Those of us in senior marketing industry positions have seen a number of downturns over recent decades. However, the current one is biting much deeper and its belt-tightening effect is going to be with us for a long while.
All downturns create opportunities for a fresh look at how we need to protect our profits, our staff and survive. Here’s four tried and true opportunities which will work in tough times and also when the good times return.
Create alliances with other agencies and/or clients
One or more agencies, with non-competing services could combine in an alliance offering these services to their own clients and others. This could be extended to even sharing of offices, staff and other overheads. Strengthen the alliance by contracting expert industry professionals who aren’t working full time, to act as Project Managers, working for set fees. Now the alliance has industry expertise without the overheads. We have several alliances in entertainment, tourism and export marketing and regularly contract project managers.
Develop agency-owned properties
Rather than continuing to buy products from existing suppliers, as you own a client relationship, why not consider developing your own properties, which could be offered to existing and potential clients. These could include:
l Web based games of chance and skill. We own an online movie trivia game, intended to entertain and collect data on movie goers which we offer to clients. l Online datacapture, administration and research programmes. l Content resources for web sites and portals. There are many client web sites starved of continuous updatable content. l A sporting, cultural or industry event. We have owned the Promotion Marketing Awards of Asia, for 10 years.
We partner with an airline client to offer passes to preview screenings of selected new movies, to frequent flyers, as a “Benefit of Membership”. We own the web site which promotes the movie and charge distributors for participating. Members receive details of each promotion in their monthly eNewsletter.
Consider performance based revenue streams
If client revenue is in jeopardy, to maintain the client, suggest the possibility of working on a project, existing or even one you create, in return for a lesser fee and/or a percentage of incremental revenue from the project to maintain the client. This ‘Pay for Performance’ process is not always as straightforward as it might appear on the surface. ‘Incremental Sales’ needs defining, as well as the conditions which measure the sales upon which the commission is based. That being said, performance based payment schemes, when planned correctly, can protect or quarantine agency fees, strengthen the client relationship and create a strong case study for future repeating. Here’s a long term revenue opportunity which can evolve from a performance based online data capture and sales conversion property offered to a client. After the client achieves their sales task from the promotion, the agency may be free to continue to use the database (assuming that as the owner of the property, the agency addresses all consumer privacy issues). There is then an opportunity to create additional sales opportunities with pertinent suppliers, again on a performance basis where commissions are paid to the agency for sales generated. Typical target audiences are general consumers, travellers, small business and seniors.
Pro Bono work can expand an agency’s network and create new business opportunities
Consider supporting a cause or even establishing one. Apart from your expertise, the agency could expand their business network via other supporters. We established The Great Barrier Reef Preservation Trust to create awareness for projects which support reef marine life. Funds are raised from promotions where prizes of reef expeditions are offered to clients in return for fees, visibility for the cause and datacapture from each promotion. By creating our own cause, we now have a long term property we can offer to clients and a growing database we can work with for the benefit of the trust. Similarly, consider volunteering to be a guest lecturer in your field of expertise at a Marketing class in a university or business school. Apart from helping young marketers, these institutions can offer wonderful future staff opportunities, saving recruitment agency fees, and possibly new business when students enter the Marketing Industry.