10 Common Problems Agencies Run Into and How To Fix Them

by Brooke Jensen | Apr 18, 2020 | Advertising, Agency, Budget

Agencies owners will typically dream of building a successful business that is capable of coming up with amazing results for their clients. While this is possible, agencies tend to come with their own set of problems that can’t easily be solved like most other businesses. Agencies require a whole different solution when it comes to meeting the various challenges that affect their business daily. Thanks to the development of technology, social media, and Big data, the way agencies would handle their business has transformed in ways no one was expecting.

As grand as the internet and technology have become, plenty of agencies were caught off guard by the rapid growth and were having a difficult time adapting to this growing landscape. The introduction of new platforms, technologies, and environments have introduced a whole new set of challenges that some agencies are having a hard time dealing with. These are all common problems that have occurred over time, and fortunately for you, this article will provide the information you’ll need to fix these issues. Let’s go over 10 common problems agencies are running into and what they can do to fix them.

1. Slow adaptation to digital

The rise of the digital age managed to change the landscape of every agency out there. This sudden rise in technology had left these marketing agencies with barely any time to understand everything they needed to know about the digital landscape. Before most of these marketing agencies could even start becoming comfortable, all sorts of stuff started surfacing like analytics tools and Big data, which caused unforeseen challenges to begin appearing.

To add to the exasperation, every single one of these new software and platforms being introduced was also evolving just as quickly as the digital landscape. What was previously known by most as the best digital marketing on a single day was something completely different the day after. The continually changing trends in marketing made it improbable for most marketers to keep up, especially when those trends were very short-lived.

Some marketing agencies advanced so quickly through social media marketing that they weren’t aware of how to handle ROI. This has led to a gap of agencies being unaware if their marketing strategies were even causing an impact. Others were not taking care of storing their vital data carefully and were potentially risking the chance of losing out precious data for their agency.

The only way for you to fix this situation is by using the appropriate tools and targeting for the right audience. One of the most amazing things about the digital age is that the way we communicate between business and clients are quite open, and can be used to the advantage of anyone out there. Consider getting in touch with existing customers and see what you can do to improve your work and what seems to be the best course of action to follow.

2. Forgetting to ask questions

In this day in age, marketing agencies have all sorts of tools and platforms available to them for communication purposes. But for some reason, they have decided to stop listening to their customer base. Marketing agencies have lost their focus on trying to understand their client’s point of view and instead are trying to make the most of everything that’s become available to them.

Fixing this is quite easy, all you have to do is merely listen to your clients. Start asking them questions to get a better understanding of the target audience. While marketing agencies are aware that most of the tools have given them unlimited potential, they need to remember that human touch is still required to even utilize these tools effectively. Meaning, that you’ll only be aware of the problems, fears, and objectives of your client’s situation by sitting down and having a discussion with them.

3. What differentiates your agency from others?

Understanding the way your own agencies operate is crucial to selling yourself to potential customers. What types of problems are you solving or people? Who are you helping? How are you serving your customers, handling the marketing process, and the price of your services? If you are struggling to answer these questions, then you have some work to do. For example, let’s say you regularly help out retailing business with selling their wares, perhaps this is something your agency specializes in. Instead of solely marketing for just retails, try to concentrate on a narrower market This will allow you to improve your communication and add more value to those clients.

To stand out from the rest of the competition, consider several things. Carefully come up with a process that insulates the client from tedious work, such as gathering the needed information all at once instead of slowly asking them questions. Develop a relationship with several contracts you can bankroll so you can provide work for your client that you ordinarily do dabble in. Or utilize a particular pricing model that appeals to your target audience.
The only way you can differentiate your agency from other competitors is by figuring out what your clients value the most and become that value.

4. Remaining the same of various platforms

While there are various platforms available for marketers to spread their presence, that doesn’t mean they should be using every one of them. The worst cases come from agencies that have an appearance almost everywhere but only post regularly on a few of those places. Customers these days will want far more from businesses, which means they’ll want a different experience offered to them each time they decide to interact with your agency on platforms you are available to. In this day and age, customers feel that companies should be putting in more effort when discussing a customer’s experience.

These days, marketing agencies should be concentrating on being varied in their communication. The more marketing platforms an agency decides to open up, the more difficult it will become for them to maintain a steady brand voice and image. That is to say, if you are not correctly communicating enough, you’ll confuse your audience, and they will decide to leave you behind. Pick the platforms you know are crucial for your business success. Make sure you are also posting content that is interested and unique across all of the selected platforms if you want to remain engaged and continue to grow your customer base.

5. Budgeting issues

This is another situation that has become a common problem among marketing agencies. It’s possible that you may have come up with a fantastic strategy, and are starting to pitch the budget to pull this off, but instead of accepting like you thought they would, the client has decided to bow out. Being aware of the amount you’re suggesting for budgeting purposes was required if you wanted to achieve the results and use the platforms you’ve mentioned for this strategy, you’ll want to come up with a way to continue, but aren’t sure how to.

A marketing agency that is fully confident in the strategy they’ve come up with will have a much higher chance of convincing the client why this specific strategy is the one they’ll need to succeed at their business goals. Or else, if you are unsure if the success of your strategy truly needs the requested budget, your client will most likely feel the same. Concentrate on ROI, and every other benefit your client will like to hear if they accept the terms of your strategy. Be aware of how your strategy manages to contribute to the overall success of your winning strategy.

6. Don’t forget the small stuff

With the number of people who’ve managed to become a part of the digital age, tons of social media has caused many people to form tight communities. Plenty of them spend countless hours talking to one another about all sorts of things. Although, even though most people have grown close with the help of social media, people have forgotten how powerful small and personal gestures of goodwill can have. When it comes to marketing, these small gestures of goodwill can cause a significant impact on your capability to close consistently.

These tokens of goodwill can be pretty much anything from a simple thank you card after the client has purchased an item, to a small message hoping they are doing well after having heard from them after a while. These little gestures will make a massive difference. Even with the connection social media platforms provide, most of them can come off as cold and impersonal most of the time. That little thank you or other tokens of appreciation will have a more positive impact.

Using this strategy will allow you to nurture potential leads and turn them into valued clients. When you automate the entire process, it will take very little time to yield good results. If you haven’t already started doing this yourself, get right on it and set up an automated system that issues thank you messages. Sometimes these can provide the assistance you require to understand a client’s behavior and where the marketing funnel is.

7. Remaining ahead of industry trends

The digital marketing industry is always changing the playing field. Each month some new tool, platform, or strategy changes the way marketing is done. You need to ensure your agency manages to stay on top of any new tactics to remain ahead of the competition. Although this isn’t really an easy thing to pull off, so you’ll need to spend some time learning and sharing the knowledge you acquire to make sure your employees remain up-to-date with the latest trends.

There are several ways to fix these issues. Certain agencies have decided to specialize in particular marketing industries, which have allowed them to only keep up with a few specific parts of the industry that don’t evolve too much. Others will spend this time having sessions where they share what they’ve learned and encourage a collaborative culture to keep everyone on top of the changing trends. At times, it may be an excellent idea to hire a freelancer who is an expert at new platforms or tools. This can solve two issues, you’ll be offering your clients the expertise of this freelancer, and your team will be able to learn from it.

8. Handling client relationships

While acquiring new clients is crucial for the success of your agency, it’s even more necessary to efficiently maintain your existing customers. Poorly handling your relationships will lead to clients leaving dissatisfied even if you manage to give them high-quality service, and the single most costly thing many agencies will see is the loss of that client relationship. Because most marketing projects will require the interaction of multiple specialists, clients will have various touch points within the agency.

For instance, the same client will probably interact with a PPC specialist one day, and then the community manager afterward. Your client must not only receive the value and assistance of your agency but also feel that they’re getting the value and support they wanted. To pull this off, you should consider scheduling a meeting on a weekly or monthly basis between the client and the account manager.

9. Scaling your agency

One of the most challenging things anyone can do is scaling their business. This is especially true for an industry like digital marketing, which is more person-oriented. Growth will introduce a set of new problems when it comes to recruiting, such as making sure the service is consistently being delivered, overseeing finances, and creating a new business development team. As the agency continues to grow, you’ll need to start setting up the appropriate system to manage this growth. This includes platforms to track and monitor sales, finances, services, and human resources. You’ll also have to carefully develop your agency’s culture that brings out the best in your team.

To deal with these growing issues, you can start by using small and flexible teams that serve specific groups of clients. If your agency has developed around the founder’s brand, clients will come to the agency expecting to receive personal attention from the said founder. These types of agencies need to become proactive about expanding beyond the founder’s influence.  Utilizing communication tools and systems will also play a crucial role in scaling the business. Your staff should be capable of sharing references and update any information as needed. This allows knowledge sharing and reduces the chance of services from declining over time.

10. Not deciding the selling point

One thing that many agencies commonly struggle with is deciding on their selling point. Due to the growth of this digital age, we’re living in customers who have gained access to more brands than they had decades ago. It’s one reason why marketers start assuming that it’s impossible to come up with something unique to themselves. Although this is not something that should be ignored, by coming up with your own selling point, you’ll be able to increase your conversion rate.

To acquire your own selling point, you have to know it doesn’t’ haven’t to be something your competitors aren’t offering. While you can provide similar services, you should come up with one that is your main selling point. You can consider a specific niche for your agency, such as executing SEO way better than your competitors or having a higher rate of clients return to your agency.

Conclusion

Every agency has its own set of problems they need to solve as times go by. Some can be some of the most simple and common issues that plague all of us. The best thing to do is to buckle down and come up with a way to fix this problem. You can’t afford to give up just because one minor thing didn’t go your way. Hopefully, the information provided here has managed to help alleviate any problems plaguing your agency.