Clients want smart agencies. But they also want smooth relationships.
I think agencies sometimes overestimate how much prospective clients want to be impressed.
At Atomic, we created loads of thoughtful content: insight pieces, proprietary research, strategic frameworks and ‘big ideas’.
Some of it was really strong. And we enjoyed making it. It made us feel smart. Different, maybe.
If I’m honest though, we may have been getting a little high on our own fumes. Everything became layered and conceptual. We made simple ideas sound more complicated than they needed to be.
We weren’t alone in that either. I see a lot of agency marketing that feels like it’s written for other agency people.
The funny thing is, some of the most effective content we produced was probably the least ‘clever’.
We started filming simple video conversations with clients. Nothing over-produced. Just honest discussions about:
the problem they were trying to solve
what working together actually felt like
how the process worked
what changed afterwards
And they ended up doing far more heavy lifting than some of our ‘smartest’ content.
Most prospective clients at that stage aren’t sitting there thinking, “Wow, what an interesting strategic framework.”
Yes, they want a smart agency. But they also want a smooth relationship.
They’re thinking:
“Will these people actually get us?
“Are they going to make this painful?”
“Can I trust them?”
“What’s it really going to feel like working with them?”
That kind of reassurance is massively underrated in agency marketing.
Most agencies are good at generating interest. Far fewer are good at reducing uncertainty. Often the gap between interest and confidence is bigger than they realise.
