Agency Execs: please stand up (when presenting)
A curious behavior has become relatively commonplace in many of the agency pitches we observe: agency execs often sitting as they present during pitches. It is undoubtedly well intended! These folks probably are hoping for a conversation between their agency and the prospective client and sitting across a table seems like the natural way to […]
How to solve the great “agency pitch staffing” challenge
Our friend Scott Davis, an EVP at the fine, independent media agency Harmelin, recently challenged us to write a blog on agency pitch staffing. Here is a lightly edited version of his note: If I could be so bold as to suggest a topic that is of particular interest (and frustration) to me – it […]
Your plan to win Ad Age Small Agency of the Year
Many Ad Age Small Agency of the Year winners have gone on to enjoy incredible success. There are so many potential benefits from winning Small Agency of the Year. The agency’s reputation grows! Team morale swells! The phone rings! Given the importance of the award to building a small agency’s reputation, many small agency owners […]
How Marketers & Agencies can win the tissue session
The tissue session is often a key step in a competitive agency review. This guide will help agencies and marketers properly prepare for and get the most from their tissue sessions. “Tissue Session” is a term that originated long ago, prior to the digital age. Creatives – generally Art Directors – would use tracing paper […]
Drive better work (and win more business) with strategic insights
The best campaigns and the biggest account wins often are driven by the best strategic insights. This is a simple truth we see day in and day out in our work with agencies and clients. Unfortunately, compelling insights are rare these days, and many agency and client teams are ill-prepared to develop the insights that […]
How to Ask for the Client’s Business
From Build a Better Agency. With Steve Boehler and Lindsay O’Neil. This episode will give you the inside look at how agencies present themselves (accidentally and on purpose) and the influence each nuance has on our prospects as they weigh one agency against the others. Listen
How agencies and clients can make the most of agency references
An agency’s references are an important and often underappreciated aspect of an agency review. This would seem obvious! Unfortunately, for many agencies and some clients, it is not. Some clients don’t check agency references when they run their own reviews, and some agencies do a poor job of selecting or prepping their references. And some […]
How Small Agencies Can Win Big Clients
From “Question Everything.” With guests Robin & Steve Boehler. Consider this your all-access pass to advertising’s top agency/client matchmakers. We’re chatting with power couple Robin and Steve Boehler of Mercer Island Group, the West Coast’s top consultancy firm helping both brands and agencies solve critical business and organizational challenges. Listen
Ad Age 2024 Small Agency of the Year: Agencies should apply! The industry is watching!
There is a special place in our heart for small independent agencies that are living by their wits and putting their heart, sweat and tears to work for their clients. And that love for small agencies makes this a special time of year! Applications for this year’s annual Ad Age Small Agency of the Year […]
A Valentine for Marketers & their Agencies
At Mercer Island Group, we LOVE marketers. We LOVE agencies. And we LOVE to help them succeed. The marketing and advertising world is a tough, tough business. We are lucky to be able to serve marketers and agencies and we are incredibly thankful to the people, their brands and agencies. With so much gratitude in […]