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Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

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This was the talk I presented at the Mirren New Business Conference on May 2, 2012 in New York. The audience was mainly small and mid-sized agencies - and we had an excellent, engaged audience. Thanks to all who made it (or watched over the streaming service)!
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lean planning for nimble agencies Mirren New Business Conference 2 May 2012 @farrahbostic
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Page 1: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

lean planning for nimble agencies

Mirren New Business Conference2 May 2012

@farrahbostic

Page 2: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

Stuff I’ve done.ads

campaignswebsitesgames

strategiesbusinessesproductsmedia

hosting hackathonsmentoring start-upswriting a little code

presenting an absurd number of decks

Page 3: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

“Lean” is hot right now

http://theleanstartup.com/

Page 4: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

It’s a reaction to waste, superstition, and bias.

Page 5: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

Requirements

Design

Implementation

Testing

Maintenance

The traditional software

waterfall model

Page 6: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

Full management teams

Assuming the customer is known

Assuming the features are known

Assuming growth happens by execution

High burn rate

Swinging for the fences

The results for start-ups:

Page 7: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

Principles of Lean Start-ups

Assume customer and features are unknowns

Continuous customer interaction

Revenue goals from day one

No scaling until revenue

Low burn by design, not crisis

Page 8: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012
Page 9: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

Google #Firestarters: Agile Planning

Do Agencies Need to Think Like Software Companies?

Let the stealing begin...

Page 10: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

Fact: It’s easy to talk about “lean”.

It’s hard to be Lean.

Page 12: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

Lean Pirates & Agile Ninjas talk about

‘pivoting’ a lot

Page 13: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

Pivoting isn’t a goal.It’s a necessity.

Page 14: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

It happens when you’ve done all you can with the 1st idea.

Page 15: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

And you make the intuitive leap to a better one.

Page 16: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

Where does this intuition come from?

Page 17: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

Empathy • Discovery • learning

Page 18: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

Empathy • Discovery • learning

Learn

Page 19: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

Empathy • Discovery • learning

Build

Learn

Page 20: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

Empathy • Discovery • learning

Build

Measure

Learn

Page 21: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

why nimble agencies aren’t agile

Page 22: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

the ‘insight & creativity’ waterfall

Client Briefing Planning

Creative Briefing Creative The Sell

PROFIT?

Research

Testing

MediaProduction

Accounts

Planning

Creative

Page 23: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

this looks like a time-consuming & expensive process, right?

Page 24: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

in the race to win & keep clients,

we make 5 key mistakes

Page 25: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

we take orders

Agencies facilitate and manage the production and placement of advertising on behalf of their clients.

The client asks, and she shall receive.

1

Page 26: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

“we don’t get paid to think”

The traditional model:

Billings = The total cost to produce & place advertising

Revenue = ~10% of billings

Profit = ~15% of revenue

2

Page 27: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

it’s hard enough to keep up with our own industry...

Clients Consumers

Ad AgenciesMedia

Agencies

Production Houses

Publishers

Page 28: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

let alone our client’s

Businesses Growth

Consumers

CompetitorsPartners

Shareholders

Regulators

Page 29: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

our process is wasteful

Client Briefing Planning

Creative Briefing Creative The Sell

PROFIT?

Research

Testing

MediaProduction

Accounts

Planning

Creative

Age

ncy

3rd

Part

ies

3

Page 30: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012
Page 31: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

our hand-offs can be more like show-downs

“I don’t need any more ideas. We’ve got plenty of ideas. I need to know what to make.” - Anonymous Creative Director

Page 32: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

we tend to think ideas ‘just happen’ 4

Page 33: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

WE EXPECT THIS GUY TO BE A GENIUS. EVERY TIME.

Page 34: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

we’re struggling with product-market fit

“What do you want from me? Fine writing? Or do you want to see

the goddamned sales curve stop moving down and start moving up?”

- Rosser Reeves

5

Page 35: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

WE BET ON A HOLE-IN-ONE. EVERY TIME.{BUT WE’RE NEVER SURE WE MADE ONE.}

Page 36: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

so. that’s not working.

Page 37: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

http://www.rswus.com/survey/2011-survey-clients-look-ahead-at-agencies

hired for lots of ‘reasons’...

Page 38: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

...fired for only a few

Bad strategy, bad creative, bad service.http://www.rswus.com/survey/2011-survey-clients-look-ahead-at-agencies

Page 39: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

how do we fix it...

Page 40: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

three reality checks

Client briefs are not to be trustedthey are often disconnected from the real business objective, and assume facts not always in evidence

Our business model is double-sidedwe have to design for both our economic buyer (the client) and our end-user (the consumer)

Strategy isn’t (solely) about research and testingit’s about efficiently seeking a campaign model that scales - and this doesn’t have to be expensive or delay ideas

Page 41: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

Principles of Lean ad agencies

Assume the client briefs are hypotheses to be tested.

Continuous customer interaction - with both client & consumer.

Establish clear goals for the campaign from day one.

Start simple, iterate on successes and learn from failures.

Create right-sized, integrated teams, and use the right resources & tools as they are needed.

Keep score with clients, vendors & partners.

Page 42: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

a note:

I open source ideas & models.

So all of the models & frameworks you’re about to see in this deck are in the Creative Commons.

Using them is not stealing my IP. Please use them.

Mahalo.

Page 43: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

how to do lean planning

in 5 really hard steps

Page 44: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

start with the business problemWhat is the problem your client is trying to use advertising to solve?1

Page 45: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

start with the business problem

“How is their bonus calculated?”

“Who do you report to?”

“Who approves the work?”

“Who owns the budget?”

What is the problem your client is trying to use advertising to solve?1

Page 46: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

start with the business problem

“How is their bonus calculated?”

“Who do you report to?”

“Who approves the work?”

“Who owns the budget?”

“What can we influence/change?”

“What is the business problem?”

“What’s the root cause of the problem?”

“Who owns the parts of the value

chain?”

What is the problem your client is trying to use advertising to solve?1

Page 47: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

The client brief is just one input.

Page 48: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

charge for strategy

Call it discovery, campaign planning, client roadmaps, etc.

Do the work to understand your client’s business (note: this is different from their ‘brand’).

Involve your client in this process - do stakeholder interviews, workshops, etc.

Don’t call it an add-on or suggest it as optional.

Charge enough that it looks like it matters as much as it does.

Connect it to measurement & KPIs.

2

Page 49: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

they pay for strategy.just not from you.

Reason #1: They don’t think agencies do strategy - and if you don’t have a highly visible planning team, with a history of solving business problems, why should they?

Reason #2:They don’t trust agencies to be honest - they think you’re learning what you want to learn to make the work you want to make.

Reason #3:They believe in ‘best in class’ when buying agency services - but are constantly frustrated by the inefficiencies.

Page 50: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

What are the most important costs inherent in our business model? Which Key Resources are most expensive? Which Key Activities are most expensive?

Through which Channels do our Customer Segments want to be reached? How are we reaching them now?How are our Channels integrated? Which ones work best?Which ones are most cost-efficient? How are we integrating them with customer routines?

For what value are our customers really willing to pay?For what do they currently pay? How are they currently paying? How would they prefer to pay? How much does each Revenue Stream contribute to overall revenues?

For whom are we creating value?Who are our most important customers?

What type of relationship does each of our CustomerSegments expect us to establish and maintain with them?Which ones have we established? How are they integrated with the rest of our business model?How costly are they?

What value do we deliver to the customer?Which one of our customer’s problems are we helping to solve? What bundles of products and services are we offering to each Customer Segment?Which customer needs are we satisfying?

What Key Activities do our Value Propositions require?Our Distribution Channels? Customer Relationships?Revenue streams?

Who are our Key Partners? Who are our key suppliers?Which Key Resources are we acquiring from partners?Which Key Activities do partners perform?

What Key Resources do our Value Propositions require?Our Distribution Channels? Customer Relationships?Revenue Streams?

Day Month Year

No.

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

or send a letter to Creative Commons, 171 Second Street, Suite 300, San Francisco, California, 94105, USA.

Page 51: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

if nothing else, it shows you care

Page 52: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

collaborate to learn3

http://www.startuplessonslearned.com/

“We always have a vision that is clearly articulated, big enough to matter & shared by the whole team.

“Our goal is always to discover which aspects of this vision are grounded in reality & adapt those aspects that are not.”

This vision is the ‘brief’...

Page 53: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012
Page 54: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

PLACE BETS:generate hypotheses before ‘finding insights’

Page 55: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

PLACE BETS:generate hypotheses before ‘finding insights’

About the customer.

Page 56: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

PLACE BETS:generate hypotheses before ‘finding insights’

About the customer.

About what matters to them.

Page 57: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

PLACE BETS:generate hypotheses before ‘finding insights’

About the customer.

About what matters to them.

About how they live their lives.

Page 58: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

PLACE BETS:generate hypotheses before ‘finding insights’

About the customer.

About what matters to them.

About how they live their lives.

About what they desire or how we can solve a painful problem.

Page 59: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

PLACE BETS:generate hypotheses before ‘finding insights’

About the customer.

About what matters to them.

About how they live their lives.

About what they desire or how we can solve a painful problem.

Page 60: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

Get out of the building.4

Page 61: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

do what, now?

Talk to people - not respondents.

Not a lot: 5-10.

Get the people you meet to introduce you to other people they know who do things a little differently.

Don’t use a “facility” - try to go to where they are when they use the product or interact with the category/brand.

Page 62: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

Be nice and listen.

http://giffconstable.com/2010/07/12-tips-for-early-customer-development-interviews/

Page 63: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012
Page 64: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012
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measure to succeed

You know the old adage...

“Half my advertising is working... I just don’t know which half.”KPIs aren’t making this better, most of the time.

5

Page 66: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

http://anjalir.wordpress.com/2011/04/12/sxsw-in-retrospect-the-last-of-the-launch-and-leave-ems/

“You need to add value to people's lives, not just expect them to participate because you goddamn well asked them to.”

Mel Exon, BBH Labs

Page 67: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

Learning.Understanding.

Empathy.

Page 68: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012
Page 69: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

measure like a pirate“[Vanity Metrics are] numbers that make us look good

but don’t really help make decisions.” - Eric Ries, The Lean Start-up

Actionable (a.k.a. ‘Pirate’) Metrics:

Acquisition: users from misc channels come to site, landing page, widget, etc

Activation: users enjoy 1st site visit, "happy" user experience

Retention: users re-visit site multiple times

Referral: users like product enough to refer others referral happens via email, links, blogs, widgets, word-of-mouth, etc

Revenue: users conduct monetization behavior (e.g., buy, download, affiliate sale trackback)

*

*

Page 70: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

Bonus round: do it again.

“It isn’t iterative if you only do it once.”

- probably one of the made by many guys

Page 71: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

Bonus round: do it again.

“It isn’t iterative if you only do it once.”

- probably one of the made by many guys

Learn

Page 72: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

Bonus round: do it again.

“It isn’t iterative if you only do it once.”

- probably one of the made by many guys

Build

Learn

Page 73: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

Bonus round: do it again.

“It isn’t iterative if you only do it once.”

- probably one of the made by many guys

Build

Measure

Learn

Page 74: Lean Planning for Nimble Agences - Mirren New Business Conference 2012

thanks.


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