Working With an Agency: Why Collaboration is Key

At Old Town Media, we know that the clients we provide the best work for – the ones we are the most invested in, the most creative with and the most effective with – are the ones that work with us, collaboratively.

Working collaboratively with us means that we aren’t your “vendor for marketing services.” Working collaboratively with us means we’re your “marketing partner” and yes, partnerships take work. The work that grows that vendor-like relationship into a partnership is the difference between “marketing” and “great marketing” – and to be honest, we only want to create great marketing.

I know what you’re thinking, “But I want to hire an agency so that I don’t have to deal with any of this stuff.”

I get that, I totally get that. However, that’s not going to work (well).

For a marketing agency to really understand your company’s needs and goals and effectively create a strategy or campaign that is going to change the way your product or service is positioned in the marketplace, that agency is going to need consistent and thoughtful communication and feedback from you or someone on your team.

We need to know when things are working, when you’re seeing results, when the market is changing, when your company changes. We also need to know the negative stuff like when things aren’t working, when sales are down or when a competitor is encroaching on your share of the market.

There is no “safe” zone in business just as there’s no “magic bullet” in marketing and if you’re expecting that out of your marketing agency, you’re wasting your money.

At Old Town Media, we know that not every company is going to be a great fit for our partnership take on the client-agency relationship, and that is totally okay! We’d rather say no to those prospects than find ourselves in a situation where we’re not effective or creative.

So before you hire an agency, ask yourself the following questions – and make sure that the agency you’re working with knows your answers too:

Do I have clear expectations for the client-agency relationship and is the agency a good fit for the type of relationship I’m looking for?
Do I have a clear vision for my business right now, 1 year from now and 5 years from now and can I effectively explain that to someone else?
Do I have the time and energy – or does someone on my team – to dedicate to building this client-agency relationship so that it can be as effective as possible?
Am I willing to let go of some of the control so that I can focus on the strengths I bring to my business?

At the end of the day, we want to be passionate about the clients we’re marketing and that’s much easier when the client is sharing their passion with us. Don’t hire a marketing or web design agency because you think it’s the right thing to do. Hire a marketing partner because you truly see the value in working together with a group of creative individuals.

“To swear off making mistakes is very easy. All you have to do is swear off having ideas.” – Leo Burnett

Back to All Insights

Brittany Mathisen

2023-09-27

OTM has been a wonderful marketing partner for the last four years. We have shifted marketing plans over time and they are very open and explained all the details as we moved forward with new plans. They have done everything from help design and update offices, managed social media, planning marketing events, and many more things. The Hear for Holidays Event that we do each year is one of my favorite events that we work on together. Rachel and the whole OTM team have brought my marketing vision to life and I love everything they have done for my business. I look forward to what the future holds as we continue to work together.

Yvonne Myers

2023-07-30

I worked with Old Town Media (OTM) on a quick grant project that had a 6-week timeline. They were very thoughtful about whether they could meet the grant expectations and needs before accepting the work. The team at OTM then completed extensive research and facilitated focus groups to ensure the product they created met the needs of the end-users. They met all of the grant deadlines and far exceeded our expectations of the portal they created for us! I would not hesitate to use their services again and highly recommend them to others looking for a professional, high quality, and FUN team to work with.

Julie Dokoupil

2023-07-18

OTM is a locally owned firm that I have worked with for over 13 years. They are an amazing team of people who know and understand current marketing technology and strategies. My husband and I are starting a new business and they have helped us out even with small details to get our business going.

TunDesign

2023-06-20

I have seen a significant increase in community engagement which has helped bolster our brand presence, exceeding the expectations of the entire team. Carrie and her team provides consistent communication through slack and emails which has led to an effective and trusted partnership. Truly appreciate how hard-working, agile, and driven everyone on the team is. Thanks again for eveything your team has done for our company.

David Haase

2023-06-07

OTM has done a fantastic job bringing the Fort Collins Peach Festival back to the public! OTM is dealing with several volunteers on a committee and keeping everyone informed, best in business advice and a platform that will serve us for years. We didn't know what we needed and were presented with choices and educated about each before implementation. Kerrie and Brianna have done great work for us! Dave Haase Committee Chair Fort Collins Peach Festival

Dana Sednek

2023-03-15

Using their Path to Growth Model, OTM not only gave me a path forward, but they helped me clarify my strategy, direction, and actions for how to set and launch my business. I was able to launch quickly and I see the flywheel ahead that is necessary to accelerate customer intake and revenue building. Thrilled with the outcome!!!

Liza Adams

2023-01-13

As the Head of Marketing at Encompass Technologies, I considered Old Town Media an extension of our marketing team. OTM worked closely with us on rebranding and repositioning, multiple industry-first product launches, key industry events, and integrated demand generation campaigns while we grew our marketing team and acquired new companies. With the help of OTM, we grew our pipeline and bested industry benchmarks for Software as a Service (SaaS) sales and marketing efficiency metrics. We came to rely on OTM for tactical execution to augment our team but where they added the most value was in our rebranding strategy and market positioning efforts. OTM played an integral role in conducting research and deeply understanding our market dynamics, ideal customer profile, customer challenges, competitive landscape, products and innovation, key differentiators, vision, and mission. This was no easy feat with a highly complex ecosystem, multiple segments, wide variety of audiences, and a broad array of products. Armed with market insights, OTM helped us develop a compelling brand, an inspirational story reflecting our vision and strategy, a unique and defensible market position, and messaging that was relevant to our target audiences. I appreciated that the team was respectful and empathetic, intently curious, insightful with their observations and recommendations, and candid with their feedback. OTM set realistic expectations about deliverables/scope, level of effort, roles, timeline, and cost. The team was responsive, highly collaborative, and open to suggestions. OTM plugged our expertise and resource gaps which allowed us to break the compromise between doing good work and doing it quickly. On top of that, they were fun to work with. OTM was truly a partner of the business.

Eric Dengler

2023-01-11

Great team! Small company service. Big firm power and expertise.

zach fulton

2023-01-06

Simply put, OTM is a well oiled machine! Thanks for all you do

Working With an Agency: Why Collaboration is Key

Growing a business
is hard and finding the
right partner matters.

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