As much as we’d like to pretend that nothing ever goes wrong when you work with an agency, both your organization and the agency you partner with are teams of real people who make real mistakes. Even when the mistakes are fixable, it can be a frustrating process.
So with years of experience under our belts, we sat down to assemble a list of the most common bumps in the road when organizations partner with marketing agencies.
As a bonus, we’ve included tips on how to avoid those speed bumps and roadblocks—because even if you don’t work with us, we certainly don’t want you to be miserable…
Issue 1: Misunderstood goals and vision
Your goals and vision drive everything you do. Vision is the success you’re working towards in the long-term. Goals are the specific, achievable wins that you aim to hit every week, month, or year. Your agency needs to understand your goals (and how to measure them), and they need to communicate your vision to your audience.
Avoid it: Examine your goals and the path you’re on to achieve them.
- Are your goals realistic? It doesn’t matter how amazing your goals are if they’re not attainable. Big dreams are great, but if you’re reaching too high, not even the world’s best agency can get you there.
- Will they put in the work to understand you? Good agencies take time to understand where you’re headed and help you get there. Because not only do they need to understand what you do, they need to teach your audience about it.
Issue 2: Incorrect skill set
Not all marketers are created equal. If your marketing partner can’t do what you need, you’ll run into issues with quality of work and unmet expectations. Sounds like a recipe for frustration if you ask us.
Avoid it: Before entering an agreement, review an agency’s portfolio and ask them questions about their previous experience.
- Do they have employees with the specific skill set you need? Projects like website building, videography, or digital marketing are often done by employees with specialized skills. While these can be learned on the job, you probably don’t want your project to be the guinea pig. You also don’t want to work with an agency who has to hire a random freelancer halfway through to finish your project because they don’t have the skills in-house.
Issue 3: Staff turnover
It’s the week before a deadline, and your faithful and longtime communications manager quits unexpectedly or your agency contact gives their two-week notice to move across the country...now what? Staff turnover is inevitable, both in your organization and in your agency. Without proper systems, your information can be lost and your projects delayed (or worse).
Avoid it: Keep information as accessible as possible for both you and your agency.
- Ask your agency if they keep records of your past and current projects in centralized locations. If your marketing partner uses file-sharing systems or project management systems, that means any employee can access any files and details needed to keep things running smoothly.
- Spend some resources to create centralized branding and brand guidelines. Whether this is done as part of your retainer or as a separate project, maintaining detailed guidelines is key to ensure consistency across projects, time, and staff changes.
Issue 4: Scope creep
We’ve all seen it. You start out asking for just one project, then a few edits, then suddenly your retainer hours are gone or the project is over budget. Time flies by so quickly—there’s never enough of it to get everything done (trust us, we know).
Avoid it: Keep your projects as focused as possible.
- Put only one or two people in charge of requesting projects. If you have a dozen people asking for designs or updates, not everyone understands the big picture, and it’s harder for everyone to prioritize.
- Request all your edits at once. Even if you’re just replacing one picture or adding one word, it takes time to find and open the file, locate the change, make the change, save the file, re-upload the file...you get the idea. Changes take time.
- Set clear expectations for how much you want done. Your agency will often err on the side of more caution and review. Be clear about when you want more detailed work (and when you don’t).
Issue 5: Unmet expectations
Finally, the most disappointing outcome of a marketing partnership...unmet expectations. Every other set of mistakes can feed into this, but there are also easy steps to ensure you get the highest-quality work possible to align with your needs.
Avoid it: Be as clear as possible about what you want, when you need it, and why it matters.
- Be clearer than you think you need to be when requesting projects. The more specific you are, the better chance your agency can hit the nail on the head attempt #1. If you ask for a design without providing content or clear instructions, the finished project might not be what you picture.
- Give your agency enough time to work. Some projects (like updating the hours of operation on your website) can be completed quickly. Others (like building a website from scratch and launching it) take weeks or months of effort and communication. Be precise about when you need something done, and make sure you’re providing enough notice. You’re busy, but we guarantee your agency is busy too. Leaving things for the last minute results in rushed work.
Still struggling to have your needs met?
If you’re evaluating your current agency but considering a switch, or if you’re trying to find your first marketing partner in hopes of growing your business, we’d love to hear from you. Book a Discovery Call to talk more about what to expect from an agency partner and how you can get the most out of your marketing.
