Gotta start somewhere....

Here we go…

In thinking about the first blog post for the new Bravalia, I think it makes sense to start at the beginning and explain the basis for the change.

In 2018 following my departure from a large digital agency in Chicago, I decided to start my own agency. I’ve run engagements for other agencies for close to two decades. So doing that same thing for myself seemed like a no-brainer.

After getting the wheels turning, signing a few clients, and bringing a group of freelancers on-board, I enjoyed the work, learned a lot, and did pretty well for a while. And while that was good, it wasn’t great. I enjoyed the work, but didn’t love it.

I reflected on the state of things quite a bit. I talked with a lot of people. I read a lot. One thing that stuck out is the state of the marketing agency world — it seems to be going through some changes. Big holding companies, like the WPP’s and Omnicoms and Publicises, aren’t doing all that well. Lots of “consolidation” and “restructuring” across the holding companies. Literally every day there are layoff announcements. Small agencies are popping up everywhere. So many companies are “in-housing” at least part of their marketing, which creates less work for agencies. It’s impossible to say how long this circumstance will last or if it’s the new norm.

With all this in mind, I looked in the mirror long and hard. On one hand, I am absolutely certain that I remain passionate about agency client services. It’s what I know, it’s what I’m really good at, and it’s what I want to keep doing.

On the other hand, it’s really clear from all I’ve seen, all I’ve read, and what I’ve heard from quite a few people that I respect in the business that many agencies, and companies for that matter, are not good at client services. They say they’re “client-focused”, they have “client services” resources or teams, but let’s be real, it’s not working the way everyone expects.

And two key factors, I believe, are responsible for this. First, junior to mid-level client services professionals — associate account executives to, say, the senior account executive, even account director level, are not equipped to really deliver on the myriad of agency-sustaining responsibilities of the role. Some times, these well-intentioned people come straight from college with no real experience or training. Others transition from other functional capabilities, project management or creative for example. And most agencies or companies do not have internal training programs to teach either basic or advance skills. So formal training is lacking.

The second factor responsible for the underperforming role of client services is inadequate functional leadership — many senior client services leaders are either not capable of mentoring subordinates, or they are simply too busy to give it any meaningful attention…or both. Few companies invest in leadership today. As a result, valuable leadership qualities are lacking and little attention goes into real employee development.

So with these critical challenges in mind, I’ve shifted gears and moved into client services training. I’ve developed a powerful curriculum based on my two decades of real-world experience, in working across many channels and industries, with small to big clients, with easy ones and really difficult ones, and all the curve balls that come your way.

And my goal is to help agencies and companies with client-servicing needs develop their client-managing staffs’ skills in client services. The benefit to these companies will be their ability to build long-term, trusting relationships with their clients and to accelerate and maximize their revenue. This training is a real investment in their viability and future.

The training is interactive with the participants and provides a rock-solid foundation from which to improve their client services skills. There will certainly be learnings of immediate value and other practices that will play out over time. But participants will be better able to do their incredibly important jobs of helping their companies grow. Contact me to learn more!