THE NEW BUSINESS ACCELERATOR WILL HELP YOU GROW YOUR AGENCY.
The single-minded purpose of the New Business Accelerator is to help marketing communications agencies quickly evolve from underperforming in new business to consistently executing a much more effective approach.
I provide objective outside counsel and ideas based on many years of high-level national experience. This will help you to 1) significantly expand your knowledge base in a very short time, 2) avoid the potentially self-defeating rut of “This is how we do it here” and 3) start winning soon. This may be particularly important for home-grown agencies whose owners/senior people have not had the benefit of working elsewhere (such as at larger, more established firms).
The New Business Accelerator is designed to carefully examine (and fix whatever needs fixing) in every area of your business development efforts… or you can select the area(s) most important to you.
Working together, we will significantly improve your agency’s new business batting average and ROI.
NINE IMPORTANT BENEFITS FOR AGENCY OWNERS.
The New Business Accelerator will:
THE PROCESS.
The New Business Accelerator is comprised of three complementary stages. Each stage examines one area of the total new business development effort (as detailed below). You can select one, two or all three to be included.
In addition to providing my written comments/recommendations regarding the agency’s performance on the multiple elements within each stage, I will rate each element as:
(NOTE: The “elements” are included below for each stage.)
Based on the element-by-element ratings, I will also assign a summary rating to the agency’s overall performance on the particular stage.
(I can review the confidential online survey questionnaire included in Stage 1 and provide the sub-items to be evaluated within each element with interested parties at any time.)
STAGE 1/Assessment of agency's brand positioning, overall new business performance, perceptions within the agency, ownership’s commitment, strategy and plan.
Conduct confidential online survey among staff members (Provides candid, unfiltered feedback about the agency’s new business performance).
One-on-one discussions with leadership team (Ownership and 3-4 senior leaders/30 minutes each).
Actual new business performance/Past 2-3 years.
Ownership’s leadership, involvement and commitment to business development.
Strategic direction for new business development/Leveraging deepest knowledge.
New business development plan.
Effect of AI on new business efforts to-date, in foreseeable future and steps to be taken.
STAGE 2/Detailed review and evaluation of agency’s marketing materials and new business prospecting program.
New business marketing materials (Website, SEO, capabilities presentation, results-driven case studies, social media presence, examples of creative work and more).
Developing and presenting thinking/materials/creative work which are more difficult (if not impossible) for AI to emulate.
New business prospecting program (Plan, strategic targets and rationale, databases, insight-based outbound messaging, effectiveness and more).
STAGE 3/In-depth review and evaluation of how the agency develops, delivers and follows up on new business presentations.
Developing presentations (Critique of 2-3 recent presentations and 2-3 responses to RFPs, decision making, conducting original research, materials presented and other factors).
Preparing and developing your strategic thinking/content (To win, you need to find and effectively communicate fresh insights and relevant “new news” at every stage of the process… especially in the final presentation).
Delivering presentations (Presentation team/experience and skills, credibility, developing less expected and more attention-getting flow and attitude, rehearsing and more). Should include full reenactment of the most recent final presentation. I will participate via Zoom.
Minimizing the presentation of anything which prospective clients are likely to view as a candidate for moving in-house via AI.
Post-pitch follow-up (Securing candid and actionable input from prospects, internal debriefs, re-purposing the thinking to reach out to other prospects in the category).
DELIVERABLES.
For each stage reviewed (see above), I will present online (using PowerPoint via Zoom) a detailed summary of findings with specific recommendations for improvements/changes where needed. I will e-mail the PPT to you after the presentation.
I will also provide a customized 1-2-page recap of the fundamental strategic and executional activities required to implement and sustain a more effective new business development effort ongoing.
PRICING AND TURNAROUND TIME.
Pricing varies by stage. Each stage requires a different amount of time to evaluate. I will provide a price after you select your stage(s).
Turnaround time: After the appropriate materials/information have been made available, timing from start date to presenting findings and recommendations for each stage will be:
Timing may vary depending on the agency providing needed materials on a timely basis, availability of ownership/leadership for one-on-interviews and other factors.
WHY ME? MY EXPERIENCE AND NEW BUSINESS TRACK RECORD.
My name is Mark Johnson. I will personally do the work and be your contact throughout the project.
I’ve been President, CEO and co-owner/shareholder of two well-regarded advertising agencies in Los Angeles and Las Vegas. I have led and personally contributed much of the thinking to winning almost $400,000,000 in new business billings from blue-chip clients such as Nestle, Target Corp., MGM Resorts International, PETCO, Disney, Blue Cross and other top marketers.
Each of these accounts was won in competition against much larger agencies including many of the biggest in the United States.
Based on more than forty years of experience, I know what works and what doesn’t. There is a proven approach to winning. I will show you and your team what it is… and also how to avoid the deadly mistakes that make you lose.
Finally, I’m digitally knowledgeable including 1) e-prospecting to increase awareness of and interest in the agency among target companies, 2) structuring and writing new business-friendly websites and 3) developing more effective SEO (and avoiding frequently-used but ineffective terms like “Home page”, “Capabilities” or “About us”) to drive more prospects to your site.
SUPPLEMENTARY SERVICES TO HELP YOU ACHIEVE YOUR GOALS.
In-person presentation of findings and follow-up discussion – This facilitates deeper and more useful interaction vs. presenting via Zoom... and can also lead to more quickly identifying possible improvements or solutions to key challenges. (Pricing, time required and travel expenses will depend on your location.)
Fine-tuning your next presentation - What if your presentation is ready to go right now (or close to it)? In 1-2 days, I can pare it down (90% of agency presentations are too long), enhance the flow, add strategic thinking/fresh insights and even (via Zoom) critique a rehearsal. After the presentation, you can then use this learning as a repeatable model moving forward.
Earlier and deeper involvement in developing (and delivering) your next presentation – By getting me involved at the beginning of the development process, I can be helpful in virtually any or all of the activities noted above in Stage 3. If you’re interested, we can define my role and expected contributions to meet your specific needs.
6-month/12-month check-ins to assess progress and/or address any new issues.
All pricing and timing available upon request.
THIS IS THE INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY OF AGENCY PROBLEM SOLVER/MARK JOHNSON AND CANNOT BE USED, COPIED OR DISTRIBUTED IN ANY WAY WITHOUT THE EXPRESS WRITTEN CONSENT OF MARK JOHNSON.
The single-minded purpose of the New Business Accelerator is to help marketing communications agencies quickly evolve from underperforming in new business to consistently executing a much more effective approach.
I provide objective outside counsel and ideas based on many years of high-level national experience. This will help you to 1) significantly expand your knowledge base in a very short time, 2) avoid the potentially self-defeating rut of “This is how we do it here” and 3) start winning soon. This may be particularly important for home-grown agencies whose owners/senior people have not had the benefit of working elsewhere (such as at larger, more established firms).
The New Business Accelerator is designed to carefully examine (and fix whatever needs fixing) in every area of your business development efforts… or you can select the area(s) most important to you.
Working together, we will significantly improve your agency’s new business batting average and ROI.
NINE IMPORTANT BENEFITS FOR AGENCY OWNERS.
The New Business Accelerator will:
- Help you define and fully leverage a more competitive, differentiated brand positioning for your agency based on what you know (which is unique to you) instead of what you do (which is generic).
- Teach your team how to win larger (and higher quality) accounts, win them more often and generate more revenue for the agency.
- Provide a repeatable roadmap to follow for overall new business development, prospecting, every presentation and specific “How to” for new business leaders and their teams.
- Make your business development program and pitches much more efficient by eliminating time-wasting reinvention of the wheel for each opportunity.
- Increase New Business ROI (and agency profitability) by winning more often while pitching less frequently.
- Institutionalize this knowledge within the agency so that it isn’t dependent upon people who may leave, retire or simply don’t share this critically important information with others.
- Help you navigate through the new business-related issues posed by the lightning-fast growth of AI (including being seen as a highly valued strategic advisor vs. executional commodity, staffing plans, outcome-based compensation proposals, media mix/creative work to present and more).
- Help you to attract, motivate and retain talented people throughout the agency.
- Enhance your agency's market valuation.
THE PROCESS.
The New Business Accelerator is comprised of three complementary stages. Each stage examines one area of the total new business development effort (as detailed below). You can select one, two or all three to be included.
In addition to providing my written comments/recommendations regarding the agency’s performance on the multiple elements within each stage, I will rate each element as:
- Strong (Little if any improvement needed)
- Above average
- Average
- Below average
- Poor
(NOTE: The “elements” are included below for each stage.)
Based on the element-by-element ratings, I will also assign a summary rating to the agency’s overall performance on the particular stage.
(I can review the confidential online survey questionnaire included in Stage 1 and provide the sub-items to be evaluated within each element with interested parties at any time.)
STAGE 1/Assessment of agency's brand positioning, overall new business performance, perceptions within the agency, ownership’s commitment, strategy and plan.
Conduct confidential online survey among staff members (Provides candid, unfiltered feedback about the agency’s new business performance).
One-on-one discussions with leadership team (Ownership and 3-4 senior leaders/30 minutes each).
Actual new business performance/Past 2-3 years.
Ownership’s leadership, involvement and commitment to business development.
Strategic direction for new business development/Leveraging deepest knowledge.
New business development plan.
Effect of AI on new business efforts to-date, in foreseeable future and steps to be taken.
STAGE 2/Detailed review and evaluation of agency’s marketing materials and new business prospecting program.
New business marketing materials (Website, SEO, capabilities presentation, results-driven case studies, social media presence, examples of creative work and more).
Developing and presenting thinking/materials/creative work which are more difficult (if not impossible) for AI to emulate.
New business prospecting program (Plan, strategic targets and rationale, databases, insight-based outbound messaging, effectiveness and more).
STAGE 3/In-depth review and evaluation of how the agency develops, delivers and follows up on new business presentations.
Developing presentations (Critique of 2-3 recent presentations and 2-3 responses to RFPs, decision making, conducting original research, materials presented and other factors).
Preparing and developing your strategic thinking/content (To win, you need to find and effectively communicate fresh insights and relevant “new news” at every stage of the process… especially in the final presentation).
Delivering presentations (Presentation team/experience and skills, credibility, developing less expected and more attention-getting flow and attitude, rehearsing and more). Should include full reenactment of the most recent final presentation. I will participate via Zoom.
Minimizing the presentation of anything which prospective clients are likely to view as a candidate for moving in-house via AI.
Post-pitch follow-up (Securing candid and actionable input from prospects, internal debriefs, re-purposing the thinking to reach out to other prospects in the category).
DELIVERABLES.
For each stage reviewed (see above), I will present online (using PowerPoint via Zoom) a detailed summary of findings with specific recommendations for improvements/changes where needed. I will e-mail the PPT to you after the presentation.
I will also provide a customized 1-2-page recap of the fundamental strategic and executional activities required to implement and sustain a more effective new business development effort ongoing.
PRICING AND TURNAROUND TIME.
Pricing varies by stage. Each stage requires a different amount of time to evaluate. I will provide a price after you select your stage(s).
Turnaround time: After the appropriate materials/information have been made available, timing from start date to presenting findings and recommendations for each stage will be:
- Stage 1/Assessment of agency's brand positioning, overall new business performance, perceptions within the agency (including confidential online survey among staff as well as owner/leadership team discussions), ownership’s commitment, effect of AI, strategy and plan – 2-3 weeks.
- Stage 2/Detailed review and evaluation of agency’s marketing materials, new business prospecting program and any considerations related to AI – 2 weeks.
- Stage 3/In-depth review and evaluation of how the agency develops, delivers (including reenactment) and follows up on new business presentations – 2 weeks.
- NOTE: These timetables are for each stage taken individually. If the project includes two or all three stages, the total time required may be less than adding up the individual times noted above.
Timing may vary depending on the agency providing needed materials on a timely basis, availability of ownership/leadership for one-on-interviews and other factors.
WHY ME? MY EXPERIENCE AND NEW BUSINESS TRACK RECORD.
My name is Mark Johnson. I will personally do the work and be your contact throughout the project.
I’ve been President, CEO and co-owner/shareholder of two well-regarded advertising agencies in Los Angeles and Las Vegas. I have led and personally contributed much of the thinking to winning almost $400,000,000 in new business billings from blue-chip clients such as Nestle, Target Corp., MGM Resorts International, PETCO, Disney, Blue Cross and other top marketers.
Each of these accounts was won in competition against much larger agencies including many of the biggest in the United States.
Based on more than forty years of experience, I know what works and what doesn’t. There is a proven approach to winning. I will show you and your team what it is… and also how to avoid the deadly mistakes that make you lose.
Finally, I’m digitally knowledgeable including 1) e-prospecting to increase awareness of and interest in the agency among target companies, 2) structuring and writing new business-friendly websites and 3) developing more effective SEO (and avoiding frequently-used but ineffective terms like “Home page”, “Capabilities” or “About us”) to drive more prospects to your site.
SUPPLEMENTARY SERVICES TO HELP YOU ACHIEVE YOUR GOALS.
In-person presentation of findings and follow-up discussion – This facilitates deeper and more useful interaction vs. presenting via Zoom... and can also lead to more quickly identifying possible improvements or solutions to key challenges. (Pricing, time required and travel expenses will depend on your location.)
Fine-tuning your next presentation - What if your presentation is ready to go right now (or close to it)? In 1-2 days, I can pare it down (90% of agency presentations are too long), enhance the flow, add strategic thinking/fresh insights and even (via Zoom) critique a rehearsal. After the presentation, you can then use this learning as a repeatable model moving forward.
Earlier and deeper involvement in developing (and delivering) your next presentation – By getting me involved at the beginning of the development process, I can be helpful in virtually any or all of the activities noted above in Stage 3. If you’re interested, we can define my role and expected contributions to meet your specific needs.
6-month/12-month check-ins to assess progress and/or address any new issues.
All pricing and timing available upon request.
THIS IS THE INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY OF AGENCY PROBLEM SOLVER/MARK JOHNSON AND CANNOT BE USED, COPIED OR DISTRIBUTED IN ANY WAY WITHOUT THE EXPRESS WRITTEN CONSENT OF MARK JOHNSON.