The Innovative Agency

Many agencies choose a vertical and use that to define who they are, what they believe in, and how they are positioned in the marketplace. But what if you chose to define your agency based on your core philosophy? How would that affect your services, your positioning, and your recruiting practices? Sue Kruskopf, CEO at KC Truth, joins me to share how her agency has taken the core belief of truth and incorporated it into every aspect of the business. We discuss: - Positioning based on a belief system - Translating a core belief into systems and processes - How a core philosophy can influence the physical space and recruitment To hear more from Innovative Agency owners, listen to The Innovative Agency podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or on our website. Listening on a desktop & can't see the links? Just search for The Innovative Agency in your favorite podcast player.

There's a lot of fear surrounding data regulations right now. No marketing agency wants to get caught holding the bag when new regulations come down the pike. There's also questions around who should be responsible for compliance — the agency or the client? An agency that can navigate these complex waters — in a way that generates deep customer insights for both themselves and their clients — will have an immense strategic advantage over the competition. Phil Case, President & Chief Client Officer at Max Connect Marketing, shares why investing in first-party data is the key to gaining that advantage. We discuss: - Creating a product that helps clients understand data and data privacy laws - Why it's important to invest in gathering first-party data today - Moving from targeting individual users to categories of users To hear more from Innovative Agency owners, listen to The Innovative Agency podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or on our website. Listening on a desktop & can't see the links? Just search for The Innovative Agency in your favorite podcast player.

As far as marketing segments go, college students skew towards being more environmentally and socially conscious. As a group, they also tend to respond to authentic messaging. But don't let that lead you to think that they are one broad homogenous category. College students, on the contrary, are a diverse and dynamic group, and for your marketing to be successful, segmentation is key. In this episode, I talk with Steve Schubert, Co-Founder & Partner at Newbridge Marketing Group, about how to create resonant messaging for college-aged students. We discuss: - How to segment such a diverse group of people - The power of a peer-to-peer model - Misconceptions around the college student audience Mentioned during the podcast: - Door of Clubs - Campus Collaborative - Campus Causes - Reach out to Steve: Steve@NewbridgeMG.com To hear more from Innovative Agency owners, listen to The Innovative Agency podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or on our website. Listening on a desktop & can't see the links? Just search for The Innovative Agency in your favorite podcast player.

The RFP process — it's a process many agency owners love to hate. What if I told you there was a more efficient way to win new business? In this episode, Christian Banach, Principal at Christian Banach LLC, tells me about a more proactive, outbound approach to business development that helps you use agency resources more effectively and land clients that are a better fit. We discuss: - The shortcomings of the RFP process - Getting more systematic about business development - How thought leadership plays into it - Overcoming the mental block of proactive outreach To hear more from Innovative Agency owners, listen to The Innovative Agency podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or on our website. Listening on a desktop & can't see the links? Just search for The Innovative Agency in your favorite podcast player.

Online is the new brick and mortar — and competition is fierce. Even one extra second trying to find a button online will cause a client to shop somewhere else. In this episode, I speak with Darwin Liu, CEO at X Agency, about the biggest changes he's seen while helping brands that sell to ecommerce buyers. We discuss: - Competition, diversification, and setting expectations - The importance of shaving clicks off the checkout experience - How online shopping has changed brick and mortar - The rise of social shopping and online marketplaces To hear more from Innovative Agency owners, listen to The Innovative Agency podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or on our website. Listening on a desktop & can't see the links? Just search for The Innovative Agency in your favorite podcast player.

When it comes to creating impactful marketing that moves the needle, an effective ad is more valuable than a beautiful one. In the end, results are what matter to clients. In this episode, I speak with Wayne Mullins, Founder at the aptly-named Ugly Mug Marketing, about why he embraces this results-oriented philosophy and how he institutionalized it within his agency. We discuss: - Focusing on the metrics that actually mean something - How this philosophy manifests in the day-to-day of the agency - Foster a culture of peer-to-peer accountability To hear more from Innovative Agency owners, listen to The Innovative Agency podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or on our website. Listening on a desktop & can't see the links? Just search for The Innovative Agency in your favorite podcast player.

Most agencies are occupied with the day-to-day responsibilities of client services — producing deliverables, meeting deadlines, and just keeping the ship afloat. But too often, that preoccupation comes at the expense of making time for incubating truly innovative ideas. In this episode, I speak with Kate Jeffers, Partner & President at Venables Bell and Partners, about how her agency built a culture around innovation and how your agency can too. We discuss: - Talking about innovation with clients - Risk assessments on innovative ideas - Building a culture that supports innovation - How COVID sparked an appetite for innovation To hear more from Innovative Agency owners, listen to The Innovative Agency podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or on our website. Listening on a desktop & can't see the links? Just search for The Innovative Agency in your favorite podcast player.

There are many misconceptions about website accessibility under the ADA. In many cases, agencies are confused about which actions are legally required and which are simply guidelines. To complicate matters, there is no federal standard, which leaves a lot of room for interpretation in the eyes of the law. Fortunately, there are resources and expert partners that can provide guidance on ADA accessibility for websites. To do a deep dive on the topic, I invited three experts: - Jenna Reardon - Co-Founder of ilumino - FM Byers - CMO of SM Digital - Erica Canas - Senior Attorney at Legal + Creative | Toerek Law We discuss: - How client expectations have changed around accessibility - What the actual legal requirements are for accessibility - Educational resources and technical tools available - How agencies should approach the accessibility conversation with clients To hear more from Innovative Agency owners, listen to The Innovative Agency podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or on our website. Listening on a desktop & can't see the links? Just search for The Innovative Agency in your favorite podcast player.

The world is very different than it was 18 months ago. That means that our clients are thinking, feeling, and making decisions differently too. So what has changed? To get the scoop, I welcome back Susan Baier, CEO of Audience Audit Inc., to talk about how we can better understand our clients through research into why they do things, rather than what they do or which demographic groups they belong to. We discuss: The importance of knowing the why behind what clients do Gaining insight from research, whether or not your assumptions are correct 3 things agencies should consider around research To hear more from Innovative Agency owners, listen to The Innovative Agency podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or on our website. Listening on a desktop & can't see the links? Just search for The Innovative Agency in your favorite podcast player.

Real world products pop up in movies and TV shows all the time. But have you ever wondered what occurs behind the scenes to make those deals happen and to ensure that both the brand and the production are happy with the final product? Stacy Jones, CEO and Founder at Hollywood Branded, talks with me about the world of product placement and influencer campaigns. In this episode, we discuss: - How product placement deals work - The industry knowledge transfer required to scale a marketing agency - How COVID amplified the impact of product placement - New trends in influencer campaigns and partnerships Listen to Stacy's podcast Marketing Mistakes (+ How to Avoid Them). To hear more from Innovative Agency owners, listen to The Innovative Agency podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or on our website. Listening on a desktop & can't see the links? Just search for The Innovative Agency in your favorite podcast player.