Ad, Mad or Glad?

It's been another exciting week for us in Words Wizards...here's why :-)

I don't know how many other agencies can say they've secured three new jobs in one week; with two coming from new accounts. Big or small, we'll take them all as long as the work gives us a creative buzz in us. And all of these accounts do. It just shows how fluid and variable advertising can be. And fun too!

We can't reveal our clients as we're very strict about their privacy, but when you're rushing against the deadlines to work on a baby products campaign, collaterals for a database management firm and a promo piece for a retreading company at the same time; in addition to work for our existing clients, we know that variety is indeed the spice of life...and it applies to creative work.

It gives us a chance to really, really stretch those creative muscles -- flex them and really work them out. And in the process make them better.

There is the small matter of crazy deadlines, but it comes with the territory. And if you run your company well, you can manage it well. Simple as that.

Many gurus talk about over stretching yourself and how you should just focus and not bite more than you can chew. Start slow and be careful and all that.

From my experience, they're right...only up to a point. If you keep turning clients away because of lack of resources, when will you have the resources to take on new business?

From a business sense, it can be wrong to turn away clients.

If you do, they'll find someone else and you could have lost them for good. The trick is not to turn business away. The trick is to expand with the increasing demand and growth. I call it a trick as it takes some amount of business instinct, skill, sacrifice, determination, belief and a devil may care attitude that you can do it (just like those times when you really focussed and surprised yourself when you discovered what you could really achieve).

However, many ad agencies and creative house flounder at this.

The result is, they stay small (not wanting to grow), implode after a peak period of success (can't sustain the increased demand and over time lose it) or worse go under.

But there are those who will ride the challenge and just go for it. From my experience, if you really, really have the heart, mind and soul (yes, there is still much soul in the business), you'll bite a large chunk, chew it up real good and ask for more.

In business sense, this means as the new business comes in, you should have plans for resources (competent creative people), timing, space and so on. The former two are the most vital. When those are in place, you'll be able to grow.

This system is in place with us and while we'd like it to be perfect, I'm just happy that we successfully implemented this since 2006 and today, we can handle these new accounts and more. It's quite a rush to realise that the decisions we made then is what is helping us right now and perhaps beyond.

I never fully appreciated these life lessons when people told me or when I read them from books. But hell yeah, now I do.

So at the end of the week and the start of a brand new one, we're not going mad about more ads, we're just glad. Very glad.

Next week, I'll have more updates and I'll share some insights and if you're interested, you can find out how to go from a one-man show to a whole agency and perhaps more.

Cheers...and Happy Monday!

Cool J