New York native Emily is a marketing and PR professional who founded the award-winning agency R Public Relations. One of her main challenges has been finding clients who are a great culture fit for her business. She has refined her interview questions over the years to determine whether a potential client is a good fit for her firm, focusing on questions that force the client to think about their relationship with her agency and their approach to collaboration.
Emily emphasizes the importance of asking the right questions during intake calls to test the viability of client partnerships. By asking questions that reveal the potential client’s company culture, employee relations, and ability to collaborate with an external team, she can spot any potential misalignment between the client and her agency. She suggests looking for patterns in existing or past client relationships where friction may indicate a lack of fit.
To ensure alignment up front and lead to more successful relationships, Emily recommends asking six great intake questions to potential clients. These questions focus on defining success in the industry, past collaborations with agencies, alignment with core values, standing out from competitors, reasons for hiring an agency instead of internal employees, and perspectives on failure. By asking these questions, agency owners can onboard more aligned and committed clients who will be a good fit for their business.
Emily underscores the importance of clear goals, expectations, and success indicators in client-agency relationships. She also highlights the need for both parties to be committed to the same goals and willing to put in the work. By asking the right questions during intake calls, agency owners can avoid potential issues such as miscommunication or unrealistic expectations that could arise in the future. Walking away from clients who do not align with the agency’s values is also a viable option to maintain a positive working relationship.
Emily’s experience in onboarding clients who are a good fit for her agency has led to improved team happiness, work-life balance, and quality of deliverables. By sifting out bad client relationships upfront and focusing on finding clients who align with the agency’s values, Emily’s agency has seen longer-lasting and more lucrative client relationships. Onboarding the right clients is an essential step for agency owners to ensure a successful and thriving business.
