What is best practice for two or more clients with the same services in the same geographic area? I know larger agencies sometimes give clients to different account managers that separately, but what about small start-up agencies. I have two orthodontists that are looking for my help and they are within 15 miles of each other. What advice or best practices do you have?
Hey smaller agencies! Competing clients in same geographic area
Userlevel 7
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- Former Community Manager @ Unbounce
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30 September 2016
Hey @Seth! Welcome! ☺
I love this question, and though I have opinions – I don’t know how sound my advice would be. I’m going to let some of our industry experts chime in like @Aagaard and @Larissa.
Also, I’m sure some of our Unbounce Experts would be interested in this. I’m very curious to hear the advice surrounding this topic.
(I’m on a plane right now typing on my phone with Danish auto correct. I apologize in advance for any bizarre typos) This is a great question! There are plenty of agencies that focus on a niche area. And there doesn’t have to be a conflict. I suggest being transparant about the fact that you already have a local client in the same industry. So the client knows up front and can make a qualified decision. Then I’d of course sign an agreement ensuring that sensitive information will not be shared between clients. As long as you can keep a high level of integrity and do awesome work and drive good results for both clients, it should be possible for you to pull it off. That being said, there is of course a higher likelihood of conflict if you work for two competitors. Hope that helps a bit.
Userlevel 7
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Hey Seth!
Great question. We’ve asked ourselves the same thing and unfortunately there is no “right” answer. We work with several Dentists & Orthodontists and the conversion could be tricky, depending on who it is. I absolutely agree w/ @Aagaard as being transparent is key for a long and fruitful relationship. In regards to PPC, since CTRs are typically low, there is usually enough room for many players, reducing the conflict. Ultimately if you don’t service that customer, they’ll get serviced anyway.
They way I see it: If you don’t service that customer, someone else will. At least now you’ll have more data to service both your clients better!
Cheers!
Stefano, i love your response. Thank you! Can i ask what works best for
charging clients? Percentage or retainer?
Userlevel 7
+4
My pleasure!
We mostly do a % of ad spend (with a minimum) & set up costs. We do this so our goals are aligned. A customer will typically only increase their budget once they’ve seen an ROI.
We’ve dabbled with both ideas and will sometimes offer a flat-rate service, but we like to start off with a % retainer.
I would also add that since you are creating two different strategies, they will likely end up being quite unique to each client. For example, one might have a particular service that they specialize in, and the other may be known for having flexible hours. By working with them both, you’ll also have a deeper understanding of the industry. I agree with @Stefano that your insight will be of benefit to both clients!
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We have plenty of competing clients. We don’t do PPC though, so as conversion designers/strategist it’s a plus for us because typically clients are excited to see what we can do in their industry. If, and ONLY if, we find out or are informed by one of the parties that these are direct competition and there is a “history” between them then we have to let one go.
The PPC part, well, we let our PPC partners handle that, and, luckily for that is @Stefano 🙂
Hi Stefano thanks for your response. What would a decent minimum ad spent be? I am starting a lead gen agency for dentists/orthodontists and wondering how to price the leads/services. Any advice?
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