Transcript (English Translation)
I was working at a foundation, and I had quite a few observations. But they weren’t always based on my experiences at agencies. For example, I had one note saying: “Well, I think you took quite a long time to complete an assignment.” I felt the turnaround times were too long for things that were supposed to make room for new clients. I also thought your prices were on the low side. And the type of clients didn’t always match what you had to offer.
So I felt the clients that were coming to you weren’t really the right fit yet — they hadn’t found you properly. Based on that, you once asked me, “Alright, let’s sit down together.” So we set a date, along with Asma, who was also working at Brand New Guys at the time, to do a real session.
From there, we started discussing risks. How does the agency world actually work? What are the important components? Things like: what price do you set? And how do you attract the right clients? That’s when I quickly came across Blair Enns. For those who don’t know him: Blair Enns is an expert in agency positioning and growth. He mainly shares his insights through a podcast he co-hosts with David C. Baker. That podcast is called 2Bobs.
That led me to a very clear vision. They break it down really simply. They basically say: it’s all about your positioning. Your positioning needs to be strong. “I do X for Y” – you should be able to say that in one sentence. Your positioning has to be tight. Your marketing, lead generation, sales, and pricing – they all have to align. And then, of course, our mutual love for Jay-Z... I prepared a session using Jay-Z lyrics, where I walked you through those four elements:
Positioning. Lead generation. Sales. Pricing.
What does that look like? What should it look like in the future for Brand New Guys? And how do we give it substance? For me – and I think for you too – that was the beginning. A real eye-opener. I still remember the look on your face, especially during the part about positioning. How hard that was. How hard it was to really say:
“I do this for that market.”
I do this specific thing for this group of people or businesses. And in doing so, you also say no to another group. That was something you found pretty challenging at the time. But in the end, you did start making choices. More importantly: the desired future state of the client. Where does the client want to go? What is that vision on the horizon? What feeling are they aiming for? What do they want to achieve? Then you work backwards from that to figure out what’s needed. Your job is to make that possible. And that’s what you did in this exercise. Which naturally led to something very different than “just websites.” That’s your part in lead generation.
So it’s fair to say the last few years have mainly been about sharpening the positioning. I can explain later what the current positioning is. But now we’re moving forward: how do we target that market effectively? How do we show what we do? And how do we do that consistently? This podcast, this series, is part of that. This is how we communicate with the world now. But it took some time to get here. That also came out of the 2018 session, I believe. Back then, in April. Yes, that was in 2018. That session also made it clear: we need content. We need to start conversations. In Rotterdam and beyond. About how we can do things better.
Where do I see this city going in the next year and a half? What I love about Rotterdam now is that there are more and more movements. More and more communities doing their own thing. You’re doing that too – real art and culture, operating outside of the system. There’s growing space for talent development. More and more cool initiatives and products. I think you’ll see that increasingly. Like with Brand New Guys. There are so many emerging movements and communities where young people – those who don’t follow the traditional path – can find a place. They’re growing in music, fashion, basically in every discipline. You now also have exhibitions here. Creators who often don’t find a place in the traditional system. I think it’s important to create more space for that. And that you claim that space. And I hope the city council also starts thinking: how do we create space for this culture? How do we make that accessible? So it becomes a two-way street. You know what’s happening, because you’re in the culture. The ambition shouldn’t be for big, traditional institutions to try and claim it. But how can we strengthen each other? How can the city help create room for this kind of movement?
So what’s going to happen on the traditional side? How are we going to adapt? How do we make sure the system moves toward where things are really happening – where it’s actually relevant?
