“At the end of the day, having a strong Brand is having a good story to tell, and good Marketing is simply telling that story effectively.”
Ernie Stevens, Chief Marketing Officer:
CHOOSING THE RIGHT AGENCY
One of the questions I have heard asked numerous times is “How do you know if an agency is the “right” agency or not for our business? " Over the years I have found that there are certainly many factors that go in to choosing the right agency for your business. For instance, if you have an existing agency relationship, do they understand your properties place in the market? Do they have all of your best interests at heart? Is their “creative” actually creative? Is it creative enough to make a difference for you? Do they act as your Partner on all levels to get you where you need to go or do they just operate as another “consultant?” While these are all valid questions, I would like to address a few factors that I see as of the utmost importance in guiding you in the right direction.
“KNOWING" THE BUSINESS…
An agency like Magnum with years and years of experience will bring many varied resources to the table. These resources along with the experience will create a focus that guarantees that all you look to execute will be done with unmatched accuracy. Our SME’s (We call them our "Subject Matter Experts") are best in class and industry leaders in their categories. From day to day award winning brand communications, to complex media and analytics, we are entrenched in all aspects of client’s revenue streams with integrated programs that yield a higher ROI. Not only a return on investment, but also a Return on Ideas. Insights. Innovation. What about political, social, and cultural forms of ROI? Immeasurable returns that speak volumes in brand equity. Does your Agency know the business? Have they been involved in all segments of revenue generation to understand how all the parts fit together to give you the best deliverable possible? Magnum understands these things.
DEEP EXPERIENCE
The more varied the client roster, the more skilled the team becomes. Different industries approach their marketing differently due to different goals and objectives. When you have this diversity in an agency, it works well on your behalf to include fresh ideas, strategic positioning and much more.
Magnum is an exceptional agency for just that with specialties in brand strategy creation and management, gaming & entertainment, automotive, life sciences, retail, food service & hospitality, consumer research and insights, and public relations and reputation management as well as crisis communications. Our nationwide reach, and years of collective business experience, gives us the bandwidth needed to manage both global and regional brands with full conflict resolution.
Is your Agency deploying cutting edge technology and strategies? These are changing times for sure, and your agency has to be ahead of the curve with new technology and delivery systems. Not only does this help you remain competitive, but as new ways of doing business take control, the ability to realize economies of scale and related cost savings come along too. At Magnum, we are at the epicenter of the digital world, with best in class broadcast production facilities and content generation capabilities. For example, we create over 2500 broadcast productions each year. All work is managed though one of the industry’s most advanced tools: a digital data warehouses called Backstage 3.0 which gives our clients access to their work 24/7 with enterprise level 5-9’s reliability.
KNOWLEDGE OF MEDIA
Media is a hugely important piece of your marketing plan. And an agency’s knowledge of executing it is critical. The agency must know your media markets inside and out. Your agency must have relationships with all of the important radio and TV stations locally and nationally. These relationships will allow them to get you the best rates, as well as to negotiate “remotes and promos” (value-adds and perks that you receive for making radio buys). It is also important to know your campaign’s target audience well. Furthermore, any true Marketing Agency understands the need to manage and perpetuate positive public awareness, and how to strategically and proactively gain earned media. If an agency knows its market, and its clients, millions in earned media will happen on purpose, and on accident. Magnum can do that as well.
Also, in most agencies, Planners plan and Buyers buy, meaning that the tasks necessary to execute an efficient plan sits with two different people. Not at Magnum. Our Planners buy and our Buyers plan. Why? Because our media team members are all planner/buyers— no separation of tasks. That provides a benefit to our clients because it gives you direct access to the person managing all of your media tasks needed for your success. Our team has a thorough, expert-level understanding of every medium. Each team member researches, plans, buys and analyzes each of their media recommendations.
THE CREATIVE WORK
We all know that creative is the most visual part of what an agency does. It’s the billboards. It’s the direct mail pieces. It’s the newspaper ads. It’s the TV spots, PSAs, and online pre-roll ads. But, it’s also an opportunity. Instead of just “making stuff,” a seasoned and talented design team will tell a story. They work will be effective and strategic. At Magnum, we are focused on just this: Magnum’s creative team takes great pride in delivering advertising that is totally customized to our individual clients. Under the skilled and innovative direction of our experienced creative team leaders, our designers, art directors and copywriters work together to craft the right messaging that informs and inspires. As a result, the brand becomes so memorable that it drives new and repeat business to your property, all year long, all four seasons. At the end of the day, having a strong Brand is having a good story to tell, and good Marketing is simply telling that story effectively. You MUST have both to succeed, and that is what Magnum is here to help you with.
Feel free to contact me to discuss any of this. I would love to hear from you and talk about ways we here at Magnum can be your “right” agency!
estevens@magnummark.com