A while ago, I wrote a post called “In Defense of Capabilities Marketing.” A lot of companies market only their benefits statements…”We’ll increase your revenue…improve your efficiency…make you more competitive…” but don’t ever say what they do. Often times, I’m already sold on the benefits of something. I just want to know a bit more about how you do it.
When it comes to lead generation, many folks who we speak to want to know how it works when we generate lead for our clients. Thus we’ve created this on-demand overview presentation of Services in Demand, Wellesley Hills Group’s lead generation and relationship nurturing program. Have a look, and let me know what you think.
Marketing, advertising and PR firms all work to brand their clients. But how important is brand to these firms themselves? We sought to answer this question in the Wellesley Hills Group and RainToday.com’s latest research report and found that brand does indeed make a difference for the firms whose very business it is to brand.
In the Fees and Pricing Benchmark Report: Marketing, Advertising, & PR Industry 2008 published in April 2008, 343 respondents described their company’s reputation in its target market as either “very well-known” (brand leaders) or “not very well-known.” Exactly one-quarter of the responding firms said they were “very well-known” and three-quarters indicated they were “not very well-known.”
Here are four undeniable benefits the self-described “very well-known” companies enjoyed.
1. Brand leaders have increased their fees over the last two years.
Brand leaders were more likely to have increased their fees over the past two years: 79% of them have increased their fees, compared to 63% of less well-known firms.
2. Brand leaders have experienced annual revenue growth.
Along with an increase in fees, brand leaders were more likely to have seen their annual revenue grow in the past two years, while the lesser-known firms were more likely to have seen their revenue levels stay the same:
- 79% of brand leaders “grew” versus 65% of lesser-known firms
- 23% of lesser-known firms “stayed the same” versus 12% of brand leaders
3. Brand leaders receive higher fees by up to 33%.
Brand leaders not only priced their services higher than their lesser-known counterparts, (41% of brand leaders are premium-price firms vs. 24% of lesser-known firms), but they also got higher fees for their services.
The percent increase that brand leaders actually realized versus non-brand leaders by level of professional is as follows:
- Highest-level professionals: 33% higher
- Upper-level professionals: 13% higher
- Advanced-level professionals: 4% higher
- Mid-level professionals: 20% higher
- Entry-level professionals: 27% higher
4. Brand leaders are more profitable.
Brand leaders were more likely to have been profitable in the past year: 69% of brand leaders were profitable versus 56% of lesser-known firms.
Making the Financial Case for Branding
Arguments about brand are common. Brand advocates tout the need for, and the value of, brand. Skeptics decry the value of branding, with calls of “show me the data,” “prove the case,” and the occasional “branding is fluff and puffery and doesn’t do anything.”
Lest there be any further argument about the value of brand, our research shows that firms that are well-known in their target markets receive higher fees, see their revenue grow, and earn higher profits than lesser-known firms.
This is not to say that lesser-known firms can’t generate premium fees, grow, and profit. They can and do. But it seems the brand leaders have a better chance of doing so and have an easier time of it.
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