Christopher is the co-founder, head strategist and CEO of The Go! Agency, a full-service digital marketing agency.
getty
A few weeks ago, I was broken up with. It was by a longtime client, one whose relationship I thought I’d be nurturing for several years. It came completely out of the blue after working for weeks not only to figure out their six-month strategy but also to put into place their 12-month contract. The breakup was delivered with the line that makes every marketer roll their eyes: “We absolutely love working with you, but we’re looking to go in a different direction.”
Everybody in this business knows what the “it’s not you, it’s me” excuse means. Ninety percent of the time, this means that a client found a less expensive option and has decided to take their business there, likely without looking too closely at the quality of the work their new agency will provide. The hard work is getting them to admit it.
If you feel that your client is ending the relationship purely over money, but you can’t get them to own up to it, ask them these three questions:
1. If our competitor were the same price as us, would you still be changing services?
2. What are they offering that you’re looking for?
3. What did you see from them that changed your mind?
MORE FOR YOU
If you’re correct and it is all about money, they likely won’t be able to answer the first question — but really, the fact that they can’t answer it serves as the answer. From here, you can do two things: You can take the conversation into mediation and try to keep the client on board or, if you don’t wish to continue the relationship, you can let them go.
If you want to maintain the relationship, make sure you state your case in terms that the client can understand. Clients usually are, above almost everything else, money-minded. They want to see what they’re paying for; and if they can’t, they may feel like there isn’t work being done. Remind them of the goals your agency has achieved for them that aren’t obvious, like outreach and web traffic.
What my client didn’t understand is that they weren’t just paying for our work, even though it was getting them increasingly more trackable results and conversions. What they were truly paying for was our relationship. Now that they’ve decided to move on, they’ll have to find another agency that can do as good of a job as mine did, that gives them as good of a deal as I did, and that knows the intricacies of their business like my team did. And I don’t think they’ll be able to.
Clients want their marketing done well. They also often want it done quickly, without a lengthy approval process. Furthermore, they want it done cost-effectively. But that isn’t reality. You can have something done well on a tight deadline, but it will run up your budget. You can have it quickly and for as little as the agency will accept, but the results will be … well, actually, they’ll be exactly what you paid for. Achieving the golden triangle of good, fast and cheap isn’t possible, and it shouldn’t be the goal in the first place.
One thing I’ve noticed about all clients who’ve left for purely financial reasons is that they regard digital marketing as a burden they’re being strong-armed into paying for. And I can’t help but wonder why. Social media is an effective tool for growing a business, but no one is forcing them to use it. If a client comes to a marketing agency like mine, they’ve done so because they realized that my services would be in the best interest of their company. But if their priority is paying as little as possible for marketing work, they might as well go without. Because the cheapest possible option is likely going to be a waste of their money.
At the end of the day, my former client wanted what they wanted, which was a cheaper price than I was willing to give them. I did everything I could to keep them on board: I kept them on a grandfathered rate that was much lower than my other clients and gave them an agent who was invested in making sure their campaign was successful. It didn’t matter. Trite as it is when they said “it’s not you, it’s me,” they were right.
I’ve said before that there will always be other clients, and I advise against becoming too emotionally invested in a client. Because sometimes it doesn’t matter how amazing your work is or whether you get outstanding results. If they need to cut their budget, sometimes you just don’t stand a chance. What matters is that you did your best to ensure that their campaign was a success, and you have the metrics to prove it. With an outstanding track record, you’ll attract clients who are in it for the long haul.
Forbes Agency Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
Go to Source
Author: Christopher Tompkins, Forbes Councils Member
