In my view, the rate at which people these days are calling themselves experts has approached the unbelievable. Thanks to
P&G and other well known companies with a rich history in this town, many Cincinnati advertising agencies are stocked with fantastic talent. But I think that in many respects we've created a problem. Great experience across diverse client bases has turned many into legitimate experts in their fields. But today everyone is calling themselves an expert - in social media, advertising, interactive, etc., and in many respects it's almost like we're expected to say as much.
Clients want us to take their data, their brands and their problems, go away for a month and work on it, strategize, analyze, etc. and come back with the silver bullet answers. As one Cincinnati advertising agency among many, for so long we've wanted to do this, and depended on appearing capable of this.
Here's (my version of)
the real story.
We can't be the experts on everything, and if I or any other Cincinnati advertising agency told you that we were, would you really want to hire us?
Gladwell says it takes 10,000 hours.
Seth generally agrees, but offers an
interesting take. More importantly, the internet changes things everyday. We knew the answer yesterday. Today we don't. Do we have experience in your market? Yes. Have we solved similar problems? Yes. Have we encountered an exact replica of your challenge combined with the internal dynamics and external market factors that only you are experiencing? Not likely.
Two points:
1. Specialist, Not Expert I think it's more important, and more credible, to become a specialist. Instead of claiming to be a social media expert, how about a specialist at using Facebook to help luxury auto brands drive test drives? Rather than claiming to be the Cincinnati advertising agency that's an expert in interactive, how about a specialist in helping apparel retailers build interactive experiences & communities that engage their customers and turn them into brand ambassadors?
Skellie has started a
wonderful conversation on this point and I'd encourage you to investigate further.
2. It's OK to Not Have All The Answers...Initially So why are you hiring a Cincinnati advertising agency? In the past we had to be right all the time. We had to have the answer that the client couldn't come up with on their own, or didn't have the time for. Do we really need to be that today? Maybe what we need to be is a group of people that has experienced enough business challenges and figured out enough solutions to earn the trust from our clients that we can probably do the same for them.
I think it's the same when you try to hire great people. You want people who have been in the trenches, but is it critical that they've solved your exact problem before? In some respects it is, but in many others perhaps not. What you're looking for is a smart person who has the skills and the problem solving abilities to get you through
what you don't yet know is coming.
As advertising agencies, I think it's OK to not claim to be the expert. Instead, I think we should demonstrate our specialties and get specific. Secondly, I think if we demonstrate our experience, it's OK to not have all the answers right away. Six months or a year into the relationship, what the client really cares about is that you are an innovative enough group of folks that can help them out of the mess they're in right now.
Wrestle with the problem - in front of your clients.
Apply smart thinking and proven problem solving abilities.
Work together to find the answers.