At least from a sales & marketing perspective.
It’s September and you’re a little behind on your revenue goals for the year. So, you decide to double down on your sales and marketing efforts for the next several weeks.
Logical, right? But the fact is, for most MR agencies, it’s too late to impact 2025. With the typical sales cycle being 6 to 12 months long, your efforts in September and October aren’t paying any dividends until Q2 or Q3 of next year.
Sure, you might get lucky heading into Q4 of this year, but for the most part… you’re done!
And while you’re happy to help get 2026 off to a good start, you’d still like to wrap up 2025 on a high note, so, what can you do? Here are five ideas to consider…
- Frequent & consistent. When it comes to your marketing efforts, don’t think about an increased effort in the short term. Instead, think about frequent and consistent activity on an ongoing basis. That is, don’t surge and back off… but start and keep at it. It’s that consistent effort that builds awareness and reputation that leads to opportunity. That keeps you top of mind, so when a prospect does have a project, it’s you they think of. And while blogging and email newsletters can help, the easiest easy way to do that is to post and engage on LinkedIn several times a week.
- Upsell and cross-sell. Take a look at the projects already scheduled for the rest of this year. Really look at them! Are there any opportunities to upsell or cross-sell on any of them? Not just to increase revenue, but because the change to the project will help deliver better outcomes? If you reach out to your client because you have an idea that will really help, then it’s a win-win! And even if they don’t accept your suggestion, they’ll appreciate how you have their best interest at heart.
- Network where the buyers are. In addition to education, buyers often attend conferences because they’re looking for solutions to a particular problem. And even if you’re not exhibiting or speaking, networking at these events puts you face-to-face with buyers in ‘buying mode.’ Here are just a few of the events coming up in our industry this year, all around the world…
- Back to the future. Buyers won’t buy from you until they get to know you, then like you, then trust And beside your current clients, who else falls into that category? Former clients. Think about it… they already know you, like you and trust you… plus, they’ve already experienced your good work. And unless you screwed up a project (highly unlikely), you’ve probably just fallen out of touch with them. So, change that. Make a list of all the clients you’ve done work for in past 36 months (who are no longer active) and reach out to them. Don’t just ask about projects (yet)… reach out to reconnect and rekindle the relationship. Find out what’s new there… and tell them what’s new with your firm. Then, if all goes well, follow-up afterward and ask about upcoming project opportunities. Note: this is another reason to attend events (see #3)… you never know which former clients you’re going to run into.
- Face-to-face is still best. When was the last time you visited the offices of your top clients? We all get by these days on Zoom or Teams, but there is nothing quite as effective as meeting with buyers in person. It gives us better access to our clients and allows us to better understanding them. We can walk the halls, meet new people, talk to those in other departments & brands and gain exposure to new opportunities. And there’s still plenty of time this year to get a couple of trips scheduled.
Conclusion
The fact is, while all the ideas above have real potential, there’s no guarantee that they’ll have an impact this year. Sometimes, there are just no available projects. At worst, by employing the ideas above, you’re setting yourself up for a terrific 2026!
Good luck and good selling.