If there was any upside to the pandemic, it’s that it removed the formal veneer of work personas and opened all of us to more personal connections with staff and clients. The shift to virtual calls exposed us to a more authentic version of each other; peering into home spaces and the reality that entails, from shouting kids to pets popping up onscreen unexpectedly. This has allowed us to see each other more directly as human beings beyond the deadlines, pitch decks, and revenue streams.
This shift to more real connections is the basis for sustainability and already reflected my values and those of Q30, minimizing any negative impact of the pandemic on our business. It has also reinforced our culture of collaboration and transparency – two important factors that helped us to flourish in uncertain times – and led to Q30’s exponential growth.
Announcing the ROB Top Growing companies award at a staff party.
This got me thinking about our evolution over more than three decades in business – and all we’ve learned along the way. These learnings have shaped who we are today, and continue to pave the way for exciting forward momentum.
With the industry experiencing a resurgence driven by the fusion of digital innovation, aesthetics, and accessibility, there is a lot of potential and promise for Q30 – and the design world. As we navigate the new landscape, in the spirit of collaboration, here are five strategies to unlock growth and foster a sustainable agency.
Nurture stability in relationships
As most entrepreneurs know, keeping existing clients is much easier than getting new clients. The agency world is competitive, AORs are dwindling, and the turnover of client-side roles is higher than ever. Survival depends largely on nurturing connections at all levels. Over the years, I’ve seen agencies where the philosophy was to form relationships only with those in the most senior positions while anyone else below them – those doing the work – was deemed unimportant, and often treated as such. The problem with this approach is that as soon as those individuals grow their experience and authority and step into senior roles, they’ll move the work elsewhere.
Some of the Q30 team at the office.
By nurturing relationships at the entry-level point, with staff and clients, you have the opportunity to develop stable connections over time that will serve you well down the road.
Work with the right people, and treat them right
Success is not only measured financially but also in the ability to create exceptional work and see the business you’ve built live on. With Q30, the goal was always to have a workplace that is highly creative and successful - and where our people have the time to enjoy their lives outside of work.
Employee longevity is important for our team and clients, and while we’ve grown over the years, our core senior members have been with us for 10+ years. When you create an environment where people are supported and provided with living wages and the potential for equity positions, most will choose to stay. This continuity allows you to become more efficient and effective, fostering a better trust level with clients.
Culture is king
One of the most rewarding things about leading an agency is working with people whose energy, honesty, and integrity I believe in. Any problems are not catastrophic; we talk it out. We trust each other and go with our gut. And we make sure people understand who we are and who we aren’t.
It’s important to lead by example and create a cultural environment of inclusion where people feel they can ask things without feeling uncomfortable, where authenticity and humility replace ego. We truly believe that our culture differentiates us; it comes across in how we speak, how we pitch business, how we share our expertise, and how we interact with each other, clients and vendors. It transcends internal dynamics; it’s also the lens through which we view potential client relationships as we look for ongoing opportunities to collaborate and add value to those engagements.
Studies have shown what we know to be true: businesses that focus on building their culture stand the best chance of retaining and attracting top talent who align with their values.
Have a clear stance and values
With a growing emphasis on cultural sensitivity and representation in creative work, bringing a DEI and ESG lens to what we do is more important than ever. For Q30, this has been happening intuitively, but it’s something we’re now doing more overtly and it’s always evolving. For example, accessibility is a pillar of our business and is baked into all our work from the get-go.
These things are no longer just the domain of large enterprises. Formal policies on DEI and ESG are now a common part of RFPs, especially within the government/public sector. But it’s also a huge benefit for recruitment and hiring. While salary is important, so is having a committed stance on things people believe in as they use this to evaluate their employment options, particularly among younger candidates who tend to be more environmentally and sustainability-centric.
Adapt to the changing landscape
I believe the best clients want a strategic partner to help them solve immediate challenges but also help them sustain their brand through the growth and economic changes they will inevitably face. As an agency, this means broadening your service offering without watering it down. Setting yourself up to touch as many points within a client’s company – even without the luxury of being the AOR – is key to expanding and future-proofing the business. We have new models of collaboration with partners and have built verticals as individual entry points to client relationships. These verticals leverage the breadth of skills we have across investor relations, branding, and digital. Each stream relates to the other, allowing us to cross-promote, which is easier to do with a known commodity vs. a net new client.
Q30 client presentation.
Ultimately, success rests on sustainability across design, people, and clients. To achieve this, it’s critical to know your strengths and weaknesses; if someone doesn’t value what you bring, then it’s not a good relationship. Listen to your people and clients. Do better. Play the long game. These are some of the strategies that have worked for us as we continue to innovate, learn, and grow – together.
Let’s make something better together.