So, there is a new President in the US. Perhaps not one that some wanted, but the fact is that the people have spoken so I guess now we all just get on with it and deal with whatever the 2nd term of President Trump throws at this industry. I’m taking guidance from the Prayer for Serenity as my guide for what lies ahead.
US elections aside, it’s been an understandably quiet week on LinkedIn. That said, there are some highly relevant nuggets for your reading pleasure. They include 18 signs that might suggest your CFO is a cowboy (!), a deep dive into the state of the PR sector, how to have that all-important money conversation, and the link between positioning, targeting and pipeline. Combine that with an expose of bloat among ad agencies, insight into the difference between resource management and scheduling, and an excellent podcast on how to build a high-performing boutique agency and you have issue #38 of The Agency Advisory.
I hope you enjoy this week’s selection of thought leadership content. Thank you as always to everyone that takes the time to share their opinions and content on LinkedIn.
Spotting a cowboy CFO
A tremendous post from James Segal who took the time to share 18 signs that your finance leaders is ‘faking it in the saddle’. His insight and the signs he highlights should serve as early warning to every agency principal as you seek to manage agency numbers. There’s many that resonate with me but his first warning signal – no strategic depth – should be one that you look out for. I’ve been super fortunate to work with the best in the business (@Adrian Talbot – I’m talking about you!), but have also seen through the past few years, instances of where lack of depth in the finance function is materially impacting agency success.
Here are those 18 signs of a cowboy CFO!
The state of the PR sector
Thank you to @Doug Baxter for sharing this excellent report into the state of the PR industry published by @Davies & Gilbert, a US law firm specialising in the media sector. The report analyses data from 188 agencies with a US bias (73%) across a range of revenues (43% < $5m; 36% $5m - $25m; 21% > $25m). It’s well worth downloading as it provides revenue and profit comparisons, performance, predictions and trends by sector and by size of firm as well as insight in use of AI, investment trends, staffing strategies, DEO data and M&A activity. The report’s outlook for 2025 in terms of biggest concerns and top strategic initiatives is also highly relevant.
Has this peaked your interest? Download the report from here:
Don’t be shy about the money conversation
One of the findings of the recent @PRCA @Muckrack Pitch Forward report was that 71% of agencies report a lack of budget transparency in the pitching process. Often times this is client driven, but I do feel that there’s a responsibility on agencies to ask the right questions. And that’s why @Ben Potter’s excellent post giving 8 tips on uncovering a prospect’s budget during the sales process is so helpful. This very practical article gives actual examples of language to use; when to use it, and guidance on dealing with push back.
Ben's helpful advice can be found here:
The link between positioning, targeting and pipeline
I’m speaking at the @PR Moment Agency Forum on the topic of building a pipeline and will focus in on the importance of understanding positioning and from there, understanding the target prospect and the value you bring to your clients. This is a belief that’s obviously shared by @Peter Kang, co-founder of @Barrel Holdings, who share his observations on agencies that struggle with positioning. Peter very generously shares learnings and experience from the Barrel portfolio in a newsletter – Agency Habits – and in his post, explains why stand-out positioning is so critical to agency success.
And find the Agency Habits newsletter out from here:
The bloating of advertising agencies
The question of niche expertise versus broad experience and portfolio offering rages on. It seems to be a polarising debate, and one which I enjoy hearing from both sides on. One of the proponents of specialisation (along with @Luk Smeyers) is my fave business and revenue model strategist, @Tim Williams from @Ignition Group. In his latest blog post, Tim uses the software industry as an example of products that become bloated (using @Zoom as evidence, which I love as Zoom was the last big client I worked on through lockdown). Tim argues that diversification does not mean that more is better. He cites industries where narrow professional practices have some of the largest customer bases. The summary is that do a few things well and become intensely appealing to a select group of prospects.
Bloat vs specialise - the argument is here:
The difference between resource management and scheduling
While this article by @Manish Kapur is written with creative agencies in mind, the concepts that he explains are highly relevant to a broader cross-section of comms and marketing services firms. In it, he looks at the role of financial forecasting in proactive resource management – a challenge I’m seeing, particularly due to the rise of short-term client engagements replacing longer term retained relationships. The essence of his argument is that resource planners must work more closely with financial forecast to align resources strategically rather than reactively. Build a cohort of trusted consultants and freelancers and anticipate demand spikes based on historic trends.
Read about the difference in Manish's article here:
Podcast of the week: The Consultancy Edge
I’ve just come across this and am excited to listen into @Matt Hodkinson’s interview with @Luk Smeyers who reveals his “hard-won insights into what it takes to build a high-performing consultancy. If you follow The Agency Advisory, you will know that Luk is one of my most quoted experts so I have no doubt that this podcast will deliver all that it promises.
Watch here… https://lnkd.in/e2dpSHKR
Listen here… https://lnkd.in/ex_x-Cg8
If you like what you have read in this newsletter, please do repost it to your network, comment on one or other of the topics that have been covered, and if you don't do so already, follow me for more shared posts on matters relating to agency management and comms in general.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/andyjhwest/
Many thanks.
Andy