在新常态中获胜-机构指南（英）

Winning pitches in the new normalThe agency guideContentsThe big challenges 07Pitch, please; what to do and why 13Telling better stories with data 27Getting personal with custom research 39The agencies to learn from 4904Winning pitches in the new normalIntroductionYes, it’s a scary time to be an agen-cy, but it’s also a scary time to be a human. We can’t forget there’s still a mega amount of business to win – even from those who don’t yet know they need to invest – so let’s focus on what it takes to win, and close more deals.If that’s what you’re after, you’re in the right place. That’s what this guide is for.So let’s address the elephant in the room: life has taken on a new shape in the past couple of years. And agency life has followed suit. Things are different. We’re up against a new normal: pitch overload.And in this new normal – especial-ly for agencies hell-bent on growth and hunting new business – the challenges have multiplied: ü Budgets are tighter ü Projects are fewer ü Time and resources are gold ü ROI is a promise you have to keepTrue, ROI has always been a prom-ise you’ve had to keep. Now though, it’s more a case of all-eyes-on-ROI than it’s ever been. And who can blame them – with less resource to play with, brands need to make sure every effort pays off.So how exactly do you keep that tantalizing promise of ROI? If the pandemic has taught us anything it’s this: we can do a lot, but we can’t predict the future. We can never say with 100% certainty that a cam-paign will hit home with the right au-dience, or that content will resonate.What we can do is make the most ac-curate and strategic decisions possi-ble – by letting the data tell the story.06Winning pitches in the new normal01The big challenges08When it comes to pitching, every agency knows how important it is to stand out. For every project that comes to your door, you could have several competitors chomping at the bit. So to stand out, you need to prove you’re different. And that’s not always easy.A convincing pitch makes a prospect feel like they can trust you – they clearly see the return in your idea.Showing howyou’re differentBeing virtually awesomeWe’re now well-accustomed to the virtual world. Even in times when meetings can be in-person, we’re such seasoned video callers that we make good use of it. Might it be the new norm? Perhaps. And for global agencies that have clients scattered around the world, sometimes virtual is the only way forward.Agencies are adjusting to the “new pitch” and all the obstacles that come with it – technical glitches, sound quality, etc. etc.Most of all – the human element is often missing. Selling your best idea to a person 5 million miles away from you through a screen simply isn’t the same as selling it to the per-son sitting next to you sipping coffee. It’s hard.Winning pitches in the new normal10Of course, it’s not just some busi-nesses struggling with resource right now – it’s all of us. For a small agency team tasked with all this