About 18 months ago we met with a client who was really frustrated with the agency they had hired for their web marketing.
The client suspected the agency wasn’t doing much of anything for the monthly fees they were paying them so he asked a friend in the business to look over one of their monthly reports.
The friend knew a little more than the client did about digital marketing…enough to warn the client that there were some spammy things going on with their marketing which might get them in trouble with Google.
On top of that, the client was struggling with serious business issues.
Cash flow was hit or miss. Profit margins were low.
And they had a giant service area which was stretching their team thin, so their quality control was a dumpster fire.
Throw in wasted money paid to a bad marketing agency who was possibly getting them flagged at Google, and you have a recipe for disaster.
The client wanted to hire us to take over their marketing so they could get a more steady stream of qualified leads. But they couldn’t afford us as our fees were double what they were paying the existing agency and they already had cash flow issues.
That’s when the client made a brilliant move.
A game-changing, life-altering move.
He put a halt on marketing and hired a business coach.
The business coach helped him get a handle on his budget. Then, they worked on profitability by studying their services, processes and pricing.
They refined their service areas and focused on employee training.
After that, they refined their sales process to get higher prices and better close rates.
Fast forward a year.
When the client came to us the 2nd time, they were ready. Sales were flat but their profit margins were up.
They had a budget which was set to hit their specific sales goals.
They knew how many leads they needed because they knew their average close rates and revenue per sale.
They were ready to capitalize on the new opportunities which accompany a well run marketing campaign. And they have.
We often have companies come to us for help with marketing but dragging around serious business issues like a car full of luggage.
On a number of occasions we’ve seen new business opportunities squandered, customers alienated and all sorts of damage from bringing new leads to a bad business.
Good marketing will accelerate a business trend one way or another.
If your marketing isn’t working as well as you’d like, look at these “intangibles” as I call them and see if those are getting in the way because these “intangibles” will make or break you every time…regardless of great your marketing agency is.
If you need help with house cleaning, but aren’t sure where to start, contact us today!
