Pragmatism When Working With Founders

Picture an old Volvo nestled in the corner of a car lot in Memphis, with two flat tires, ripped leather seats, scratches down the side, and 150,000 miles on the clock. Now picture your stereotypical eccentric car salesman with a thick southern accent trying to convince you this 2001 Volvo S60 is worth spending $3,000 of your savings on.

This was me. In 2014, I nervously bought my first car in the US. I took a mechanic friend with me, whom I’d met through the team, who insisted I spend about $1,000 on basic maintenance before I could trust that it wouldn’t break down while going 70 down the I-40. The result? Four years, almost no maintenance requirements, four road trips to Florida, two to Illinois, multiple to Nashville, and a whole lot more. Patty (the name of my car) was a beast. The lesson I learned is that long-term value takes a little elbow grease and someone with experience to tell you, “This needs fixing,” before you take the leap.

Don’t be the car salesman, be the mechanic

Founders get pitched services all the time by agencies, freelancers, cold LinkedIn messages, outbound emails, and sometimes even phone calls. While I’ve always admired their bravery, almost all of these pitches float a service that one claims will be a game changer for the brand before they’ve even met the founder. I always think: how can one guarantee running ads is going to be profitable for a business if they haven’t even analyzed the landing page experience, the down-funnel events, the product, the competition, the lifetime value, etc.? You simply cannot.

Like the car salesman, unfortunately, not many agency directors or managers have built D2C businesses, and by no means is it a job requirement. However, the challenge in being pitched a service by someone who only has something to gain is that they’re rarely understanding of the other elements in play that contribute to determining your fate as a brand. Agencies often focus solely on their own offering, without considering a holistic view of the brand.

After two and a half years of running Igloo Media (shoutout to the gang) I can safely say that quite often I’ve started off a call with a prospective client prepared to pitch one service and ended up transacting on another. Granted, the size of the brand often determines how much elbow grease is required across their scope of fundamentals, and small to medium-sized businesses will often require a bit more of a makeover or some friendly pragmatism before they decide to pay for advertising.

Looking back, after four years, the mechanic who’d come along with me to the dealership as a favor ended up fixing cars for the entire men’s and women’s tennis team, and at way better prices than the dealerships. Four years, 16 players, and a bunch of old, beat-up second-hand cars on the roster… I’d say he did pretty well for himself.

You’re working with more than just a brand

Unlike a D2C business, a service-based business offers a unique set of challenges and valuable lessons when it comes to managing relationships. I accept that I’m far from perfect, but I’m always searching for ways to enhance what we offer to our clients, both as an agency and as founders (this newsletter included!). While I acknowledge that I may never know their business as intimately as they do, being mindful of a few important principles has helped me a lot:

Stay flexible

Flexibility is certainly a novelty native to smaller agencies. Larger agencies (similar to large brands), with their politics and policies, rarely bend the rules to accommodate change for what is ultimately a very similar service. For me, running like a start-up means staying flexible in just about every part of the business, whether it’s shifting meeting times, offering extra guidance, referring helpful services, going the extra mile, or even being flexible with pricing. Being open-minded can be challenging, but it’s almost always appreciated, and that relationship value is priceless.

Be mindful of the brand’s P&L

It’s crucial to understand that our fee is just one cog in a very complex engine, made up of fixed and variable costs. While VC’s may naively adopt a mindset that money grows on trees, the success of the brand’s bottom line will determine the fate of its future in the long term. Last week, I discussed product value versus cost and emphasized the importance of being mindful of the value you bring to the table. Quoting a brand fairly, considering the experience, size, and scope of the project, will only increase retention if the brand believes the value for money is fair.

Don’t take advantage

You’re dealing with people just as much as you’re dealing with a brand. People have families, people have kids, and some even have dogs (who we always welcome to our meetings). Don’t take advantage, be honest.

Be pragmatic

This is something I always try to convey from the start. If a business needs a boost or a revamp in another area, especially relative to their competition, it could help performance across other channels. For example, if we get a referral from a friend or client to a new business looking for help with paid ads, there’s a whole world of elements that contribute to performance outside of campaign management. Bringing up opportunities elsewhere to help your controllable can lead to additional work and a longer, higher-value partnership.

Time is on your side

Start-up fever is undoubtedly powerful, and there are certainly moments when it feels like I’m moving at 100 mph. However, I’ve come to understand (admittedly, sometimes the hard way) that taking my time on almost every task is vital for effectively communicating with a founder. There’s a quote from a film that I’ll never forget: “Slow is smooth, smooth is fast” and this has never been more true when communicating in a remote setting. By being diligent, whether it’s double-checking emails, refining tasks, or fine-tuning spreadsheets and reports - I’ve found that taking a few extra moments to ask, “How can I clean this up?” or “Can I add a little extra?” makes a big difference.