A View From The Other Side: 10 things I wish I’d known while still in an agency.
I've been spending more time lately advising agencies/consultancies which has been incredibly rewarding. I spent the first 15ish years of my career working in that environment and when I moved into my corporate design leadership roles had so many eye-opening epiphanies I'd wish I'd known when I was still in design firms. So I thought I'd share the highlights of a longer article of mine: A View From the Other Side: 10 things I wish I’d known when I was still on the agency side.
🌟 1+1=3. There are really only 2 reasons you’re needed: 1. You have time/bandwidth they don’t have or 2. you have expertise/information they don’t have. Have both and you're in.
🌟 Business is all about relationships. That was a lesson I learned early and saw first hand the impact. Once you have established real relationships with your client, you are now stakeholders in one another’s success.
🌟 It’s not about you. Your clients don’t really care about your process, your philosophy or what you’ve won. They care about what you’ll do for them.
🌟 Their business is your business. Never forget, you need your clients more than they need you, so your focus needs to be in service to their challenges not your own.
🌟 Listen more than you speak. Think before you place that call and whether it’s in service or curiosity to your client or if you want something. Genuinely listening, caring and helping is what makes the biggest difference between a consultant and a true partner.
🌟 Design is a choice, not a requirement. Don’t fall so in love with the work that you lose the plot for what your client is spending money with you to solve.
🌟 $ > Awards. Press and accolades are great but they don’t pay the bills. The most successful consultancies put the work first, understanding how to balance the selfless and the selfish to ensure they’ll stay in business. The recognition will follow.
🌟 Clarity over verbosity. Don’t write fluffy, wordy proposals that care more about format than content. Just a paragraph of what each phase will produce, how much time it will take, the fees and an example of the deliverable. Short and sweet.
🌟 Don’t forget your secret sauce. Firms start known for a specialty. But with growth comes evolution and often drift. Don’t lose what made you special – that’s the “thing” that made people want to work with you in the first place.
🌟 You don’t know what you don’t know. Most agency designers have never worked corporate so they have no idea the realities of their client’s day to day - budgets, corporate strategy, approval matrixes, supply chain, etc. Use your “phone-a-friend” and ask for help.
These aren't in particular order but equally valuable. The last one may arguably be the most important though requires the most self-awareness and humility to recognize.
