What to Teach Your Marketing People

Source: Partner Insights

Marketing people should attend partner meetings. It will help them be more effective contributors to the firm’s strategic planning. But they must understand the basics that affect your business, such as:

• The difference between gross and net fees—gross fees are what are charged to the client—net fees are what you collect after write-downs, etc.
• Profit margin—explain how changes in the firm affect profit margins, and how:
  • Different niches or services yield different margins and how they affect firm earnings.
  • Enhancements to client satisfaction won’t necessarily directly improve margins.
  • Efficiency in engagements may not show up in profit margins.
  • Profit margins don’t truly reflect productivity.
  • Firms don’t use profit margins to determine price. Pricing is a marketing function.
• Write-downs—marketers can help reduce them. Often write-downs happen because clients don’t understand how they’re billed. Marketing people can help with communication.
• Realization—how much you collect per chargeable hour. Marketing people can help improve realization by addressing the causes: price, cost control, and client satisfaction.

What Marketing People Do:

• Research—what do clients (prospects) want? What are the strengths of the competition?
• Advertising, public relations, newsletters, etc.
• Direct mail, including developing data bases.
• Seminars, speaking engagements, etc.
• Contact with alumni.
• Community involvement.
• Sales calls—telemarketing and face-to-face—helping partners, and doing follow-up.
• Gauging client satisfaction.
• Developing strategic plans.
• Helping partners improve their business development abilities.
• Marketing consulting with clients.
• Product/service development.

For the complete article, click here and select the article The Strategic Marketer.

From Partner Insights, Aquila Global Advisors, LLC, October 23, 2007, www.aquilaadvisors.com.

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