What is a better question for your creative agency than ‘do you have something similar we can see?’
We get it.
You’ve got a limited marketing budget and you need to make it count.
You’re worried about making a mistake and wasting your valuable time and energy.
On top of that, you’ve got the challenge of persuading the people holding the purse strings of the right way to spend it.
You know what you’re talking about, you’re at the top of your game. You’ve been there and done that. That’s why they hired you, right?
But you still find yourself needing to convince them that content is king and that you know that creating engaging explainer videos will elevate the brand and get those leads rolling in.
You just need something to tantalise them with. To show them that this works. That it’s a no-brainer.
What are your competitors doing?
So, you trawl through your competitor’s content (because market research is important) and dig deep to find out who’s produced their content and get in touch.
Or, you’ve seen something captivating already and know that this agency could deliver what you need. They look like they know what they’re doing, they’ve worked with some great brands and they’re specialists at what they do.
But, they don’t have any examples of work for brands in your industry, promoting similar products or services to yours.
And that worries you. Of course, it does. You can see they’re good, but can they be good for you?
You need to know the answer, so you can use that to persuade your team.
So you ask…
‘Do you have something similar we can see that you’ve done within our industry for a similar product or service?’
You’re in good company
Imagine that, in a wonderful turn of events, they do! They’ve created a brand, brand style guides and animated explainer content for a brand that does what you do!
And you even admire that brand. Jackpot.
In fact, they specialise in that area and have done a lot of work in your sector, for similar brands for similar reasons.
They’ve proven their skills and understand the industry, what’s not to like?
It means that you’ve got examples of what your content could look and sound like to get those budgets signed off by the powers that be and you’re ready to make some magic.
It’s all gravy.
But, do you want to be original?
Once your content or brand has been delivered, you realise that it all looks a hell of a lot like your competitors. It looks, sounds and feels the same.
What’s the big deal though, right? It worked for them, so it can work for you.
And you are talking to the same people after all.
But, aiming to replicate what’s already been and gone before can actually make it harder to be seen and easier to blend in online.
You’re making it more difficult for your target audience to buy from you. How do they know what sets you apart?
Are you really going to be able to increase engagement, brand loyalty, sales and growth by mimicking what your competitors are doing?
Sure, competitor analysis and research are REALLY important (no one needs to tell you that) and it’s not compulsory to go so far away from what your target audience is already watching and engaging with.
That would be daft.
But you can differentiate your content and make it distinctive, recognisable and tailored to your brand style and voice.
In fact, that is one of the most important considerations.
As Apple used to say, “think different.” Look at what your competitors are doing and rather than simply trying to do better than them, think about how you can do something different.
Who you choose to work with, matters
A great agency will make it their mission to help you stand out online.
If you succeed, they succeed.
A great agency will have a range of different examples to show you from various industries because they can work with them all.
Because creating great content is about storytelling.
It’s because they work hard to get to know every brand they work with so well, that they understand how they’re different.
If they do have work in their portfolio from similar industries with similar products and services, they will still all look, sound and feel different.
Why? Because each brand they work with is different.
Every piece of design, animation, or content, whatever it is will be tailored to that specific organisation’s mission, vision and values.
So, what questions would be better than ‘Do you have something similar we can see that you’ve done within our industry for a similar product or service?’
Try these…
‘How do you tailor content for different brands?’
‘How do you produce what we need, what’s the process?’
‘How can we differentiate ourselves from the competition?’
‘How can we make our content different, even if we’re speaking to the same audience?’
With these questions, you can gather all the piece of mind you need to get the ball rolling with the bosses.
Knowing how your experts will deep dive into your brand and pull out the nuggets that make you different, is a crucial step, before even thinking about what it looks like.
Imagine, you’ve got the perfect partners AND they’re going to deliver tailored, bespoke content that is unlike anything your competitors are doing.
What’s more, you have a clear understanding of their process and confidence in how they’ll help you be more, engage more and win more.
You don’t have to be ‘off the wall’ to own your market online
Doing something differently doesn’t mean you have to go wild, off the wall and shock everyone with your complete off-brand content.
It means that you can do things differently, by staying true to the brand story.
The bottom line is, that you don’t need to choose your creative agency based on whether they’ve made a splash in your specific sector.
Don’t choose your agency based on what you’ve seen them do for a similar brand.
Definitely don’t choose your agency and request that they ‘do the same but for us’.
Imagine choosing who you work with based on how they intend to understand your brand, and how they intend to work with you collaboratively.
How they intend to work hard to ‘get’ what your mission is and who you’re talking to.
When we change our questions, magical things can happen.
We’d love to know, what’s the most common concern you hear from your team when you’re pitching a new content idea for your brand.
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