Articles·Marketing

Is your agency ready for marketing? One sign you are, and three signs to wait

Chris Cordon · 3 min read
A woman in a yellow hard hat sits at a desk beside an Open sign, looking at a ringing phone, while a hand waves outside the window.

An agency is ready for marketing when a valuable client asks, very earnestly, “You guys are wonderful. Why aren’t you more busy?” That question means the product works and nobody knows. An agency should wait when the phone already goes unanswered, when the owner can’t describe the ideal client in two sentences, or when nobody will press the button.

What is the one sign you’re ready?

The one sign is a good client asking why you aren’t busier. It happens more than owners admit. A client who’s been with you for years says, in so many words, “you’re wonderful, why isn’t everyone using you?” That’s the whole diagnosis. The service is good. The hand isn’t raised. Everything the agency does about revenue is a guess, because nothing goes out into the world to say “look over here.”

If you’ve heard that question in the last year, you’re ready.

What are the signs you should wait?

Marketing brings people in the door. It won’t consult with anybody. So the signs to wait are all about what happens after someone walks in.

Nobody answers the phone. If a new lead calls and gets voicemail, or emails and waits three days, marketing makes that worse. More people find you, and more people get ignored. Fix the follow-up first.

You can’t describe your ideal client in two sentences. Content that’s for everyone reaches no one. “Small employers in construction who are tired of their renewal surprise” is a client. “Businesses” is not. If defining that takes a while, it’s worth the while.

Nobody will press the button. A marketing system drafts, but somebody starts the session or approves the post. If that’s nobody, the system sits. Pick the person before the build starts, even if it’s you for ten minutes on Monday.

What should I have in hand before a first call?

Bring four things to the intro call:

  • Your website address, so the builder can pull your colors, fonts, and logo
  • A list of what you pay other vendors for marketing right now, even if the answer is nothing
  • The three questions clients ask you most
  • One recording of you explaining what you do, a voice memo is fine, because the system is built from how you actually talk

What happens if I start before I’m ready?

Starting early usually means a landing page that nobody sends and a LinkedIn account with four posts from March. It’s not wasted, exactly. The page is still there. But the money would have done more once the phone was covered and the client was defined.

Quick answers

Is my agency too small for this?
No. Small agencies are who this is built for. The system is the marketing person you don’t have.
What if I’ve never done any marketing?
Then you’re the typical starting point: a sign, a website, and referrals. That’s fine.
How long until something goes out?
A landing page in the first week. Content on a schedule within the first month.
What if it turns out I’m not ready?
Discovery will show it, and the $1,500 comes back.