Why agencies need to re-think project management, with Jack Skeels

The fundamentals of successful client management, with Carey Evans & Simon Rhind-Tutt: Today's episode is with the founders of Relationship Audits and Management, Carey Evans and Simon Rhind-Tutt. They are invited in by creative agency leaders and client services directors to assess the strength of their client relationships and provide recommendations and guidance for how to retain and grow the accounts. In this episode they share tip after tip from years of experience talking to agency clients about what they want most from their agencies. They remind us of many of the fundamental principles of account management having spoken to hundreds of clients and having built up years of benchmarking data from client interviews about what works and doesn't work when it comes to successful agency client relationships. In this episode you'll hear: * Why becoming the go to person within your agency for a chosen topic can accelerate your career * The winning agency formula for any pitch * Wha by Creative Agency Account Manager Podcast

48 min listen

How to move from agency employee to agency owner, with Simon Barbato: This episode is for you if you're working for a creative/digital agency and are thinking about becoming an agency owner. It's also one to listen to if you're in a planning role (sometimes referred to an agency strategist) or are wondering whether your talents might be suited to this role. Simon Barbato is the founder of Mr. B and Friends. Like me he started his career in advertising in the 1990s in client service. He quickly then transitioned into a strategist/planner role and then eventually became an agency owner. In this episode, he is going to share his journey, the ups the downs, and also his advice for you if you're considering something similar. He's also going to share why he believes now is a great time to make that leap. I've asked Simon to share with us a little bit more about the role of a planner in an agency, how they work with the account management team, how it adds value to clients and leads by Creative Agency Account Manager Podcast

47 min listen

How to improve the way you work with a marketing director, with Sam Bridger: Sam Bridger is an interim Marketing Director and consultant. She has worked in marketing for over 25 years, 14 of which have been spent as interim marketing director. Throughout her career she's managed many different agencies and so is in a very good position to provide the 'client side' perspective on how agencies manage her business. In this episode, she shares lots of tips and insights into what its like being a client and how you can improve the way you work with your client: * How to engage with your clients when they're not responding to you * Why you need to understand the role and associated pressures of your client * One of the best ways to make a cold approach to a prospective client * Why she thinks it's a great idea to ask your client for referrals where the relationship is strong * The worst thing agencies can do during client meetings and pitches * Why being genuine and empathetic is so imp by Creative Agency Account Manager Podcast

58 min listen

Five red flag moments for agency account managers: Welcome to Episode 62. Usually, I have podcast guests but thought I'd do a quick episode to share with you some best practice tips if you're in the account management role and you're looking to do a bit of relationship risk management. I believe there are a few 'red flag moments' that every agency account manager needs to be aware of, and look out for. These are, essentially, points in the relationship where your client relationship is at risk, and the account is at risk. And not only are 'red flag moments' important to try to anticipate but, when they happen, it's the account manager's job to act very swiftly, because you are responsible for the client relationship for not only the retention of but also the growth of the account. So, I've just got five examples of what I call, 'red flag moments'. I want to explain to you why I think they're important and share a couple of ideas for how you can either anticipate them, or tackle them. by Creative Agency Account Manager Podcast

19 min listen

How to sell to existing and prospective clients, with Marcus Cauchi: Marcus Cauchi is probably one of the most well known salesman and sales trainers in the UK. I was fortunate enough to be trained by Marcus in the Sandler selling methodology and meeting him changed the course of my career as I suddenly realised selling skills could have been hugely beneficial when I started out in advertising in the 1990s. In this episode, Marcus shares with us: * What agencies need to do to win new business * The metrics he uses to evaluate a new business team's effectiveness * Why asking questions to gather information is a waste of yours and your client's time * How agencies can manage the handover from their new business to account management team * How understanding human psychology can aid us in selling * The most overlooked area of account expansion agencies miss * The three myths agencies have bought into about selling.... ....and so many more nuggets of selling wisdom, you'll want to grab by Creative Agency Account Manager Podcast

55 min listen

How to create a high performing agency team culture, with Alison Coward: This episode is for you if you're responsible for an agency team and you want the team to be working together more collaboratively. Today's guest is my friend Alison Coward who is the founder of Bracket Creative and an expert in team culture. In this episode Alison explains: * Why it's important for agencies to pay attention to their team culture and impact a positive culture has on productivity * What to look for if you suspect your team culture needs attention * Some examples of where agency leaders go wrong with team culture * How remote working is affecting team collaboration and what you can do to bring the team together Alison shares insight she's gained from many years working with high performing teams and what shines through in this chat is Alison's vast knowledge and passion for the subject and the many compelling reasons why team culture, particularly now is so important to keeping us all working t by Creative Agency Account Manager Podcast

33 min listen

Why you need a relationship with marketing procurement, with Tina Fegent: In this episode, Tina Fegent, marketing procurement consultant with almost 30 years experience shares tips for what procurement want from agencies and specifically agency account management. Tina has worked both client side for companies such as Orange and agency side in the role of Commercial Director so really understands what works and doesn't work when it comes to creating and developing relationships with the procurement team. In this episode Tina shares; - The most common complaint she hears from clients about agency account management - What great account management looks like for her - Why developing relationships with procurement is good for agency business - Ideas you can try right now for how to engage with procurement - What to avoid when pitching - What management consultancies are doing really well that agencies should be doing more of.... ....and lots more! So grab a pen and get ready to take by Creative Agency Account Manager Podcast

47 min listen

How to be more productive: Do you often feel overwhelmed by how much you have to do? This is a short quick fire episode where I answer a question I hear most frequently from creative agency account managers. The subject of productivity, time management and general overwhelm with number of tasks needed to be completed comes up a lot. Often being stuck managing the day to day firefighting distracts us from doing the things that are more valuable like thinking about ways of adding more value to the client’s business, looking at trends, working on client relationship expansion, client development planning etc. So here are 10 tips (plus an extra bonus one I added!) for ensuring you get as much of your Day to day workload completed as possible so it frees up space to do more thinking and planning. Account managers who want promotion to account director realise the only way they can work on more strategic tasks (client development plans, solving client business & communications challen by Creative Agency Account Manager Podcast

16 min listen

How to lead the team as agency client services director, with Paul Kirkley: Paul Kirkley has spent his entire career in agency account management. He knew from a young age he wanted to work in advertising and has certainly fulfilled his ambition. He now works for one of the UK's top creative agencies, MadeBrave as Client Services Director and his experience includes 20 years with JWT (now Wunderman Thompson) working as Global Business Director for brands such as Nestle, Jaguar and Kenco (JDE) where he also lead a client services team of 120. In this chat, he shares: * Why always being curious and genuinely interested in the client's business is key to success * How seeing the world through the eyes of each agency department and understanding their motivations sets you up for success in your account management role * Why the best briefings come out of the best questioning and listening * Tips for how to become a client's trusted advisor * How to lead, inspire and set the account mana by Creative Agency Account Manager Podcast

40 min listen

Secrets of highly effective agency leaders, with Spencer Gallagher: In this episode I'm delighted to have as my guest Spencer Gallagher who took time out of working on the second edition of his best selling book, Agencynomics, which he co-wrote with his partner Peter Hoole, to share his thoughts on agency leadership and client management. Having built and sold his own agency in 2008, he now runs the UK's leading growth consultancy for agency owners, Cact.us and is co-founder of the Cact.us Academy, a training portal for agency owners. He also heads up the not for profit global community of agency owners, also called Agencynomics and co-hosts the vodcast Agencyphonics where he interviews owners and thought leaders about growing an agency business. In this episode we cover everything from what he thinks is most important when leading an agency and how he approaches agency growth, to the biggest agency trends he's seeing and how to stay up to date and relevant in this time of digital by Creative Agency Account Manager Podcast

47 min listen

How to be a great agency account director, with Sarah Deakin & Ruby Beagan: This episode is particularly useful for you if you are working as account manager in a creative agency and aspire to be an account director. It's also useful if you're already an agency account director and are looking for some ideas and learnings from other account directors in the creative industry to apply in your role. Sarah Deakin and Ruby Beagan are account directors for Thursday Studio, an insight-led design studio in Winchester. The reason I invited them on to the show is to share their day to day experience of what it's like in the role of account director in a creative agency. During this interview, they share: * What they believe is the value the account management role brings to an agency and its clients * Difference between the account manager and account director role * Examples of where they've made a difference to the client's business * Their thoughts on why clients stay with agencies for by Creative Agency Account Manager Podcast

50 min listen

How to pitch to procurement, with Jessica Bowler and Iris Gatzweiler: Welcome to Episode 54. I spoke to Jessica Bowler and Iris Gatzweiler, two senior procurement clients who shared some insights into the pitching process. It's particularly useful for you if you want to know why clients typically pitch out for business, procurement’s role in the whole pitching process, how the brief is developed and some insight into how the final decision is made. There are also some shared examples of where agencies have performed particularly well in the pitch process. Don’t forget to go back to Episode 9, where Jessica and Iris talked about how to approach and develop relationships with procurement. And if you want to expand your current client relationships and you're working in agency client service, my Account Accelerator programme is designed specifically for you. By the end of nine weeks working with me, you'll have a repeatable client centric strategy and a plan to help add more value to by Creative Agency Account Manager Podcast

50 min listen

How to have a successful career in agency account management, with Phil Lancaster by Creative Agency Account Manager Podcast

52 min listen

What your agency clients really want, with Kate Whittaker: In my first episode I'm delighted to be chatting to Kate Whittaker, Head of Corporate Communications at DUAL International. As a marketing client, Kate Whittaker has 30 years experience managing agency relationships so is very well placed to give her perspective on what agency account managers could be doing to win their clients over. In this episode we cover: 1. How Kate selects her agencies and what she suggests you do if you're considering cold calling prospective clients 2. The qualities she looks for in a potential agency partner 3. Examples of where agency account managers have won her over and built her trust as well as where agencies get client management wrong 4. Some advice for how agencies can present additional ideas during the course of working on another project 5. Why you need to be asking your clients for more referrals 6. Her tips for how to position yourself as more of a trusted advisor 7. What's changed fo by Creative Agency Account Manager Podcast

36 min listen

How to be a strategic account manager in the creative industry, with Andy Young & Laura Cohen: Andy Young and Laura Cohen are both strategic account managers for Skeleton Productions, a full service agency specialising in video production. In this chat, they share some brilliant tips and ideas for account managers who want to enhance their account management skills. They share: * Why shifting from being a good relationship builder to taking more of a 'challenger' approach with your clients works * How to build trust with your client so they take risks to do bigger and bolder projects * Why keeping your finger on the pulse with future trends in your specialism is key to ensuring your clients see you as an advisor rather than order taker * What a pre-flight questionnaire is an how to use one * Why you shouldn't be scared of the word "strategy" * Tips for how they've kept decision makers engaged throughout projects and how to get things back on track if the project goes awry I hope yo by Creative Agency Account Manager Podcast

56 min listen

How to use the power of 'surgical empathy' with your clients, with Dr Mark Goulston: This episode's for you if you are looking to create more rapport with your clients and build trust. Dr Mark Goulston explains why empathy is so powerful and why people are afraid to empathise in business. He talked about how you can get your clients to trust you and you'll be asking yourself are you a plus-er or a minus-er or a topper? I hope you enjoy the chat with Mark and come away with a few ideas for how you could perhaps empathise more with your clients. If you would like to receive a weekly newsletter with tips for account managers and sound bites from podcasts, and news and events then come over to my website accountmanagementskills.com and you can sign up to receive a weekly newsletter. by Creative Agency Account Manager Podcast

43 min listen

What you need to know about the evolution of branding, with Bill Wallsgrove: If you have an interest in branding, feel your agency brand needs a makeover or you're looking for help to offer branding workshops to your clients, this episode is for you. Bill Wallsgrove has been helping companies with branding for 30 years. He's worked on some of the most exciting and well known brands such as Heineken, Budweiser and Benetton to name just a few and has held Creative Director roles for some of the most prestigious strategic design agencies such as Coley Porter Bell and Future Brand. He has been guiding agencies with their brands for years and his brand consultancy services include mentoring the likes of Studio Blup (recently bought by the LAB Group) known for their work with brands like Nike, MTV and Ministry of Sound. Today I pick his brains on everything branding related and ask him to share his thoughts, opinions and observations about how branding has changed during his career. by Creative Agency Account Manager Podcast

53 min listen

How to approach and develop relationships with procurement, with Jessica Bowler & Iris Gatzweiler: Today's guests are Iris Gatzweiler and Jess Bowler who have been working in marketing procurement for many years in the pharmaceutical industry. I asked them to share more about their day to day roles in procurement and shed some light on how agency account managers can develop stronger relationships with them. In this episode we discuss: * What they look for in long term agency supplier relationships * Where they see the value in agency account management and some tips on how to keep the relationship on track * Advice for how to approach someone in procurement when you don't have a relationship currently * Why involving procurement in how you expand your relationships within a company makes sense * How they make an agency selection and how you can stand out from the rest There are so many golden nuggets in this episode, you'll want to grab a pen and make some notes. I hope this will by Creative Agency Account Manager Podcast

48 min listen

Why 98% of online ads don't work - and what to do about it, with Martin Lucas: In this episode Martin Lucas, Mathematical Psychologist and Founder of the company Gap In the Matrix is about to blow the lid off many of the sacred cows in the agency world. He has spent four years studying why humans don't understand humans and how brands are missing a trick when it comes to engaging their customers and understanding why they make purchasing decisions. Rory Sutherland, Vice Chairman of Ogilvy said this about Martin's company: "Gap In the Matrix is one of a tiny number of people in the world who understands that it is psychology which offers the greatest potential to revolutionise marketing in the next ten years and beyond.” In this fascinating episode he shares the results of his four year study and drops bombshells like: * Why $265bn of online ads don't get interacted with and the average Facebook ad click through rate is a tiny 1.61%, Google display ad 1.91% and programmatic 0.035% by Creative Agency Account Manager Podcast

50 min listen

Client Insights Report 2021, part one, with Carey Evans & Simon Rhind-Tutt: Welcome to Episode 37. This is part one of a two part interview with Simon Rhind-Tutt and Carey Evans from Relationship Audits and Management. They've put together a report summarising what clients are telling them about agencies. They've taken this data from hundreds of interviews that they've conducted with clients over the last year. There are six themes in total, and they talk us through each theme, share some insights, share some quotes from clients, and then, most importantly, what they believe agencies need to do about it. What actions do we need to take? Part one covers three key themes: Is your agency fit for purpose? Are you nimble enough? Are you communicating in the best way? I would urge you to tune in to the part two, next week where we're going to follow the theme and cover three more topics - are you sharing learnings from other clients; are you better or worse at tech; and did you realise t by Creative Agency Account Manager Podcast

26 min listen

How to present new ideas with behavioural science in mind: In this episode I reflect on some recent research on how status quo bias affects a client's decision making process and why that's important for us to know when presenting new ideas. In this episode we dive into why when presenting new ideas to our clients that require them to make a big change, it's useful to understand the psychology of why they might be reluctant to. By knowing this we're then able to present the ideas with this in mind and provide the information that they require to make their decision. I hope you enjoy this episode and I'd love to hear your thoughts on this topic. by Creative Agency Account Manager Podcast

15 min listen

How to avoid stress and burnout in an agency environment, with Louisa Pau: Louisa has a powerful message for you if you are working in an agency. She successfully built and sold her healthcare communications agency Woolley Pau in 2012 but her health suffered as a result and she ended up hospitalised. In this episode she shares her journey and provides advice and guidance for others who may be inadvertently heading in the same direction. In this episode she shares with us: * The 10 signs you may be heading for burnout without realising it * Why trying to be the 'hero' at work can have a detrimental affect on you, your health and those around you * What resilience is and why it's not just about 'bouncing back' * The difference between healthy and unhealthy stress and how to spot the tipping point * Why stress goes undetected until it's too late * Where to seek support if you think your health is suffering as a result of pressure, challenge and stress * The first few steps you can tak by Creative Agency Account Manager Podcast

42 min listen

How to account manage in an independent full service agency, with Emma Blaken & Matt Bonser: Welcome to Episode 32. In this episode, I chat to Matt and Emma in the account management team at Purpose Media. They've shared with us their tips and insights into their role. And they've shared: - how they approach client management - how they run their discovery workshops - the key questions they asked their clients at the beginning of the relationship - and how they always aim to position themselves as trusted advisors to their clients from the start. There's lots more. I think this chat will be particularly interesting for you if you are looking to get into the role of account manager or senior account manager in a full service independent agency. Or maybe you're already in that role, and you're curious to see how other account managers operate. Now, if you are an ambitious agency account manager and you really want to accelerate your career by improving your agency account managemen by Creative Agency Account Manager Podcast

41 min listen

Exceptional leadership and having difficult conversations, with Nadine Powrie by Creative Agency Account Manager Podcast

44 min listen

How to prospect for agency new business, with Lucy Snell: Today's guest is the lovely Lucy Snell the co-founder of Cherry Consulting. Cherry helps creative and digital agencies to generate new business and Lucy started the company in 2004. She's been featured three times in the BD100 list as one of the UK's most influential business developers and during this interviews shares many tips for agencies who are looking to generate more leads. In this episode, she shares: * Some of the biggest challenges she's seeing agencies have for approaching prospects right now * Tips for how to get cut through when prospective clients aren't responding * What she did to get a 50% open rate on one of her email campaigns * What she finds agencies need the most help with in the area of new business generation * Her thoughts on why some agencies are thriving at the moment * Exactly what she believes you should be spending your time on in the area of new business depending on the size of your agency. by Creative Agency Account Manager Podcast

37 min listen

What's the role of a digital agency project manager?, with Nadine Schofield: This episode is for you if you're in a digital agency project management role or are aspiring to work in project management in an agency. It's also for you if you're an agency leader who is looking to ensure the role of the project manager runs smoothly. Nadine Schofield is the Founder of Project Management on Demand and she'll be sharing with us: * The core (hard and soft) skills you need to be an effective project manager * Where agencies go wrong with approaching project management * The differences between an agile, waterfall and wagile way of working * Differences between the role of the account manager and project manager and how they can work together efficiently * The downsides of the hybrid role where the project management and account management function are in a combined role * Some suggestions for how to decide which project management system to use in your agency * How working from home has affe by Creative Agency Account Manager Podcast

39 min listen

The account management skills you need to grow existing client business: In this solo episode I talk through the four steps of the client value ladder and the skills you need to deliver value at every level. It's particularly relevant for you if you are managing the day to day client relationships but are also responsible for account growth and delivering on your agency's forecast. Many of us in agency account management know that acquiring a new client is 5 to 25 times more expensive than retaining an existing one (1) & increasing client retention rate by 5% increases profit by 25% to 95% (2), but another study by Gartner reported that a whopping 80% of a company's future sales will be derived from 20% of their existing client base! (3). This makes the skill of growing existing business very important. What's less well known, and also shown in another study by Gartner called 'Why your accounts aren't growing and what to do about it', is that the account management skills required by Creative Agency Account Manager Podcast

22 min listen

10 top tips to be successful in agency account management, with Jenny Plant: Welcome to Episode 27. This is the top 10 tips to be successful in agency account management. And the reason that I'm giving you top 10 tips is because we've now passed 26 episodes on this podcast, and we've had some fantastic guests sharing really, really brilliant advice for agency account managers to up their game, to be more proficient in what they do, and to be much more successful in their role. So I thought what I'd do is reflect back on some of those interviews, and pull out some of the best tips that I think have been shared on the podcast. So this episode is highlighting all of the top tips that are going to help you in your role. A quick reminder if you are interested in knowing who's coming up on the next podcast, and also listening and hearing new tips and advice for agency account managers, then come over to my website, accountmanagementskills.com and sign up for my newsletter. The newsletter go by Creative Agency Account Manager Podcast

25 min listen

An agency leader's guide to account management, with David C Baker: Today's episode was a real treat. For me, I have the pleasure of talking to David C. Baker, who is a legend in the agency world. We discussed everything to do with account management, including why David thinks the account management role is the most difficult role in the whole agency. Also the problem with account managers doing project management tasks, where he sees performance deficiencies in account management, and some brilliant advice for how to address those deficiencies, and also up your account management game. Why he suggests agencies asked their clients to take personality profile tests, why account management don't receive guidance from agency owners, and so many more topics. I really enjoyed this chat, and I know you're going to come away with some value. by Creative Agency Account Manager Podcast

48 min listen

How can a podcast help an agency's new business strategy? with Nathan Anibaba: Welcome to Episode 31. This episode's for you if you're interested in the idea of podcasting becoming part of your new business strategy. Perhaps you've been considering having podcast for a while. Or maybe you've got one already, and you're looking for some tips to make it even better. Or maybe you're just simply open to the idea of having a podcast or maybe you're dead against it. Hopefully, Nathan Anibaba is going to shed some light on this. He is an expert in this area, having hosted his own podcast, and he's now at 140 episodes, Agency Dealmasters. He shared with us lots of tips, lots of insight into the world of podcasting. He explains why it's so beneficial to businesses for generating new leads, where people go wrong with podcasting and the key steps to consider. I really hope you find this valuable. If you haven't done so already, please come over to my website and check out all of the informat by Creative Agency Account Manager Podcast

37 min listen

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Why agencies need to re-think project management, with Jack Skeels

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