Welcome to Episode 88. My guest is Rob Da Costa, an agency growth consultant from Da Costa Coaching. We discuss a myriad of topics, including:- the process for hiring the right account manager at your agency- examples of how to set client expectations and boundaries- why having a written scope of work is key to successful project delivery- and Rob's thoughts in general on the agency landscape and the future of agencies.During our chat, one theme keeps emerging, which is ensuring you have the right systems and processes in place in your agency. You’ll therefore understand why he wrote ‘The Self Running Agency’, which free to download on his website. https://dacostacoaching.co.uk/

Welcome to episode 87.  In this episode, I chat to Mike Lander, CEO of Piscari, a former procurement director who now assists sales teams in negotiating with procurement departments. Mike and I discuss:-  the common mistakes agencies make when negotiating with procurement- what procurement looks for when selecting an agency-  and why they are interested in your financials. We also dive into a five-step framework to help you negotiate more effectively and shed light on some questionable tactics employed by less experienced procurement professionals. During this conversation, you'll gain valuable insights into the world of procurement negotiations. Be sure to follow Mike on LinkedIn and grab a free copy of his guide from his website.https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikelander/https://piscari.com/negotiation-guide/

Welcome to episode 86, where I'm joined by Konrad Sanders, CEO of The Creative Copywriter agency, to discuss the impact of generative AI on copywriting. In this episode, we covered:- How Konrad's team is adopting AI tools and the most useful tools they've found.- The limitations of AI-written copy and what clients are saying about AI.- Advice on managing the process of change within your team and integrating AI into your workflows.https://www.linkedin.com/in/konradsanders/If you're interested in exploring AI tools to speed up your workflow or want to keep up to date with how other account managers are using AI, sign up for my newsletter on my website at https://accountmanagementskills.com. Additionally, if you're considering account management training to add more value and grow your accounts, check out the details of my Account Accelerator programme here:https://accountmanagementskills.com/account-accelerator/ 

Welcome to episode 85. This episode is for you if you're interested in understanding how a project management team and an account management team work together in an internal communications agency.Sara and Lindsay are heads of department at US-based Brilliant Ink. They joined me to talk through their years of experience running this model.This episode could be interesting for you, if you're an account manager doing both project management and account management and you're curious to see how an agency separates them. It could be that you're a head of department and thinking about setting up this model to work for your agency and you want to know the nitty-gritty, because Lindsay and Sara really share all the details. They share:why they did this in the first placehow it was working before how it's working nowwho manages the client relationship and what does each role do If you're interested in finding out about account management training, I've just updated my website with all my courses and prices. https://www.accountmanagementskills.comI'm also launching a new training course, 'Managing Difficult Client Conversations'.  If you'd like to get onto the waitlist to be notified as soon as we go live, please use this link to register your interest: https://accountmanagementskills.activehosted.com/f/5

Welcome to Episode 84. If you're interested in the fast-changing world of generative AI, and how clients and agencies are using it, then you will love this conversation. Roy Murphy is the founder of Synthetic, an agency specialising in emerging technologies. Roy shares with me:- the main pain points that generative AI is solving for clients, and how he's currently advising his clients. - what you need to know right now as an agency account manager about the AI industry- how he thinks the AI landscape will evolve in the future- and why agencies should be looking to partner with AI experts to help position themselves one step ahead of their clients. There are not many people in the agency world who have such a deep understanding of emerging tech, so I was very lucky to grab his time. Please do get in touch with him if you're keen to discuss any aspect of what we covered. If you'd like to talk to me about agency account management training, I've just updated my website to include three of the main courses that I run to help you retain and grow your existing client relationships. I'm also launching shortly a ‘managing difficult client conversations’ training. If you're an account manager and you'd like to be notified when this goes live, please sign up for my weekly newsletter, also via the website.https://www.accountmanagementskills.com

Welcome to Episode 83. On this episode, we're talking about the split between the agency Account Manager and the agency Project Manager role, with Kate Vines and Kio Aghoghogbe from Hallam.This is going to be particularly interesting for you if you're working in an agency with a hybrid account management role, you're doing both sides of the role currently, you might also be an agency owner who's looking at splitting the roles out and not really sure exactly how each function is going to work together. Kate and Kio from Harlem are brilliant at breaking down what they do. We talk about:- how the roles and the skill sets are different- how they work together on projects and retainers- how they manage the client relationship- what friction points can occur and how they overcome them- their advice for agencies thinking of moving to an AM/PM model. As Kio says, the pure account management role is very much about understanding the client's business and market, looking proactively at how the agency can bring more value and having those client improvement conversations. And if that's something that you'd like to improve your skills in, you can go to my website, https://www.accountmanagementskills.com and book a quick call with me to see if training might be the right fit for you are a member of your team. 

Welcome to Episode 82. Emerging technologies like AI are taking the world by storm at the moment with the likes of Microsoft's Chat GPT, for example, and today's guest, Soumya Mohan, is the Co-founder of Poised, an AI-driven app that I've been using for a couple of months now. I believe it's pretty game changing for account managers to help them communicate on a much more deeper level with their clients. I invited Soumya to talk to me about it and share the features and benefits so you can decide for yourself. When using video conferencing tools like Teams, Zoom and Google Hangouts, it really is a very discreet and helpful way to improve your communication skills, and it will enable you to connect with your clients on a much deeper level. If you're in an agency account manager or director role, and you'd like to enhance your client growth skills, check out my Account Accelerator training programme. It's specifically designed to help you in your agency role and will give you a more systematic approach to client retention and growth. You can find all the details on my website: https://www.accountmanagementskills./training. You can also schedule a short call with me if you'd like to chat about whether this is a good fit for you.

Welcome to Episode 81. This episode is for you if you're looking for inspiration on how to enhance your clients' experience and lead them into the future. Katherine Strachan is the founder of Copy House, an award winning B2B content marketing agency for fast growing FinTech and Tech brands. In 2020, Kathryn was a freelance copywriter and just three years later, in February 2023, she has an agency with a team of 25 people. Her client base includes some of the biggest names in Tech and FinTech. She shares with me:- how she built the agency so fast- what she thinks it takes if you want to do the same- what's happening right now in the tech space and how she's supporting her tech clients- why she's building a client advocacy programme- how she's leading her clients into the future through education, and lots, lots more. 

Welcome to Episode 80. My guest is Mark Sainthill, an agency M&A expert. If you're an agency owner, you're thinking about selling either now or at some point in the future, Mark talked about the main things you need to consider if you want to sell and why market conditions and timing are really key. He also talked about what's most attractive to a potential buyer, and the actual process of selling. We discussed the future, and why agencies need to keep evolving their services to keep ahead of changing data protection rules, and helping clients explore different advertising channels. If you want to know what your agency could be worth, or if now could be a good time to sell, contact Mark on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-sainthill/or perhaps get in touch with one of the team at Cactus: https://www.cact.usIf you have an account manager in your team, or perhaps you are an account manager and you're looking to upskill, my next agency Account Accelerator (TM) training programme starts on March 28th 2023.  You can read more here: https://www.accountmanagementskills.com/training

Welcome to Episode 79. We're talking about personal branding, what it is, what it's not, and why my guest thinks many people are approaching it in the wrong way. Who better to talk about this topic than the founder of personal branding agency Great Influence, Ash Jones. Ash is the person who started working with Steven Bartlett on his personal brand when he founded his social media agency, Social Chain. Steven has  gone on to become one of the most influential voices in entrepreneurship. If this makes you think about your own personal brand, whether you're an agency owner, or agency account manager, and if you are an agency account manager and you've never received any formal training in account management, you might like to read more about my Account Accelerator training on my website: https://www.accountmanagementskills.com/training.