So many Fortune 500s are nixing big retainers with advertising titans in favor of working project-by-project with a few much smaller shops that offer truly specialized services and expertise. That's because they've realized that the so-called integrated agencies don't really specialize in anything particular. They just cobble together mediocre teams who know enough to put out B-minus work – not terrible, just not outstanding in any way.
But here's the thing: the real value of independent agencies like Bond Studios is that we offer so much more than bona fide SMEs. Let me tell you about all of our superpowers.
✔ QUALITY & CARE
Smaller agencies often put quality over quantity because they're not high-volume production shops that can only work on a big scale. Here at Bond, we put pride in work over huge profits.
✔ HONESTY & TRANSPARENCY
Smaller agency teams can't afford to take on projects that aren't a good fit, so they'll often tell you straight up when they can't give something their best. Team Bond doesn't take on new work if it's not our area of expertise. Bigger shops sometimes have a "sign now, figure it out later" philosophy to business development. We've seen this fail and it ain't pretty.
✔ SPEED & AGILITY
Smaller agencies can often commit to projects and get ramped up faster than their larger counterparts. And they can be more agile in their approach to delivering meaningful campaigns and compelling content. (The bigger guys? A lot of bluster and romance up front but not a lot of doing for the dollar.)
✔ EMPATHY & ENTHUSIASM
The team at Bond knows what it's like to run a marketing shop, own a small business, balance a budget and cheer on a team, all while keeping an eye toward the horizon for the future of everything. And because content and brand marketing are our two passions, we LOVE to help organizations, nonprofits, companies and causes create campaigns and creative that break through. It truly makes our day when we can help our clients get back to doing what THEY do best.
✔ TALENT & ATTENTION
And as I mentioned at the top, independent shops will give you their best talent and listen deeply to understand your challenges, goals, dreams and perspective before jumping into the doing. Bigger shops may view your project as a portfolio piece and railroad any of your wants and needs just to make it cool for their own purposes. I've seen this one happen many, many times. And it never ends well – for the agency or the client.
Hiring a small, independent agency could very well help you meet your own goals and make a bigger impact with your marketing dollars—no matter the size of your budget.
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