The Best New Business Conversations Start With Your Client's Market, Not With Your Agency.
There's a temptation in new business to focus on what you're going to say.
The perfect credentials deck. The strongest case study. The clever opening line.
In reality, most first meetings are won before anyone from the agency starts talking. They are won in the preparation. Not just understanding the prospective client's business, but understanding the market they're operating in and having an informed point of view on their world.
What are their customers thinking?
What pressures are shaping the category?
Which competitors are changing perceptions?
Where is the market moving?
The more context you have walking into a conversation, the less likely you are to default to talking about yourself. And that's usually a good thing.
One of the biggest mistakes agencies make is assuming the client wants to hear about the agency. Of course they want to know who you are. They'll want to understand your experience, your thinking and whether you're capable of solving the problem. But that comes later.
The most interesting agencies arrive with an opinion. Not about themselves. About the client's world. They've noticed something. They've connected a few dots. They've spotted a shift that deserves a conversation. Sometimes that's based on customer research. Sometimes it's category trends. Sometimes it's brand tracking. Sometimes it's simply spending the time to understand what others have overlooked. The source matters less than the perspective it creates.
