Knoodle Founder's Hour-Mark-Sneider
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Building a Sustainable Agency Growth Engine: Insights from Mark Sneider

Most marketing agencies are experts at managing their clients’ brands, but they often neglect their own.

It is the classic “cobbler’s children” scenario where client work always takes priority, and internal business development falls by the wayside.

In a recent episode of the Knoodle Founder’s Hour, RSW/US President Mark Sneider sat down with Rosaria Cain to discuss why new business development is such a hurdle for agency principals and how to build a more sustainable outreach engine.


Per Mark:

Ad agencies dislike prospecting.

They get busy serving clients and neglect their own pipeline.

That’s the exact problem RSW/US solves: we help marketing agencies and professional service firms find qualified leads, set meetings, and get prospects as close to close as possible.

We don’t just book meetings, we help nurture prospects until the client can win them.

3 principles that make RSW work:

  2. Multi‑channel + consistency: phone, email, physical mail, LinkedIn: use multiple channels and stay persistent. Some prospects take years to respond; consistency pays off.

Key Highlights from this episode: Why Ad Agencies Hate Going After New Business (And How to Fix It)

The Myth of the Dead Cold Call

There is a common belief that reaching out via phone is a thing of the past; however, the data suggests otherwise.

While email deliverability becomes more difficult, the phone remains a reliable way to break through the noise.

Mark explains that success comes from a multi-channel approach, using a mix of phone, email, and even physical mail,  helps an agency stand out in an uncluttered environment.

Consistency Over Intensity

One of the biggest pitfalls for agencies is the “stop-and-go” nature of their outreach.

When an account demands attention, prospecting usually stops.

This lack of consistency creates a feast-or-famine cycle that’s hard to break.

Mark emphasizes that a dedicated resource must stay focused on the “hunt” every day, regardless of how busy the rest of the agency becomes with current deliverables.

Leveraging AI Without Losing the Human Touch

AI is changing how agencies handle prospecting, particularly in list-building and meeting preparation.

While these tools increase productivity, they’ve also led to a marketplace crowded with over-promises.

The key is using technology to work smarter while maintaining the strategic thinking that a “doer” agency simply cannot replicate.

High-level strategy is what separates a partner from a mere vendor in the eyes of a prospect.

Finding the Right New Business Talent

The role of a New Business Director is notoriously difficult, requiring resilience and a specific “hunter” mentality.

Mark shares that his hiring criteria shifted over time to prioritize strong sales experience first, followed by marketing knowledge.

Supporting these individuals within a collaborative, non-competitive culture is essential to surviving the high rejection rates inherent in the role.

Navigating Market Uncertainty

When the economy feels unpredictable, many marketers overreact by pulling back.

Agencies can stay ahead by focusing on strategic program development and consistent outreach.

Instead of going into “full sales mode,” the most effective strategy is to provide continuous value.

It’s about playing the long game and staying visible even when the market seems quiet.

The Power of Giving Away Your Best Thinking

The ultimate differentiator in a crowded industry is the willingness to provide strategic counsel before a contract is even signed.

Mark references the legacy of Leo Burnett to highlight that bringing constant value to a client’s life is the only way to sustain a long-term reputation.

When you offer insights that help a prospect solve a problem, you move from being a salesperson to a trusted advisor.

Build a supportive culture; we’re a team that helps each other, not a boiler room.

And when markets tighten, companies still need new business.

Stay predictable in your execution, reach more prospects, and keep bringing value. That resilience matters.

A cultural operating line Mark shares with every hire:

Bring constant, added value.” If your offering can be reduced to a commodity, you’ll be competing on price or noise. Help clients win with thinking, not just tactics.
Whether you’re an agency founder, a sales professional, or an entrepreneur navigating market shifts, this episode focuses on resilience, smart prospecting, and building meaningful business connections.
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The RSW/US First Meeting Blueprint: 20+ Multi-Channel Tactics for Agency Growth
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How to Get Your First Meeting with a Prospect: 20+ Practical Tips for Ad Agencies, PR Firms & Marketing Services Companies

Breaking Through: The RSW/US First Meeting Blueprint

Getting a first meeting with a prospect is one of the hardest business development challenges an agency faces consistently.

Most agencies get their new business from referrals and repeat clients, which is great when it’s happening, but not a growth strategy.

At some point, you have to break into new relationships, and that means figuring out how to reach people who don’t know you yet and have no particular reason to respond.

The RSW/US First Meeting Blueprint is a practical, channel-by-channel collection of tips built around what actually works in today’s outreach environment.

Scroll all the way down download it.

The RSW/US First Meeting Blueprint: 20+ Multi-Channel Tactics for Agency Growth

Bonus: Watch the Full Day 2 Conference Session

The Blueprint provides the framework, while this session adds the essential texture. At our annual conference, veteran New Business Directors Brandon Buttrey and Chad Dills detailed the RSW/US approach to securing first meetings.

With a combined 19 years of daily experience across diverse categories, they cover mistakes to avoid and tactics that work today. The session includes:

  • Tactical Training: Strategies for physical mail, email cadence, and opening lines.

  • Expert Q&A: Insights on AI tools, LinkedIn, video brochures, and cell phone outreach.

  • Navigational Help: Key timestamps below allow you to jump to specific segments or share them with your team.

Jump to What Matters Most

  • 03:26:00 Topic Selection – Why “first meeting with a cold prospect” matters
  • 05:05:00 Defining the Cold‑Prospect Challenge
  • 08:00:00 Prospecting Pain: Loneliness & the grind of cold outreach
  • 08:41:00 Why Prospecting is Hard Now – saturation, AI‑flood, noise
  • 10:26:00 RSW Outreach Framework – Mail, email, phone & creative tactics
  • 11:16:00 Physical Mailer Deep‑Dive – why it works and how to use it
  • 14:22:00 Physical Mailer Benefits & Real‑world examples
  • 17:23:00 Mailers as Conversation Starters – “Did you get it?”
  • 19:24:00 Creating Effective Mailers – teamwork, batch size, bright envelopes, intro note
  • 22:36:00 7 Practical Mailer Tips (overview)
  • 24:30:00 Email Outreach Best Practices – research, AI‑assist, 80% rule, brevity
  • 33:14:00 Crafting a Strong Call‑to‑Action in Cold Emails
  • 36:15:00 Email Deliverability – avoid links, PDFs, signatures in first blast
  • 38:17:00 Plain‑Text vs. Rich‑Media Emails – when to use each
  • 40:47:00 Phone‑Call Outreach – why it still matters & intro video
  • 45:01:00 Phone‑Call Script & Practice – write, rehearse, voice‑mail tip
  • 48:40:00 Optimal Call Timing – best windows & days of the week
  • 51:19:00 Phone‑Call Block Scheduling – 2‑hour focused calling session
  • 52:02:00 Marketer Feedback on Outreach Methods – what works & what doesn’t
  • 01:01:02 Phone‑Call Start Script Exercise – write your opening line
  • 01:01:20 Creative Outreach Ideas – Loom videos, QR‑codes, gift boxes

A Note on What You’ll watch

A live poll during this session revealed that 52% of attendees rarely use physical mail, and 70% have never called a prospect.

While these channels are challenging, sticking only to common methods leads to average results.

Our directors speak candidly about the difficulty of the “hunt,” from days with no responses to the mental shift required for cell phone outreach.

This session demonstrates how staying consistent across multiple channels helps agencies reach prospects that others miss—the same work we perform for our clients daily.

Is Your Firm Getting in Front of the Prospects That Need What You Do?

RSW/US can help you get in front of the right decision-makers.

We build the program, generate the right meetings, and help move opportunities forward.

Want to see exactly what’s included in a full program? Explore Our Offerings

Want to understand how we work day-to-day? See Our Process

Have questions before you reach out? Read Our FAQ

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While we offer the resources found on our site at no charge, we do ask for your assistance in maintaining a certain level of knowledge about who is accessing our valuable assets. We will never sell or distribute your information to any third parties.

Navigating Prospect Decision Fatigue 
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Navigating Prospect Decision Fatigue 

Seeing some decision fatigue with prospects lately.  

Not across the board, the activity and interest is still there, but that air of general uncertainty kind of hangs over everything,   

And that’s making some small and mid-sized agencies stand still.  

Standing still won’t service your business in the long run.  

As an agency CEO told me just this week, if you want to compete, you have to move. And we’re moving. 

Decision Fatigue or not, you still have to stay in front of your prospects because it will be too late when they’re ready and you’re not in front of them, or they forgot about you. 

You can’t let prospect indecision dictate your momentum.  

Your clients need guidance, especially as they watch larger companies struggle to make the math work. 

The High Cost of the Automated Future

Take our good old friend, AI, for example. 

Look at these notes from Axios: 

Uber’s chief technology officer already blew through his full 2026 AI budget due to token costs, according to The Information. 

If companies with the largest IT budgets are blowing through 2026 funds already, the automated future isn’t a certain fix.

Human labor and specialized expertise are proving to be the more cost-efficient, stable bet.  

So while giant holding companies are beholden to shareholders and quarterly earnings, small and mid-sized firms have the flexibility to offer stable solutions without worrying about fluctuating token margins. 

You can highlight that your human expertise (combined with your tech stack) is a fixed, predictable investment. While the tech giants are trying to figure out how to pass those costs onto their clients, you can provide a stable partnership that respects a budget. 

 

Breaking Out of the Pipeline-Filling Dross

Michael Farmer described the state of creative work in his C-Suite Blues Substack: 

Directing the creative agencies to develop thousands of low-cost adaptations to fill the media channel pipelines. Today, only 15% of agency creative deliverables involve original ad creation. The bulk of creative agency work — 85% of all deliverables — are adaptations for digital, social and programmatic media. This is hardly the stuff that creates brand equity and creates loyal customers. It’s pipeline-filling dross.

That 85% is the pipeline-filling dross that AI is designed to churn out, but it doesn’t build brands.  

Large agencies are stuck in that context because they have to feed the machine.  

They aren’t as nimble as you, and they’re beholden to a model that prioritizes volume over value.  

Using Agility as Your Primary Asset

You have the room to focus on the work that creates brand equity, the work AI can’t replicate and that big agencies are too distracted to prioritize.  

While, as you know, large agencies have layers of bureaucracy to justify their overhead, you can use your size to make decisions and implement changes for clients in days, not months.  

Your agility is an asset. 

Prospects are looking for partners who feel safe to sign with.  

Your ability to provide direct, human accountability is a differentiator against a big agency’s automated factory.  

Decision fatigue happens when there’s too much information and not enough insight, and there’s a crap-ton of information out there right now. 

You can position your agency to show prospects (and clients) an actionable path. 

Big firms are currently struggling with tech costs and the pressure to prove ROI.  

That’s your opening to lead prospects through their fatigue and information overload. 

 Don’t let their hesitation keep you parked. If you want to compete, you have to move.

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Your New Business Director Isn’t a Silver Bullet

Let’s get rid of a persistent myth in the industry: hiring a New Business Director (NBD) is not  a silver bullet that will change things overnight.

It’s a cycle: leadership brings in someone and expects them to reverse years of stagnant outreach or weak positioning through sheer willpower.

The Illusion of the Agency Savior

Too often, before a new business lead has finished setting up the CRM, leadership expects them to turn everything around overnight.

Your prospects may think linearly about how an agency fits their world, but you can’t afford that kind of thinking with your internal talent.

If you treat your NBD like a one-person fix, you’re not just setting them up for potential failure, you’re walking away from your own responsibility to build a culture of growth.

Taking the New Business Blinders Off

There’s no overnight sensation in agency business development.

Agency growth is a long-term, high-discipline game. (We answered a bunch of questions here we usually get about our biz dev here if you’re curious.)

Don’t expect high-value wins to close until the six-to-twelve-month mark.

Your sales cycle might be shorter depending on your niche, but starting with any other expectation creates a pressure cooker where your NBD is forced to chase bad-fit leads just to hit a number.

Your New Business Director Isn't a Silver Bullet

AI is fun!

Four Ways You’re Sabotaging Your New Business Director

To give your new business lead a real shot, stop hamstringing them with old agency habits that treat the role like a catch-all.

  1. The Fragmentation of Focus:

    Your NBD has to stay focused on the hunt. That means no account management duties, no “helping out” on client projects. That kills the momentum you hired them to create.

  2. The RFP Quagmire:

    If your lead is spending half their day on RFPs, your outbound strategy will fall behind. Inbound and outbound require different mental gears.

  3. Distinctive Positioning Over Generic Appeal:

    You can’t hand an NBD a generic full-service deck and expect results. Work with them on positioning that’s distinctive and rooted in language that solves real business problems.

  4. The Need for Internal Shielding:

    Creative departments and business development often work at cross-purposes. It’s your job to protect your NBD and make sure they have the internal support and priority they need to win.

The bottom line is that a New Business Director is an engine, not a foundation.

If you provide them with sharp positioning, protected time, and realistic milestones, they’ll build a pipeline that sustains the firm for years.

But if you sit back and wait for them to perform magic in a vacuum, you’ll be right back here in twelve months looking for their replacement.

Success requires a shared firm-wide commitment to the process, and that starts with how you set them up on day one.

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The RSWUS Agency Identity Guide 5 Pillars of Effective Positioning and 10 Rules for AI Search Success
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The RSW/US Agency Identity Guide: 5 Pillars of Effective Positioning and 10 Rules for AI Search Success

Agency brand positioning for AI search is no longer optional.

If your positioning is vague, you are invisible to both the algorithms and the humans making the decisions.

This RSW/US Agency Identity Guide keeps things simple.

We dive into the five core elements you need to make your brand stand out, from defining your audience with precision to identifying the archetype that sets you apart.

You’ll learn how to identify what your agency “owns” and how to build a personality that carries through everything you say and do.

By establishing these pillars, you create a foundation that helps prospects understand exactly why they should believe in your expertise.

The RSWUS Agency Identity Guide 5 Pillars of Effective Positioning and 10 Rules for AI Search Success

10 Rules for Improving Your Agency’s AI Search Performance

In this guide, we’ve also included ten actionable ways to optimize how AI search engines read and represent your agency.

We cover:

  • Refining your homepage language to ensure your archetype is clear rather than vague.
  • Restructuring your case studies to serve as proof of your positioning.
  • Updating how you talk about your services to build “semantic confidence” through consistent terminology.

These practices move beyond simple keyword counting to help you build “interpretive confidence”, so AI tools understand what your agency is for and who it serves.

This guide is a vital addition to your business development strategy because it ensures your agency is not just found, but correctly categorized and recommended byAI.

How RSW/US Helps Agencies Turn Better Positioning Into Better Pipeline

At RSW/US, we specialize in helping agencies, marketing services, and PR firms find their footing in this shifting market.

We provide the strategic outsourced business development and lead generation services you need to break through, reach the right decision-makers, and get closer to closing business.

Is Your Firm Getting in Front of the Prospects That Need What You Do?

RSW/US can help you get in front of the right decision-makers.

We build the program, generate the right meetings, and help move opportunities forward.

Want to see exactly what’s included in a full program? Explore Our Offerings

Want to understand how we work day-to-day? See Our Process

Have questions before you reach out? Read Our FAQ

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To view please fill out the form below

While we offer the resources found on our site at no charge, we do ask for your assistance in maintaining a certain level of knowledge about who is accessing our valuable assets. We will never sell or distribute your information to any third parties.

10 Things Every Agency Owner and Biz Dev Team Should Take Away from Our 2026 Conference
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10 Things Every Agency Owner and Biz Dev Team Should Take Away from Our 2026 Conference

10 Takeaways from Our 2026 Agency New Business Conference

If you attended our virtual new business conference for small and mid-sized agencies, you know there was no shortage of practical, hard-won advice for agency owners and new business teams.

And if you missed it, we put together an initial 10 takeaways from the conference; specific things you can take back to your firm and start using this week.

1. Pick your archetype and say it everywhere.

AI search engines don’t reward optionality.

If you’re trying to be a Brand and Story Architect, an Integrated Growth Engine, and a Specialist Innovator all at once, you’re making it harder for prospects and AI platforms to understand “who you are”.

Pick a primary identity, commit to it, and repeat it consistently across your site, content, and outreach.

Pattern dominance is how you get found and remembered. (And Pattern Dominance really should be a metal band BTW)

2. Your homepage needs to declare, not tease.

Vague positioning forces AI search engines to rely on weaker downstream signals when they’re trying to categorize your agency.

If a prospect lands on your homepage and still can’t tell what kind of agency you are in under 10 seconds, you run the risk of losing them.

Homepage language carries the heaviest narrative weighting in AI-mediated search, so treat that real estate like the most important thing you’ve got.

Lead with who you are and who you serve.

3. Stop sending emails in bulk and start sending them with relevance.

One of the clearest points from Day 2 was that volume without relevance is just noise.

Prospecting emails should be short, specific to the recipient, and written like one professional reaching out to another.

Using AI to help draft is fine, and in fact, helpful, but run it through a human lens before it goes out, because prospects can tell when something was written by AI.

4. Your prospect list isn’t a project. It’s a program.

The agencies winning new business aren’t building a list once and calling it done.

Create a manageable goal: add roughly 40 companies every five to six weeks, re-clean the data regularly, and treat your database as a long-term asset.

If you’re only pulling a list when you “need names,” you’re already behind.

Building a list-management cadence into your regular workflow is one of the highest-leverage things a biz dev team can do.

5. Case studies should prove your positioning, not just your outcomes.

AI platforms treat case studies as behavioral validation, meaning they’re checking whether your claimed identity actually shows up in your real work.

A case study that just says “we increased conversions by 30%” doesn’t tell AI or your prospects what kind of agency you are.

Reframe your case studies to show your method, your point of view, and why your specific approach produced the result.

That’s what builds interpretive confidence.

10 Things Every Agency Owner and Biz Dev Team Should Take Away from Our 2026 Conference

6. When prospects go quiet, most of the time it isn’t personal.

Status quo bias, internal blockers, unclear next steps, and just being slammed are the real reasons prospects ghost you.

The 30-Day Win Back framework we shared on Day 3 gave attendees a structured, respectful way to re-engage, with 6 to 10 touchpoints across multiple channels over a month.

The key is to rotate channels, lead with value instead of check-ins, and always give them an easy out.

Bringing one stalled opportunity back to life a quarter can change your pipeline.

7. Thought leadership content doesn’t have to start with a podcast.

Sam Littlefield and Steve Roop from Littlefield Agency gave us a masterclass in creating and repurposing thought leadership content on Day 5, but the bigger lesson was that the format matters less than the consistency.

If you’ve got a real sales conversation that keeps surfacing the same prospect pain point, that’s a content topic.

A single well-developed idea should produce four to six assets across formats, whether you’re starting with a written article, a short video, or a structured case study.

8. Titles and roles matter more than seniority when it comes to targeting.

It’s tempting to aim only for the CEO or CMO, but the people who actually drive evaluation and vendor selection are often functional buyers and director-level influencers who aren’t as hard to reach.

Building a prospect list that accounts for economic buyers, functional buyers, and operational contributors gives you more points of entry and more opportunities to build relationships before a formal review ever starts.

Review and adjust your title targets every six to twelve months, because they shift.

9. Thought leadership works in sales follow-up, not just marketing.

One of the most practical ideas from Day 5 was that you can record a short episode inspired by a specific prospect conversation and then send it to that prospect as a follow-up touchpoint.

It may feel  like “too much”, but don’t be hesitant to do this.

It’s personalized, it’s relevant, and it reinforces that you were actually listening during the meeting.

Prospects respond to that because it doesn’t feel like a form letter.

If you’ve got any kind of content engine, you can put it to work in your new business pipeline directly.

10. Consistency beats cleverness in the long run.

 

Whether it was list-building, thought leadership, or ghosted prospect re-engagement, every session of the week came back to the same core truth:

The agencies winning at new business aren’t necessarily the ones with the most sophisticated tools or the most creative outreach. They’re the ones who show up every week with a clear positioning, a warm, human tone, and a process they actually follow.

Start with where you are, build habits around what you can sustain, and improve from there.

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President Franklin Delano Roosevelt delivering a State of the Union address
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State of the Union – 2026 Edition

A Front-Row Seat from Both Sides of the Fence

Lee McKnight, our VP Sales and Marketing asked me to write a post on the “state of the union” and I agreed to deliver the goods.

So here we go…

I’ve been in this business since 2005, when I started RSW/US here in the states.

Today we represent close over 40 marketing agency and other professional services firms, helping them find new opportunities though our two outsourced new business programs (RSW/US and LAUNCH).

I also run a search consultancy (RSW/AgencySearch), where we help marketers find new and better agencies.

This multi-layered perspective puts me and our company in a unique position, hearing it all from both sides of the fence.

Déjà Vu All Over Again: 2008, the Pandemic, and Now

So with that as a back-drop, what I’m seeing here as we roll into the start of 2026 is an environment that looks very much like the environment we faced as we were coming out of the ’08 recession and very much like the environment we faced as we came out of the pandemic.

The start of these three events (this being the third) all started out in similar fashion – just driven by different factors.

In all three cases, marketers got nervous, they pulled back or slowed their investment in marketing and the agency world suffered.

But it was those agencies that kept their head down and pushed through it were the agencies that prospered.

As many of us suspected, marketers couldn’t hold back forever.

They eventually needed to start spending and supporting their brands again.

I’ll never forget when the pandemic hit and one of our clients’ reaction was to pause our outsourced new business program. We convinced him otherwise, give him a little discount (than you PPP) to help the cause, and sure enough within the two months that followed he won a sizeable piece of new business.

What we saw heading into 2024 was a fear of recession and a complete uncertainty about Trump and what chaos he might cause.  He did and so for many agencies 2024 and the first half of 2025 were tough.

What we’re seeing now is the makings of what we saw at the end of the recession and the end of the pandemic: things starting to pick back up.

Beginning the mid-way point in 2025, we started to see more clients win new business and more marketers interested in wanting to meet with our clients.

In our most recent New Year Outlook survey, 60% of marketers told us that they expect to spend more money to support their brands in 2026.

Was on a call with a long-standing client based out of Oklahoma yesterday and we helped get his agency involved in three agency reviews that are finally looking to break and decide on a preferred partner (hopefully his firm).

These “reviews” have been in process for a good 3-4 months and it finally appears that they’re ready to make a move.

Why 2026 Sets Up Well for Prepared Agencies

And while not out of the woods on the Trump train, things are (and hopefully will continue to be) a bit more balanced.

At the very least we can say with some degree of confidence that his unpredictability is now predictable so there’s less waiting and seeing.

Reductions in interest rates certainly have helped ease concerns and we’re seeing more business investment activity, which only bodes well for consumer spending and marketing investment.

Siemens announced $1B investment

Eli Lilly investing $3B in Pennsylvania

Meta investing $6B in Ohio

So where do we land at the end of 2026?

We land in a good place because:

  1. Economy in general is in good shape and all this investment should only help improve it.
  2. Interest rates will continue to drop, which should spur even more consumer spending activity.
  3. Marketers will stop dragging their feet and wins for agencies will only improve.
  4. A Democratic-led House will temper the chaos even further.
  5. The move to “out of house” (turning to agencies more for marketing support) will only continue.
  6. And Ai-mania will settle. Agencies (if they’re good and on it) will lead their clients versus letting their clients use Ai to take away from agency partners.

Will the agency world ever look like the agency world did 20 years ago when I started RSW/US?

No it won’t, but that doesn’t mean firms can’t find their way to a better place, re-defining their value and their positioning in the market to help move their agencies forward.

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Everyone’s a Salesperson When New Business Slows
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Everyone’s a Salesperson When New Business Slows

For this post, I want to give a shout-out-to all of you in the new business trenches, every mighty salesperson, whether you’re a new business director or a partner at your firm. 

It’s no newsflash to point out that this business is hard. 

A short, entertaining story to illustrate my point (at my expense): 

When I started at RSW almost 18(!) years ago, I was a new business director, so I had my own agency clients I represented, driving new business for them. 

For one client, I was reaching out to a fairly large chain retailer focused on footwear.  Over the course of multiple touches, I was able to secure a conversation with this CMO, with the ultimate goal of securing a meeting for my client. 

We exchanged emails where the CMO ultimately asked I call her (remember this part) on a specific day and time to talk a prospective fit with my agency. 

The day and time arrived the following week and I made the call-here’s how the very brief conversation went: 

Me: Hi, CMO of a large chain retailer focused on footwear, thanks again for the opportunity to talk.

CMO: (Silence, for what felt like an eternity, but was probably only a few seconds) Who is this?

Me: Lee McKnight, with X agency. We had this time set to discuss a potential fit with our agency services.

CMO-You have got to stop bothering me.

Me: (Very perplexed at this stage of the game) Well. . .you actually asked that I call you.

CMO: (Another pause) I don’t have time for this.  CLICK.

Yep, that happened. And to be fair, she was probably just having a really bad day, but that’s the kind of thing salespeople go through. 

And look, everybody’s job is hard, but when it comes specifically to sales, if you’re not living it every day, there’s a tendency to forget that, and then the impatience sets in. 

Fast forward to today and I traded emails with a VP of new business in the last few weeks who summed it up quite well: 

When things are going great everyone is calm and delightful, but when things go south just a little bit, everyone wants to be a salesperson.

I’ve seen this happen many times, and while I see both sides, it’s tough when agency leadership decides to get involved where there was little involvement previously.  

Everyone’s a Salesperson When New Business Slows

Ultimately, It is all about the long game. 

4 months, for example, is not the length of a new business effort, it’s only the beginning. 

You have to give yourself time, and be given time, to succeed. 

Now, that doesn’t mean you keep someone in the new business role if they aren’t delivering, but you also don’t cut them off 3 or 4 months in. 

 I’ve talked to agencies who look at new business as a separate series of try-outs, all short game. 

 In the meantime, agencies who understand what it takes are taking your business, playing the long game. 

 Don’t let that happen. 

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20 Years, 20 Lessons: How a Leap of Faith Built RSW/US
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20 Years, 20 Lessons: How a Leap of Faith Built RSW/US

I started RSW/US in 2005 with no clients, three young children, and a love of advertising, marketing, and sales.

Today we are the #1 outsourced new business firm in the country.

I’ve learned a lot over the years…about running a business, about myself, and about the value of great employees and clients.

Here are 20 insights I’ve gleaned from the past 20 years that might prove of help/value to you.

Thanks to all our clients, our employees, and my family for making this one great ride!

20 Years, 20 Lessons: How a Leap of Faith Built RSW/US

1. Sometimes you just have to go for it and hope for the best

I believed in this business when I started it 20 years ago.

I had three young kids and figured if it didn’t work out, I could always find my way into another job.

Here I am, 20 years later with a 32, 30, and 27 year “child”. If you believe in it, you have to go for it!

2. Thought leadership built this business before thought leadership was a thing.

I always was and still am a huge proponent of “giving it away”.

If you’re afraid to give away your ideas, no one will see you and you’ll go nowhere.

And if you don’t create valued content, you’ll just look like everyone else.

20 years ago, nobody was doing much of anything in the world of value-added content. We were trailblazers and we didn’t even know it!

3. Good guys may not finish first, but they don’t have to finish last.

I’m a big believer in treating people the same way you’d want to be treated.

And I am not interested in steamrolling my way to the top.

I think employees, clients, and prospects all recognize that. I may not be in first place, but I’m certainly not in last.

4. Sticking true to our values shields us from much of the noise.

We have a very solid set of Core Values that we live by every day at RSW/US.

There’s a lot of garbage out there in the marketplace, and a lot of people that run amuck with over-promises and false claims.

The high-road has always been the best road for us.

5. History repeats. First there was Flat Iron. Today it’s (name your AI platform).

When I first started RSW I felt like I was competing with a bunch of used car salespeople.

Flat Iron, a NY-based firm, hired ex-actors because they sounded good on the phone.

Today, it’s all the same. Still feels like the used car world I encountered in 2005…only difference is it’s not actors, it’s AI.

6. There are definable buckets. personality profile 101 for agency owners.

One of the things I love about the agency world is there are so many unique personalities – but they really can be bucketed into one of four categories:

  1. High energy and sales engaged;
  2. Barely paying attention and needing constant reminders;
  3. Hardnosed and always questioning; and
  4. Passive and always needs the push. It keeps life interesting and challenging for sure.

7. Persistence, politeness, and potpourri are the keys to success.

Yelling, telling, and selling doesn’t work these days.

Our people have to be polite, persistent, and they need to use a wide range of platforms to succeed in breaking through to the prospects our clients want to meet with.

It isn’t easy anymore and one-trick ponies (e.g., email-only or LinkedIn-only) aren’t the way to go.

We have to hit prospects in as many places as we can.

8. When the walls go up, the team has to respond.

The world we operate in here at RSW/US has changed considerably over the last 20 years.

20 years ago, all you had to do is pick up the phone or send an email and you didn’t have to worry about spam filters and blocked calls.

Investing in this business has been the best way to keep us ahead of the curve.

And not being tied to one platform or technology tool, but being agnostic, has proven to be the best way to go.

9. Balance, calm, and a recognition that you can only control so much, brings peace.

Being a small business owner – particularly in the world of marketing agencies – and particularly in the world of this economy/the pandemic makes me feel like I’m always traveling up and down on a roller coaster.

If I let everything worry me, I’d be dead and gone.

I must admit that my faith grounds me and keeps me focused…it helps even out the bumps and stabilize this patient.

10. Business books can bring value. I wish I wasn’t so proud two decades ago.

I was always the kind of guy who didn’t need YPO or CEO Stars.

Looking back, I wish I operated differently and had a more continuous stream of perspective from varied sources.

Today, our team at RSW is going through the EOS development process and while the other voices are inside, getting out of my own head and sharing the head space with others, has been liberating and energizing and very positive for our business.

20 Years, 20 Lessons: How a Leap of Faith Built RSW/US

11. Mentors can come in any shape or size, but you need them.

While I never had CEO groups, I did have business friends that served as mentors.

Most that have started small have been through the same kinds of challenges as I have, so it’s good to have a sounding board – even if it’s a board of only one.

Find it and do it.

12. Surrounding yourself with great people makes all the difference.

Finding great and loyal talent is no easy task, but when you do (and we have) it can make for such a great working environment.

Smart, dedicated, fun, and hardworking people makes the one activity that consumes most of our day, so much more enjoyable.

13. Move fast to make changes in personnel. Don’t let bad birds rest in the nest.

In the early days, I held on to underperformers or “bad apples” too long.

I’m a big believer in giving people second chances – but have learned that if that second chance doesn’t work, it’s highly unlikely that the 3rd or 4th or 5th will work well either.

Need a change…make a change.

14. Cold calling does work, despite what all the AI platforms tell us.

Despite what many say, calling cold does work.

Key is blending calls with emails, mailings, some limited LinkedIn outreach.

Also key is being polite in your persistence.

15. Mailers do work.

We have been using mailers (designed by our clients or outside designers) and sent by our team at RSW/US.

They are a great way to enter a prospect’s world in a very uncluttered environment.

Just had two meetings set by one of our New Business Directors today – both prospects had the brochures on their desk as we called.

It works.

16. Email can work.

And emails work if they are managed well.

Smart messaging, limited sends, managed frequency, and good relevant content is what wins the day.

We complement our use of our CRM with an email deliverability platform called Instantly that mimics one-off send to help improve the chances of falling into in-boxes.

Email can…and does work for us.

17. Phone still kicks butt!

The vast majority of the meetings we set for clients come from phone outreach.

We use a Power Dialer called Orum that gives us the ability to move through phone numbers at a much higher rate – improving our chances of landing on prospects who are willing/interested in talking.

18. This has been a roller coaster of love.

Despite the ups and downs and highs and lows of running RSW/US, I love every single day I work with our team and our clients.

They make it all worthwhile.

19. I wouldn’t trade it for any other thing.

And as much of a risk it was to jump off the cliff and start RSW/US, the experience has been an unbelievable one.

The freedoms that it brings, the blessings it has given me, the friends I have made, and the family support that I have has made every single day of the past 20 years…a great one!

20. It’s not about re-inventing. It’s about evolving and staying ahead of the curve.

And as I look forward I know that I (and we) need to constantly evolve and stay a step ahead…for our employees, our clients, and the industry.

We don’t need to re-invent, but we need to keep our eye on the changes in the market and the opportunities it presents and be ahead of it, each and every day.

Thanks for 20 great years! Here’s to another 20 more!!

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Why Your Proposals Are Killing Deals (From Your Prospect’s POV)
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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 information about the firm prior to the call to give she or he a better feel for the firm, or something along those lines.

With that said, Do Not Do This.

Along with this questions, I’ve heard others around sending over a proposal very early in the process, which can also backfire.

So, put yourself in your prospect’s place for a moment as I transport you into their mind, like Rod Serling in a Twilight Zone episode (please tell me you know who/what that is):

Submitted for Your Approval: Inside Your Prospect’s Mind

I reach out. Or I’m referred. Or I finally fill out your contact form.

Sometimes, before we’ve even spoken, my inbox gets lit up with:

“Attached is an initial proposal based on what we understand…”

Other times, we have a quick intro call. Ten minutes, maybe.

By that afternoon, you’ve sent me a 24-page proposal.

Then there’s the agency that finally gets a meeting and spends 45 minutes screen sharing a dense deck I never asked for.

You’re proud of the responsiveness.

I’m not impressed.

From my side of the table, here’s what all of this really says:

  • You don’t understand my priorities, timing, or constraints.

  • You’re guessing.

  • You probably send the same thing to everyone.

Experts don’t prescribe after zero or ten minutes of context.

Vendors do.

And I’m not looking for another vendor.

And. . . .scene.

Ouch.

The above may sound a bit harsh, as the firm in this example really is trying to show initiate and how on top of it they are.

But you really do need to put yourself fin your prospect’s place in situations like this.

So, below are three mistakes you need to recognize and acknowledge if you’re not moving past the first meeting, or having meetings inexplicably canceled before they happen.

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

Mistake #1: Sending a Proposal Before We’ve Even Talked

If you send a proposal before we’ve talked or you’ve asked any questions, here’s what goes through my mind:

  • You’re not listening. Big first strike if you want me to even consider a next step, much less work together.

  • Your numbers are fiction. Scope, timelines, and fees are clearly built on assumptions.

  • You give away your leverage. I can circulate your “proposal” internally or to competitors with zero engagement.

Mike Weinberg calls this Premature Proposal Syndrome.

Consultative selling 101:  Understand the customer’s situation, then recommend, versus leading with a blind proposal.

If there’s no live discovery, there should be no proposal. At most: a short capabilities snapshot and a clear invitation to talk.

(A caveat here is if you’re specifically asked up front, which comes with it’s own set of challenges, but that’s another post.)

Mistake #2: The 10-Minute Call followed by a 30-Page Proposal

When you fire off a full proposal after a surface-level intro call:

  • It feels generic. If you barely know my situation, I assume it’s boilerplate.

  • It makes me do the work. I have to map your language to our goals and sell it internally.

  • It weakens your position. Similar to the  “leverage” point above, I can now shop your thinking around without ever talking to you again.

  • It risks my credibility. A misaligned proposal makes me look sloppy if I share it upward.

Per the Sales Xceleration blog,

A winning proposal . . . is part of an orderly sales process, and should merely serve to document understandings and agreements that have already been reached over time.

Mistake #3: Turning the First Meeting Into a Proposal Walkthrough

Then there’s this move:

“Thanks for making the time. Let me share my screen and walk you through our proposal.”

Which typically results in:

  • It’s a monologue. You talk. And keep talking.  I do not get potential partner vibes.

  • It’s about you, not me. Credentials, process, case studies — light on what our needs are.

  • It skips stages. I’m still deciding if I trust you; you’re already selling me a 12-month retainer.

  • It kills honesty. I don’t feel I can say, “This misses,” so I smile, leave, and disengage.

By the end, you’ve showcased.

You haven’t understood.

Bottom Line: you will not gain trust by screen sharing a giant proposal in a first meeting.*

*(See the caveat in Mistake #1 here as well.)

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

What a Strong First Conversation Looks Like (From Your Prospect)

If you want to stand out from every other firm in my inbox, here’s what I’m hoping for:

1. You’ve done basic homework.
You know my category, a few key signals, and skip the obvious.

2. You let me talk.
You ask sharp questions about:

  • What’s not working.

  • What’s been tried.

  • Who’s involved.

  • Timelines and constraints.

  • Any Internal sensitivities.

I’m talking 60–70% of the time. You’re listening and clarifying.

3. You test for fit.
You’re willing to say, “If X/Y/Z aren’t true, we’re probably not the right partner.”

That earns trust.

4. You end with clarity, not a PDF.
We agree:
“Next step is a working session to shape the right approach. Then we’ll send a proposal that reflects what we’ve aligned on.”

And while ultimately the fit may not be right, I feel good about the possibility.

The Better Sequence: Diagnose First, Then Propose

For agencies, marketing services firms, PR and professional services firms, here’s a simple flow, which I understand may not always apply, for all kinds of reasons, but it’s at least a place to start from and aim towards:

Step 1: Discovery (Meeting 1)

Goal: Understand, qualify, align.

  • 30–45 minutes.

  • Ask questions. Listen.

  • Mutual decision: is there something worth exploring?

Step 2: Working Session (Meeting 2)

Goal: Co-create direction.

  • You bring a point of view based on discovery.

  • We refine scope, priorities, and constraints together.

  • We align on what “good” looks like and ballpark investment.

Step 3: Proposal (Now It’s Earned)

Goal: Document what we already agreed.

  • Tailored. Clear. Short.

  • No surprises — just confirmation.

How to Make Your Proposal Easier to Say “Yes” To (From your prospect’s viewpoint)

When it’s finally time to send a proposal:

1. One-page executive summary

  • My situation in my words.

  • Objectives we agreed on.

  • Recommended approach.

  • Investment & timeline.

2. Good / Better / Best options 

Three levels of impact:

  • Good: Focused starter / pilot.

  • Better: Full solution aligned to objectives.

  • Best: Strategic, deeper partnership.

Each option should clearly spell out:

  • Outcomes and success metrics.

  • Scope and responsibilities.

  • Timeframe.

  • Coherent, value-based pricing logic.

(And if your three options are the same thing with different hours, I know you’re guessing.)

Where Our Outsourced BD Team Fits In

Because we work exclusively with agencies, marketing services, PR and professional services firms, we see these same patterns:

  • Proposals sent before conversations.

  • Proposals sent after shallow conversations.

  • Proposals disguised as first-meeting decks.

Before your next initial meeting with a prospect, think strategically about where your proposal fits.

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