In the last 5 years our average client lifetime has more than tripled.
If I had to put the change down to one thing, it would be this…
In our early days, we were fixated on channel expertise. We felt we needed someone with 5+ years experience at the helm of every channel (SEO, PPC, email, social, blogging, UX, etc).
But here’s the thing:
- A world class copywriter is a world class copywriter irrespective of channel.
- A world class designer is a world class designer irrespective of channel.
- A world class videographer is a world class videographer irrespective of channel.
- A world class data analyst is… well, you get the idea.
But an “Email marketing expert” is probably not a world class copywriter, designer, data analyst or anything else. And certainly not a whole bunch of them wrapped up in one mega-marketer.
But that’s what email needs. As does social. As does SEO.
This is not about undermining the value of channel expertise. Whatever your priority channel is, you WILL need someone who lives and breathes it, but they will also need the input of people who are 10/10 at the specific inputs that feed into that channel.
Distinguishing between channels and skills, then building an org structure that allows every campaign to benefit from both, was our defining moment as an agency. I only wish we’d reached it earlier.
And if you’re wondering where to begin, well that’s easy…
It’s the 10/10 copywriter. Every single time.
