Digital agencies account for the largest share of ActiveCollab users. Digital agencies account for the largest percentage of ActiveCollab users. We lost the biggest client
Solution: Take a wild chance, pivot if necessary. In 2016, SF AppWorks lost their largest client and, with it, their main source income. The digital agency quickly realized they were not unique. They solved the technical and digital problems of companies like all others. Andrew Greenstein, the CEO of the company, stated that in order to build a business, they had two major risks: pivot and invest in sales. Plan A was to invest money in sales. Although we have plenty of inbound marketing materials, we have never actually ‘knocked on any doors’ to distribute them. We didn’t want people to be bothered, but we knew we needed a plan B in case our sales investment didn’t bring in enough clients to sustain the business. We needed a venture-funded startup idea. After two months of market research, brainstorming and planning, we created progressive web apps, chatbots and engagement platforms that use AI for predicting when users will quit. One year later, we are a completely different company. Our revenue is split across five primary clients and we’re currently working with many interesting AI-based technologies. Sometimes you have to tear down and rebuild. Other times, you can double down on your momentum and see what happens. Unrealistic Client Expectations
Solution: Let your client expect average results. Handling clients who don’t know what their job requires can be frustrating and even counterproductive. This client is the worst. You should not accept their impossible requests and not ask questions. You will find yourself in a difficult position where you must balance tight deadlines and sometimes impossible expectations. Always set boundaries. Bradley Shaw, SEO Expert Brad Inc. believes in underpromising and exceeding expectations. “Beginning with sales, we educate prospects and set realistic expectations. We are very clear about what we are going to do and what we won’t do. We also provide case studies that demonstrate natural, organic growth. We don’t show our clients our best case studies because they do not reflect the typical results. If a customer has unrealistic expectations after our education process we will decline to take them on. Over-promising and under-delivering helps. Over-promising and under-delivering is a good thing. Too many clients
Solution: Be realistic about how much work you can handle. Digital agencies are dependent on many clients, whether they like it. Agency owners and managers often take on too many clients. Jessica Carr, a marketing consultant at j.carr, states that the biggest problem at all of her previous agencies was employee bandwidth. Slow down is the solution to this problem. It is difficult for fast-growing businesses to slow down, but it is necessary. Only accept clients that your Account Managers or Leaders can manage efficiently. There is no point in taking on too many clients.