Small Agency Survival Guide

It's a perennial question for freelancers and agencies: should you give clients what they want, even if what they're asking for is poor quality or won't work? Gwen, Andy and Emily discuss when it's appropriate to push back tactfully and when it's time to give in.

Tell us about a time you pushed back against a client! Drop us a line at [email protected].

Breaking up is hard to do...especially when it's a valued client! But sometimes ending a frustrating relationship with a client is the best thing for both parties. Gwen, Andy and Emily discuss a few early warning signs of a bad client and provide a simple script for "breaking up" with those clients.

Tell us how you handled a bad client by emailing Cabin Communications at [email protected].

Gwen, Andy and Emily explore 7 keys for successfully planning and promoting a client's special event:

Make sure your event is appealing

Start planning earlier than you think

Script the event for you and for attendees

Identify a specific audience 

Use the marketing channels you already have

Keep annual events fresh

Get relevant feedback

Get in touch with Small Agency Survival Guide by emailing [email protected].

Gwen, Andy and Emily share four tactics for marketing clients who don't have a huge advertising budget.

Gwen, Andy and Emily discuss why Cabin Communications is a "distributed" team and why small agency owners may want to consider the same structure for their teams.

Facebook ads are easy to set up, but hard to use well. Andy, Gwen and Emily discuss best practices for helping your clients get started with Facebook ads and review pitfalls to avoid in the process.

Get in touch with Small Agency Survival Guide by emailing [email protected].

Gwen, Andy and Emily discuss why it's important for content writers and marketers to write with one or two specific goals in mind and for a specific target audience. 

Get in touch with Small Agency Survival Guide by emailing [email protected].

Gwen, Andy and Emily tackle five pervasive myths that clients may have about your services:

PR and marketing can't possibly take that long...can it?

PR and marketing isn't that hard. Anyone can do it!

If you build it, they will come.

All PR and marketing must have immediate financial ROI.

What worked before will work again.

Get in touch with Gwen, Andy and Emily by emailing [email protected].

Getting the word out about your client's news can be tricky in today's media landscape. Fortunately, small agencies can turn to clients' social media fans, employees and influencers to help spread the word. 

Get in touch with Gwen, Andy and Emily by emailing [email protected] or tweeting @SmallAgencyPod.

Gwen, Andy and Emily tackle more questions from journalism/PR majors at Indiana University of Pennsylvania:

How do different target audiences affect which social media outlets you focus on?

Will podcasts become more popular in the future?

How do you balance person and professional social media?

How do you keep energy and ideas flowing?

How can a small business expand its target audience?

Get in touch with Gwen, Andy and Emily by emailing [email protected].