edelman, Fleishman Hillard |
| Matt Shumate - SVP, Account Services | We're not seeing the same names pop up here very frequently. Mid-size shops like Shift Communications, LaunchPad, LaunchSquad to bigger ones like Edelman, BM, Havas Formula |
| Brad Hobbs - Vice President of Account Service / GM Miami | Golin Harris Spark Allison & Partners Shift Lewis |
| Max Borges, CEO | We don't see the same players more than a couple times a year because there is nobody else who focuses on consumer tech like we do. There are usually new players at most competitive pitches. If anyone gives you names, ask them how many times we have been up against the other agency on the past year. I bet they can't name two instances. :) |
| Lindsay Stuart, VP Business Intelligence | Lewis, Zeno Group, Edelman |
| Jordan Marcus, VP Business Development | Outcast, Nectar, Method, Access Communications, W20, Lewis. |
| corrado amenta - director of operations | shift communications 5W PR Launchsquad spark pr |
| Don Earle - Director BD | Green Room Social |
| Craig Gottlieb - Director | Spark, Method, Formula Havas, Allison, Shift, Diffusion PR |
| In the eyes of clients, what do you provide of value, that none of your competitors do? | |
| Colin Ranieri, VP of Finance | Deep expertise in consumer technology |
| Will Sears - Sr. Brand Experience Director | Reliable product launch media relations, with an exclusive focus on consumer tech |
| Tiffany DesMarais, Senior Account Director | Drive editorial coverage (execution) Product launch strategy and execution knowledge of and experience in tech industry |
| Chase Fitzgerald, Sr. Account Director | Our ability to activate our relationships in a way the further the initial investment. For example, the media that we place is syndicated to additional outlets for added reach; our influencer programs get content placed on channels that reach a target audience while also scoring traditional media coverage for added campaign impressions. |
| Matt Shumate - SVP, Account Services | I would have used to say media coverage, but we've gotten to a point where our competitive advantage there has diminished. We're strong at responsiveness and execution, but have struggled to find unique competitive differentiation. |
| Brad Hobbs - Vice President of Account Service / GM Miami | Authenticity. Do not bait & switch. |
| Max Borges, CEO | It used to be media relations hands down. In an attempt to be more "full service" we have abandoned our commitment to media relations and many of the activities that made us the best at media relations. So now we are not the best at anything. All that said, most will still probably say media relations. That's just a guess though. We have not surveyed clients. |
| Lindsay Stuart, VP Business Intelligence | Higher quantity and breadth of media coverage; stronger relationships with tech media |
| Trisha Nieder, Senior Brand Experience Director | We are willing to put in more hours in order to get the results clients need/want. We put in the extra time and effort, and sometimes work far more hours on a client than they pay for. We get execute and we get results; we don't just talk about what we'll do, we actually do it. |
| Jordan Marcus, VP Business Development | Expertise in consumer technology and unparalleled ability to execute. |
| corrado amenta - director of operations | used to be media relations results. not sure any more |
| Don Earle - Director BD | Relationships with technology focused journalists and editors |
| Craig Gottlieb - Director | Our combined deep understanding of tech and lifestyle media. Depending on the agency we are up against, being entirely focused on tech has been helpful. |
| In the eyes of clients, what do your competitors provide of value, that you do not? | |
| Colin Ranieri, VP of Finance | Global reach with more resources |
| Will Sears - Sr. Brand Experience Director | More robust services, better storytelling approaches, more strategic thinking |
| Tiffany DesMarais, Senior Account Director | higher level digital strategy, comprehensive social management and strategy, brand storytelling beyond product |
| Chase Fitzgerald, Sr. Account Director | Access to more reporting tools and propriety software. |
| Matt Shumate - SVP, Account Services | Data-driven insights. Experience in more integrated campaigns. Global presence. Account teams with different backgrounds(journalists that are great storytellers). |
| Brad Hobbs - Vice President of Account Service / GM Miami | Experience as it relates to specific client and more thorough experience with larger multi-facet campaigns. More strategic focused. |
| Max Borges, CEO | We can only guess as we have not spoken to multiple companies about what they value in a particular agency. I think guessing is dangerous. It always seems to go where the industry says things are going which is the opposite of where we should be heading if we want to differentiate ourselves. . |
| Lindsay Stuart, VP Business Intelligence | More strategic thinking; more creativity in campaign development and execution |
| Trisha Nieder, Senior Brand Experience Director | They have a depth of experience in places where we do not (e.g. certain industries, global connections, specific services, current/past client roster) They're bigger, which is advantageous in the sense they can execute multiple things at once due to large teams They have a major name people recognize and trust |
| Jordan Marcus, VP Business Development | Strategy, creative ideas, executive positioning, data and insights into their business |
| corrado amenta - director of operations | more creative and more strategy |
| Don Earle - Director BD | size, scale, depth |
| Craig Gottlieb - Director | Diffusion has beat us a few times because they are performance based. They put in guarantees. Method does quality work at a lower price. Allison and Formula Havas are bigger with more offices. Being in Boston helps win in Boston for example. In larger pitches, I wonder if our ideas and fully integrated experience are of the same caliber as agencies like Edelman, FH, etc. |
| Are there any negative perceptions about the agency that might hold back your new business efforts? | |
| Colin Ranieri, VP of Finance | Size? |
| Will Sears - Sr. Brand Experience Director | Too narrow of a focus, lack of expertise outside of one skill, negative reviews on glassdoor when google searching us, potentially that our accounts are all top-heavy (which means pricing may be higher than necessary) |
| Tiffany DesMarais, Senior Account Director | that we're too small or not global enough, that we're not as connected as larger agencies that have multiple vertical specialties, that we're too techy when they want to be seen as a fashion brand or home design brand, etc. |
| Chase Fitzgerald, Sr. Account Director | Our web presence is not great, including rankings and Glassdoor reviews. |
| Matt Shumate - SVP, Account Services | Maybe some word of mouth from unhappy clients where we didn't live up to their expectations. |
| Brad Hobbs - Vice President of Account Service / GM Miami | Consumer Tech only. Media Relations heavy, not strategc. |
| Max Borges, CEO | Our agency is relatively unknown. I doubt we have much of a reputation, good or bad. People may have heard of us but probably can't say much about us. |
| Lindsay Stuart, VP Business Intelligence | Not negative necessarily, but it seems there is an association with media relations as our only area of expertise. |
| Trisha Nieder, Senior Brand Experience Director | Our size can't support the services needed on accounts Our staff can't provide the strategic consulting needed for clients |
| Jordan Marcus, VP Business Development | We have not handled a major brand launch and lack a strong track record in true thought leadership (taking a company or executive and putting them to the forefront of the conversation) |
| corrado amenta - director of operations | not sure |
| Don Earle - Director BD | turnover at agency |
| Craig Gottlieb - Director | I think our outward perception is strong with large clients and tech focus. I get more people responding to my email outreach at MBA than any other company I've worked for. With that said, I've had discussions with large companies that drop off. I believe they do not have the confidence in our shop. This could be our size. It's safer for job security to pick a larger agency and we need to overcome that. I've also had strong conversations at tradeshows that have dropped off. This could be due to our website and lack of engaging case studies. The site comes across like a small traditional media relations agency. |
| On a scale of 1-10, how well do your presentations back up the agency’s recommendation with an irrefutable logic trail? In other words, how well do you typically build a strong argument for the agency’s recommendation? (10 = we are always strong in this area) | |
| Colin Ranieri, VP of Finance | 9 |
| Will Sears - Sr. Brand Experience Director | 1 |
| Tiffany DesMarais, Senior Account Director | 4 |
| Chase Fitzgerald, Sr. Account Director | 5 |
| Matt Shumate - SVP, Account Services | 5 |
| Brad Hobbs - Vice President of Account Service / GM Miami | 5 |
| Max Borges, CEO | 2 |
| Lindsay Stuart, VP Business Intelligence | 2 |
| Trisha Nieder, Senior Brand Experience Director | 7 |
| Jordan Marcus, VP Business Development | 3 |
| corrado amenta - director of operations | 5 |
| Don Earle - Director BD | 8 |
| Craig Gottlieb - Director | 7 |
| On a scale of 1-10, how well do you build your presentations around a new and unexpected strategic consumer insight vs. a predictable consumer insight? In other words, how well do you always have something brand new to share about the client's target audience? (10 = we are always strong in this area) | |
| Colin Ranieri, VP of Finance | 8 |
| Will Sears - Sr. Brand Experience Director | 2 |
| Tiffany DesMarais, Senior Account Director | 3 |
| Chase Fitzgerald, Sr. Account Director | 7 |
| Matt Shumate - SVP, Account Services | 2 |
| Brad Hobbs - Vice President of Account Service / GM Miami | 4 |
| Max Borges, CEO | 2 |
| Lindsay Stuart, VP Business Intelligence | 3 |
| Trisha Nieder, Senior Brand Experience Director | 5 |
| Jordan Marcus, VP Business Development | 3 |
| corrado amenta - director of operations | 3 |
| Don Earle - Director BD | 5 |
| Craig Gottlieb - Director | 7 |
| On a scale of 1-10, how well do you build your presentations around a new and unexpected creative/concept/program/tactical idea? (10 = we are always strong in this area) | |
| Colin Ranieri, VP of Finance | 8 |
| Will Sears - Sr. Brand Experience Director | 2 |
| Tiffany DesMarais, Senior Account Director | 5 |
| Chase Fitzgerald, Sr. Account Director | 8 |
| Matt Shumate - SVP, Account Services | 3 |
| Brad Hobbs - Vice President of Account Service / GM Miami | 3 |
| Max Borges, CEO | 2 |
| Lindsay Stuart, VP Business Intelligence | 5 |
| Trisha Nieder, Senior Brand Experience Director | 4 |
| Jordan Marcus, VP Business Development | 3 |
| corrado amenta - director of operations | 5 |
| Don Earle - Director BD | 7 |
| Craig Gottlieb - Director | 6 |
| On a scale of 1-10, how well do you demonstrate the business impact of your recommendations? (10 = we are always strong in this area) | |
| Colin Ranieri, VP of Finance | 7 |
| Will Sears - Sr. Brand Experience Director | 1 |
| Tiffany DesMarais, Senior Account Director | 5 |
| Chase Fitzgerald, Sr. Account Director | 6 |
| Matt Shumate - SVP, Account Services | 2 |
| Brad Hobbs - Vice President of Account Service / GM Miami | 2 |
| Max Borges, CEO | 1 |
| Lindsay Stuart, VP Business Intelligence | 3 |
| Trisha Nieder, Senior Brand Experience Director | 6 |
| Jordan Marcus, VP Business Development | 3 |
| corrado amenta - director of operations | 5 |
| Don Earle - Director BD | 6 |
| Craig Gottlieb - Director | 6 |
| Overall (and as you consider the questions above), what do you believe most holds back the effectiveness of your client and new business presentations? | |
| Colin Ranieri, VP of Finance | Not having the right client people in the room? |
| Will Sears - Sr. Brand Experience Director | Too detailed, tactical and overthought. We oversell the tactical breakdown and nitty-gritty details instead of prioritizing our experience, our smart people and the kind of relationship we provide to all clients. |
| Tiffany DesMarais, Senior Account Director | -Dedicating the right resources (people) to new business -Jumping to solution before understanding prospects' core business issues -Not using research consistently to understand landscape and then make recommendations -Balancing reliance on core strength of media relations (tactical) with offering more strategic direction and creative execution -Balancing profitability with experimentation and broadening service offerings |
| Chase Fitzgerald, Sr. Account Director | We tend to create a list of really great ideas and no common thread, which prevents us from aligning tactics to business goals. |
| Matt Shumate - SVP, Account Services | Arriving at the strongest insight possible. Telling our story effectively. Coming up with creative concepts that the client will align with. Effective process to get to the core of the strategy before brainstorming a bunch of ideas. |
| Brad Hobbs - Vice President of Account Service / GM Miami | We don't know who (clients) we should be pursuing yet. We haven't decided what we are so we just chase accounts, instead of knowing where we are strong and why we appeal to companies and targeting those. We haven't decided what we truly can and want to be experts at. When we arrive at a pitch with actual experience or passion or expertise in an area, we almost always win. |
| Max Borges, CEO | Our lack of a USP is number one. I believe if we have a strong USP, the above questions matter less. Second is our lack of excellence in the above section overall. |
| Lindsay Stuart, VP Business Intelligence | Defining an effective process for developing a unifying consumer insight and core creative concept. We've gone back and forth about where the unique insight / creative idea is developed - is it a linear process that is thought through the same way it is presented, is it developed through initial brainstorming with the right team members? We often start with a vague idea in mind, then move forward to keep momentum. Should the upfront section and strategy be completely finalized before moving into execution, or is that unrealistic? Our best ideas often come mid-way through a project when we feel fully immersed in the client problem. - We focus too much on the end-result and not enough on how our approach will help them achieve it. - We have a hard time visualizing & communicating our overarching strategy - We have difficulty in getting our team to carry out the strategy and messaging in their own brainstorming of ideas. This often leads to disjointed concepts that don't align well with the objectives - We focus too much on ideas outside of our comfort zone. We look for the biggest, creative ideas we can come up with rather than focusing in on what needs to happen to drive the results the client is looking for. - More effectively communicating business impact is a huge area of need. |
| Trisha Nieder, Senior Brand Experience Director | I think our strategies and campaign concepts are grounded in evidence and are built out to lead to client goals. I'm not confident that our campaign ideas and overall concepts are any different from other agencies. I think we play it safe with ideas and choose the first couple that come to mind rather than exploring more ideas. I also think that's due to the time constrains we have with pitches - sometimes there isn't enough time to sit and think of multiple concepts, and we have to run with one that will work and can be executed. |
| Jordan Marcus, VP Business Development | Ability to convey a bottom line business impact |
| corrado amenta - director of operations | lack of focus around what we are truly the best at. no one thing we can claim to be the best (or better yet ONLY) at. |
| Louvella Ivanoff, Director of People Services | Some believe the answer to winning business lies in pounding our chests and telling people why we're the best/smartest. Others believe that when it comes down to it, winning business lies in providing a solution that best matches the client's needs. |
| Don Earle - Director BD | We re-create the wheel for every new pitch deck |
| Craig Gottlieb - Director | This question and the ratings above are interesting because we have a few tiers of business we go after. For straightforward opportunities in the $10k - $12k range we are able to pop out fairly templated proposals with a decent win rate. For $20k per month and much larger opportunities, we put a lot of time and energy into them. The presentations have vastly improved since I joined the agency 2 years ago. We've had times we tried to be too creative and missed the mark by not talking more about pure media relations and product launching. Telling an engaging story that starts at the finish line, gets them hooked and shows that we are very strategic and came up with our program based on a logically process, is something we need help with. That's why we're talking to you. Having template slides so we can spend our time on the important custom aspects of the pitch is getting better, but still needs work. |
| What are the top 2 or 3 changes or trends you see in terms of how clients are interacting with agencies? | |
| Colin Ranieri, VP of Finance | Asking more for less money. |
| Will Sears - Sr. Brand Experience Director | A la carte services vs. blank check retainers / a deepening expectation (whether realistic or not) that every single funnel stage should yield data that ultimately led to sales / increased use of psychographic and issues-based data instead of behavioral or demographic data, to assist with the increasing expectations of storytelling tactics |
| Tiffany DesMarais, Senior Account Director | For organically growing business: It seems that many clients are least comfortable with the quickly changing digital and social landscape. They struggle to understand the difference between editorial and paid tactics in some cases so education is needed (typically with start ups). They are open to guidance in this area. They are still also very interested in influencers. For new biz: Personality fit is still a factor in selection process. |
| Chase Fitzgerald, Sr. Account Director | Influencer Marketing Competitive Research Campaigns vs. retainer |
| Matt Shumate - SVP, Account Services | Hiring agencies with unique specialties. On the flip side of that, there're some that prefer consolidation and one agency to handle the majority of the programs under one umbrella. More advanced KPIs that we're bringing to the table. |
| Brad Hobbs - Vice President of Account Service / GM Miami | Reporting / Metrics are evolving. Content creation coupled with storytelling is becoming the driver of earned, paid and owned media strategy. Clients are behind, increasingly looking for guidance. Rarely is a marketing manager on eh client side fit for their role at a high level...becoming more important than ever to have direct communication with company leads and truly position agency as a partner in their marketing mix (company calls, sales meetings etc). |
| Max Borges, CEO | This is a hard question for us to answer because we are moving toward larger clients who want integrated campaigns so we are working on new types of business. Please dig in for support if anyone tells you they really know. |
| Lindsay Stuart, VP Business Intelligence | - Clients are beginning to look for more strategic guidance from their account representatives. They're beginning to value them as consultants. - Clients care more about measurable business results than program results. Effectively delivering results within our scope has become less important than delivering ROI - Clients are looking to us for more creativity in our messaging, launch planning and execution |
| Trisha Nieder, Senior Brand Experience Director | They want more insights, recommendations and advice. They're looking for us to know more than just media relations - we must be experts in that - but they also want us to explain how we can support and how we affect other marketing channels. They don't just want to see data and results - they want to know what's working and what needs to be changed. |
| Jordan Marcus, VP Business Development | Clients are looking for strategy, creative ideas and a partner that they feel gives them the competitive advantage. They want firms to help them differentiate from their competition and increase awareness, consideration and ultimately sales for their product or service. They are looking for true partners, not just an external resource that can execute. |
| corrado amenta - director of operations | 1. agencies (including us) try to morph into whatever they think will get them the business instead of figuring out what they believe in and committing to it. 2. everyone right now is competing on strategy and creativity... all pr articles, seminar, agency websites all sound the same... "our research drives insights that drive creative, blah blah blah" not saying that is actually wrong way to do it but the has to be a different more engaging way of getting that message across. maybe even getting the message across without saying it. |
| Don Earle - Director BD | Not necessarily changes or trends, but, I feel like every client has different criteria and asks. Based on limited resources, we don't take a strong stance on telling clients what they need. |
| Craig Gottlieb - Director | More and more clients are looking for more form their communications partners. They want them to be able to generate press and reach the target audience beyond a product launch. They need integrated programs and want the agency to push them. Large companies are consolidating the number of agencies. Some clients are working with freelancers and hiring internal resources. |
| What are the top few changes you see in terms of why clients put accounts into review? | |
| Colin Ranieri, VP of Finance | New client hires/teams/ |
| Will Sears - Sr. Brand Experience Director | Mediocre talent on their teams, task-driven approach to work rather than strategic/creative, lack of soft skills and intuition when speaking with and counseling clients, not understanding (or legitimately not receiving) a return on their investment with us, pulling resources in-house to be able to integrate with other in-house functions more efficiently |
| Tiffany DesMarais, Senior Account Director | These aren't new but: Agency is not growing with the client or pushing envelope to explore new ways to grow (stagnant) Execution-based activities are being taken in-house. Some brand want to control their messaging and don't want to involve outside agencies (trust issues) Changing to a new agency to align with brand perception (Fashion brand not going with fashion agency because they want to be seen as a fashion tech brand) |
| Chase Fitzgerald, Sr. Account Director | Lack of innovation or new platform integration Lack of agility and willingness to adapt to new things |
| Matt Shumate - SVP, Account Services | Relationships with account team. Account team not able to identify the proper red flags. Agency not providing enough forward thinking, new, challenging ideas. Not able to put an ROI on agency efforts |
| Brad Hobbs - Vice President of Account Service / GM Miami | Staleness. Usually the agency being fired did above average work, but didn't evolve the account. They just continued to do the same good, and sometimes great, work. Account becomes stale and immune to the results, need to always be innovating. Its the reason we get RFPs as much as its the reason our clients put out RFPs. |
| Max Borges, CEO | The number one reason is that we are not having the right high level conversations with the right people on the client side. This keeps us from truly understanding what the clients want AND need as they evolve and eventually they fire us. |
| Lindsay Stuart, VP Business Intelligence | - Lack of results that have a measurable impact on sales - Lack of strategic leadership or direction for the program |
| Trisha Nieder, Senior Brand Experience Director | They've come to us with a problem (or several), and rather than changing how we work / changing the strategy, we just continue doing the same thing, only do more of it. They think they're exhausted our services/resources. For example, if a launch performs very well and product coverage is dwindling/they don't have a new product, the account team can't develop new storylines to keep clients in the news. There is no strategic consulting or advice, just taking orders and reporting back results with no thought or insights behind them. |
| Jordan Marcus, VP Business Development | Unhappy with the guidance and strategy they are getting. Lack of strong relationship. Concerns regarding the execution based on the strategy. |
| corrado amenta - director of operations | agencies are afraid of losing clients and clients know this. for them putting accounts into review is an easy way to have agencies open up conversations about renegotiating (lowering) fees, increasing scope (without increasing billings), etc. they know that 99% of what their agency does can be done by another agency. the moment an agency delivers something or at a level clearly beyond anything available in the market that is the moment that agency avoids being put in review |
| Don Earle - Director BD | dissatisfaction with existing or previous agency and lack of ROI |
| Craig Gottlieb - Director | Current agency is not pro-active enough. Current agency has turn over and the original team that was strong moved on. Current agency did a decent job for the product launch, but now that there is no new product they are failing. |
| If you’re able to answer, how is most new business coming in to the agency (i.e., competitive reviews/RFPs, proactive prospecting, referrals, etc.)? | |
| Colin Ranieri, VP of Finance | proactive prospecting |
| Will Sears - Sr. Brand Experience Director | The best clients (retained longer and more sophisticated as marketers) are inbound and not solicited. This happens via referral from other clients or even via our website which isn't great. Proactive prospecting here seems highly inefficient based on the return, but a lot of the smaller clients are the ones we are able to get good coverage for, though they rarely have budgets to do anything at all outside of media relations. |
| Tiffany DesMarais, Senior Account Director | Some incoming leads from searching for tech pr agencies, referrals from clients like Sonny at Misfit. In RFP process, I feel we've sometimes been added as the quirky third option or even as the required alternative choice when a marketing manager has already decided which agency they are going with. |
| Chase Fitzgerald, Sr. Account Director | Proactive prospecting |
| Matt Shumate - SVP, Account Services | Don't have the specific numbers on this, but my sense is that it's about 50% proactive prospecting, 25% RFP and 25% referrals. Ideally we can get it so that it doesn't have to be as proactive and we're upping our referrals so we can avoid going through as many RFP processes. |
| Brad Hobbs - Vice President of Account Service / GM Miami | Least amount by referrals. |
| Max Borges, CEO | We have this data. Jordan can give you exact numbers. Probably proactive prospecting which sometimes leads to RFP's or gets us a referral. |
| Lindsay Stuart, VP Business Intelligence | As of late, it appears to be referrals that are converting |
| Trisha Nieder, Senior Brand Experience Director | Proactive prospecting |
| Jordan Marcus, VP Business Development | Proactive prospecting, referrals and RFPs in that order. |
| corrado amenta - director of operations | proactive prospecting |
| Don Earle - Director BD | prospecting and aggressive grass roots pursuit of new clients |
| Craig Gottlieb - Director | New business is coming in through referrals, proactive prospecting and SEO (prospects Google Best Tech PR agency). We take part in competitive reviews/RFPs. We usually get invited via proactive prospecting, not through agency finder consultants. Many times we will be actively prospecting and someone at the prospect used to work with us in a past life or works with one of our clients. |
| Bottom line, what do you think the agency most has to do to improve at new business? | |
| Colin Ranieri, VP of Finance | Grow our brand awareness. Expand product offering without diminishing core expertise. Generate more inbound leads. |
| Will Sears - Sr. Brand Experience Director | Streamline outbound efforts by being more targeted in who we go after, more informed about how to talk about ourselves and our services, and more creative in how we incentivize people beyond the business development team to organically grow current accounts or bring in new ones. |
| Tiffany DesMarais, Senior Account Director | Build referral network- current clients, previous clients and influencer network of other agencies, VCs Dedicate team and time Make this a mission that the entire agency can get behind (i.e. grow our net promoter score from X to Y by Z.) |
| Chase Fitzgerald, Sr. Account Director | Improve our online presence and executive visibility. |
| Matt Shumate - SVP, Account Services | Put a strategy and process in place that's scalable. Neither of these have been achieved effectively. We have to switch from outbound to inbound with 1.) a larger referral network of strategic partners(VC firms, other agencies, etc.) and 2.) more unique agency IP that establishes us as thought leaders in the space. Need to define our USP so we can all tell a consistent story about the agency. |
| Brad Hobbs - Vice President of Account Service / GM Miami | Define our target client. Make our current work, work for us. Become leaders in the space and implement a strategy to grow awareness leading to increase inbound referrals and request. Even the RFP's we won, we rarely are on the list of invites, we typically weasel our way in with proactive outreach. |
| Max Borges, CEO | #1 - Create an attractive and compelling USP. #2 - Improve in the areas you laid out earlier in the survey. |
| Lindsay Stuart, VP Business Intelligence | Improve our process for pitch development |
| Trisha Nieder, Senior Brand Experience Director | We need inbound requests and referrals, and a strategy in place to make this happen. There should be goals in place that we can measure against. How do we know if we're doing well? Poorly? The goals are far too vague and can't be measured. |
| Jordan Marcus, VP Business Development | A defined USP, better data and insights to share with the prospect, strong client facing team members and an outbound content strategy. |
| corrado amenta - director of operations | figure ourselves out. what do we want to be know for and commit. stop trying to sell ourselves as all-encompassing agency. focus, focus, focus. |
| Louvella Ivanoff, Director of People Services | Think more consultatively. Really understand businesses and decision-makers and why they buy. Stop making assumptions. |
| Don Earle - Director BD | develop our own brand advocates, market ourselves systematically like any other company or brand |
| Craig Gottlieb - Director | We need to improve at how we tell our story of what we do and why we are great. That includes video case studies, better website, ongoing engaging articles, blog posts, studies, etc. that we can share with prospects as touch points and use to get invited to opportunities and win them. We need to do great integrated work for our clients and, as stated above, package it so prospects know about it. We need to either train or hire so we have the right dream account team to win business and grow current client business. We are great at media relations, but we need to be experts at all aspects of communications and when the team walks in the room and presents they instill confidence into the prospects. |
| Any final advice for us as we prepare your training program? | |
| Colin Ranieri, VP of Finance | nope |
| Will Sears - Sr. Brand Experience Director | What can we do to hold the entire team accountable for sales, retention, etc. And not in a punitive way per se, but perhaps in a way to reward them? This is something that would be a nice shift to help motivate people toward growing their accounts more as the actual experts anyway, and away from boilerplate pitches from BD members who may not understand (and generally do not understand) how to solve the client's business goals through marketing. |
| Matt Shumate - SVP, Account Services | If we were to get 3-4 things out of this, I view the most important as... 1.) Identifying and articulating our USP 2.) A codified process to approach strategic pitch development within RFPs 3.) A framework for coming to the insight/strategy more quickly/effectively 4.) An external perspective on our pricing strategy |
| Brad Hobbs - Vice President of Account Service / GM Miami | From the outside looking in, it would be interested to see if you see anything that truly makes us different or at least and area we "could" be different. If you ask "who is MBA" to 10 people, you'll get 10 different answers, we need help fine tuning that or at least understanding a better process to get there. We also need to come to terms with some clients, no matter how awesome and big budget they are....might not be a fit. Thanks. |
| Max Borges, CEO | Please try to dig in when people make claims about what they think clients want. Lets try to deal with facts not feelings. Feelings are what clients say they want. Facts are what clients will actually pay for. Great survey. I'm super excited about this! Thank you! |
| Lindsay Stuart, VP Business Intelligence | Just a couple of additional questions I had that I hoped we could touch on -Who should and shouldn't be involved in a new business pitch? This refers to the pitch presentation development more so than the presenters. - What is the ideal starting point once a new pitch is in progress? Who should be involved? - How much time should we spend on explaining messaging vs strategy vs approach vs execution? - How do we ensure that we include what's vital to explaining the strategy, while still keeping the presentation visually appealing and concise - What is the best process for incorporating client experience? We currently integrate it within to show by example |
| Jordan Marcus, VP Business Development | We are a new business oriented firm. We understand the importance of new business better than most. We lack the execution from a presentation approach side and from an agency specific content perspective. |
| corrado amenta - director of operations | bring the heat man. give it to us straight. If what we are saying sounds like we are full of shit TELL US!!! call us out when we use too much industry jargon. for me success is coming out of this process with executive team aligned on a focused approach of who we want to be. whatever that is should be something that stands out from the marketplace. |
| Louvella Ivanoff, Director of People Services | Spend extra time getting us on the same page as far as our identity and what works. There's conflicting viewpoints on who we are/should be and how we get to where (we think) we're going. |
| Don Earle - Director BD | help design a more systematic approach to prevent BD reps from stepping on each other's toes and develop more focus |
| Craig Gottlieb - Director | Bring it! This agency has amazing aspects and huge potential. I'm psyched for what's to come. |