New Business Thought Leadership

Welcome to the RSW/US blog, focused on a variety of new business insights and thought leadership, from getting a program off the ground all the way to the final pitch, it’s the place for experienced new business pros and owners/principals alike. Catch our posts based on 18 years of experience working with professional services firms.

Why Your Proposals Are Killing Deals (From Your Prospect’s POV)
Read more
The Optimism Gap: 57% Expect Growth… But Only 7% Have the Pipeline to Back It Up
Read more
Turning Agency Challenges into Opportunities: Insights from Drew McLellan & Lee McKnight Jr.
Read more

Featured, Outsourced Business Development, Processes

Why Your Proposals Are Killing Deals (From Your Prospect’s POV)

Why Your Proposals Are Killing Deals (From Your Prospect’s POV)

A question that’s come up in conversations I’ve had with partners at firms: ” What do you think about sending over an initial proposal prior to the first meeting with a prospect?” I generally understand why a partner or business development lead would think this is helpful. In their mind, it’s giving that prospect helpful/useful […]

November 7, 2025/by Lee McKnight Jr

Productization for Ad Agencies – Pros & Cons

Featured, Outsourced Business Development, Processes

Productization – Pros & Cons

For the past several years, productization has been a consistent topic in our industry, however, since we included questions on it in our latest report (RSW/US 2025 New Year Outlook Report), I’ve had several agency principals ask about it,…

Featured, Outsourced Business Development, Processes

The Art of Skateboarding & Business Development: Lessons from My Son’s Journey

The Art of Skateboarding & Business Development: Lessons from My Son’s Journey 🛹💼 This weekend, my son is competing in a skateboarding competition, and as I watch him practice, I’m reminded of the parallels between skateboarding…

Selling

Featured, Outsourced Business Development

You’re Here to Help, Not Sell!

Recently, I read a great post on Mike Myatt’s N2Growth blog Stop Selling and Add Value, and wanted to share it. I know the title of my post is a bit kumbaya, but it’s the way we (at RSW/US) represent and reach out on behalf of our clients.…

https://dagsson.com/

Featured, Outsourced Business Development, Processes

Actionable AI Business Development Strategies for Ad, PR & Marketing Firms

AI won't take your job. It's somebody using AI that will take your job. Richard Baldwin, economist and professor at the Geneva Graduate Institute in Switzerland Agencies believe they’re holding their own when it comes to trends and…

Consistency Red Flag

Featured, Outsourced Business Development

Consistency is Next to Godliness

Consistency is vital when it comes to new business for professional service firms. We talk to companies every day, both client and prospective, and have engaged in a few surprising conversations. Some of these execs conveyed they've had a…

Giving Up

Featured, Outsourced Business Development

Why Are You Giving Up Too Easily?

Why are you giving up too easily? In an insightful post by John K. Thompson called "To Avoid Overload, Engage Your Audience", Thompson begins by pointing out the all-too-many sources of information available to us. Too many twisty knots of…