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Agency Espresso

Quiet confidence

In the current market, the truth is that most clients are actually a bit lost and scared.

They seek agencies who can be wise advisers to steer them through uncertainty.

That means they don’t just want you for creativity.

They want you for clarity.

Your agency will succeed in this market if you can confidently show you have explored the territory ahead, discovered the best route, have a map for it, and can lead them there.

This means developing consulting skills in some of your team.

But, even more than that, it means developing their confidence to a level where they feel they can advise and lead clients — rather than just waiting to respond to briefs and requests.

They’ll need to be able to be in the room with senior stakeholders, asking incisive questions, sharing insightful perspectives, and telling the best story of the possible future.

They’ll need to be able to present at events and in meetings in a way that makes the audience sit up and listen.

Confidence is the key.

But that’s not about loud, brash, slick showmanship. People see through that and dismiss it.

The confidence that is in demand now is the quiet kind. The kind we can trust.

The kind of voice that usually only pipes up near the end of the meeting with the razor sharp question that cuts through all the hot-air and nonsense that went before.

The kind that comes from really knowing what you’re talking about, having a strong sense of purpose, and being genuinely curious and caring — with low ego.

So how can you nurture these quiet experts into confident consultants?

You can invest in them taking time to learn and explore widely, conduct research deeply, and digest what they find into genuine insights and original frameworks.

You can encourage and support them to provide outputs that are easy for clients to digest — a newsletter, short briefings, occasional webinars.

But most of all you need to show them that they are operating at a higher level now.

Give them more freedom, more trust. Increase the rate they’re billed out at.

Make clear that their travel and accommodation is not about the cheapest option, but arriving at the client with a fresh and energised mind ready to advise the CEO.

Champion their expertise in your agency marketing. Get account and project managers to call them into clients where expertise is needed.

Dial up the quality of your agency retreats and internal events. Add a little luxury and a sense of occasion. Show the whole team how the agency is now working at a higher altitude in your market.

What else could increase this quiet confidence of your consulting team, and your agency as a whole?

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