Would your business go under if a key client left tomorrow?

I have been working within and adjacent to agencies for nearly 30 years. What I have noticed is that most agencies can already name the client that would hurt if they left. Is it a delivery issue? Did the account manager change again? Are they pulling work in-house? Have they become so familiar with your agency that they want to explore other options?

New Caper was started because I had a hypothesis I wanted to test. Could direct conversations and client interviews tell us anything that would help the agency see themselves more clearly and improve client relationships?

I developed a process and key questions to ask and the information I collected from the clients of some firms showed things the agencies hadn’t considered. One key account couldn’t recommend the agency to others and was going to leave at year’s end. We discussed the problems they were having and what they saw as causing them. I asked if the agency could fix those issues would they stay and they said they’d love to. After a heart-to-heart with the agency about what was going on and how the client saw the issues, we had things turned around in 3 days. The client not only stayed, but renewed.

That is just one example and not the only thing that can come of these end client interviews.

Here are the things I have seen so far:

• Your Client’s Words: How they see you and experience you, how they describe you to others, and the specific words and phrases they use.
• Schedule and Delivery: How you are performing on the work you are delivering, if it is on time, if it meets their goals, and if you are delivering what you promised.
• Relationship Health: Does the client know they are taken care of? Are they staying? Would they recommend you to others?
• The Release: Agencies services change over time. If your agency has a new focus, are there clients that now are not a good fit? Does letting them go open up more opportunities with the clients you want?

The underlying things that I truly hope for you:

1. Assurance and Encouragement: Some of those nagging questions that you are afraid of knowing the answers to, can be laid to rest. You can gain assurance that things can improve and be encouraged through actions you can take to strengthen existing relationships and build new ones.
2. Profitability: I will not guarantee revenue, but being equipped with deeper information about your clients and how they see you will help you see the changes you need to make. This can be profitable in the revenue sense, but ultimately I see that word’s meaning being “something that is good for you.”

Let’s gain some assurance and go after what’s good for you and your clients.

– Eric Carroll

P.S. If you already know a change you need to make, but the implementation is a struggle due to client work always taking priority, let’s discuss that change.