#019: The Tale of the Python: What Your Marketing Vendors Don't Want You to Know.

Who should we interview next?

Send nominations to MattWillis@WizardOfAds.com

Transcript

Matt Willis 0:00

Welcome to two a Million and beyond. This is Matt Willis. Someone's head has got to roll.

Speaker 0:08

Welcome to two a million and beyond. This is Matt Willis, the Tale of The Python. What your marketing vendors don't want you to know. An unfortunate misunderstanding. Many years ago I heard a story of a woman who had bought a baby Python to help her in her grieving process of her husband who had recently passed away. She reportedly told her friends that the Python was really connecting with her. Even empathizing with her. In fact, it would lay its head on her deceased husband's pillow and extend itself all the way to lay parallel with her. It was working out really well for her until one day she didn't show up for work. Emergency services were called and a zoologist was consulted. As it turns out, while the baby Python may have enjoyed months of affection and attention with its owner, its primary incentive each night that it stretched out in bed next to her was not to help her feel warm and fuzzy. Rather, it was to determine when it was big enough to consume her. Now, hopefully your marketing vendor isn't intending to eat you, but it is important to look under the hood to determine what their priorities and incentives are. Is your marketing vendor a python? Contracting with an outside marketing company can significantly expedite your growth by leveraging the expertise of others while saving you from needing to hire requisite personnel. As you forge these business partnerships, though it is imperative that you understand their primary motivators so that you can appropriately weigh the advice they give. An example I regularly see with marketing firms is they tie their compensation to their client's marketing budget. The more money you spend on marketing, the more money they make from you. Not only that, but they may even recommend you work with certain media channels because they will receive a commission from them. But if their marketing efforts fall flat, will they take responsibility for their poor marketing and work to improve it, or will they just likely tell you it's just a matter of increasing your advertising budget? How do you know? The most important incentive? Growth. I imagine like most business owners care about the one goal above all others growth. Most marketing firms, however, have their goals in the following order, One, enlarge your budget. Two, increase their billable hours. Three, maximize their commissions from media companies. And fourth and finally grow your business. When primary goals aren't aligned between you and your vendor, how can there be trust? Keep in mind, your business is not the only one hurting. In challenging economic times, your marketing vendors likely hurting too. And the scary thing is if their compensation and ability to feed their family is tied to your budget. But your ability to feed your family requires you run your operation as lean as possible. Who's best do you think your vendors will look out for first? So, before you get all warm and cuddly with your new marketing vendor, take the time to learn what their primary goals and incentives are so you can be sure that their best will align with your best. No one wants to wake up one day and find themself in bed with a hungry python.