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Winning Together, featuring The BD100: A brilliant day for insights and inspiration
November 4, 2021
It’s always challenging to lead agency new business development but right now the future is looking brighter than it has for some time. Client confidence is up and there are plenty of opportunities across a range of sectors and businesses.
There’s also a host of new tools to help identify and engage with potential clients and a growing realisation that new business is everyone’s business – so more support and understanding of the BD role across the agency.
That’s not to say the task has got easier though, the market is now extremely competitive for both new business and recruiting the talent to deliver on it. Agency leaders and business developers have had to embrace and adapt to a rapidly changing landscape to maximise the new opportunities to drive growth for their agencies.
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Winning Together on November 18th will be an essential event for everyone concerned with developing new business and the client pipeline for their agencies. Based on the theme ‘Navigating the new business landscape’ it embraces a wide range of captivating keynotes, stimulating sessions and useful discussions.
3 reasons to be cheerful
The new business landscape is looking sunnier than at any time in the past 18 months as companies and organisations move their mindsets from survive to thrive. Data supports the reason for optimism:
- The latest IPA Bellwether quarterly report – just out - shows that marketers are feeling more positive about demand for their own products and services and are willing to spend. The research shows that total UK marketing budgets have increased at the strongest rate since Q2 2017.
- Agencies are reporting strong results, showing there is work to be won: Publicis Groupe says its revenues are up 5% on 2019 pre-pandemic figures for Q3, while WPP enjoyed net sales growth of nearly 7% compared with 2019 levels. Sir Martin Sorrell’s S4Capital has just revised its financial projections upward for profit growth – saying it will see 40% growth by year’s end.
- Looking to the future, many industry professionals believe that we have turned a corner post-pandemic. After surveying more than 900 marketing experts, Econsultancy have reported that 82% of marketers are either ‘quite optimistic’ or ‘very optimistic’ about the direction that the industry is heading in.
What’s on the Winning Together agenda?
With the above signals in mind, agencies need to tune up their new business machines ready for 2022. Winning Together is a virtual event that will offer an exceptional forum to discuss tactics, tips and how to meet the challenges – both internal and external – to creating an agency culture with a laser-like focus on winning new business.
The Winning Together programme will include Propeller Group’s popular ‘Tough Truths’ session. Hosted by Propeller Group’s Director of Content, Branwell Johnson, this panel will feature Paul Phillips, Managing Director at marketing consultancy AAR and brand-side marketers, including Alexandra Willis, Communications & Marketing Director at Wimbledon and Annabel Venner, former Global CMO at Hiscox and now Chair of Marketing Society Fellow.
The panel will explain the most effective methods agencies can deploy to get on the radar of the brands they’d like to work with together with some of the pitfalls to avoid. They’ll also provide tips on the dos and don’ts when it comes to actually pitching.
Other panels on the day include a session on leadership led by The Marketing Academy founder CEO Sherilyn Shackell and featuring Melissa Robertson, CEO at Dark Horses, and Dani Bassil, CEO at Digitas and Tamara Littleton, CEO at The Social Element. The group will discuss how agency leaders have had to adapt to be successful in the current climate.
There’ll also be sessions on aspects of agency culture such as D&I practices and the approaches to looking after employees’ health that have a big impact on how clients rate agencies.
These topics will also feed into a panel about the battle for talent and how agencies can attract and retain the right people. Additionally, there’ll be a look at how agencies can shine and stand out by demonstrating strong values. We’ll also be exploring what the future of work looks like and how agencies are reshaping their ways of working.
Finally, there will be two fantastic keynote speakers on the day. We have Felix Velarde, Author of Scale at Speed, who will provide tips on how to grow your business and build a superstar team. We are also proud to have Michelle Morgan, the Founder of Pjoys. She has experienced first-hand the impact that burnout can have on mental health and her session will explore how being open about mental health problems can offer incredible rewards and help to build resilience.
Celebrating BD talent
Finally, the end of the day will see the unveiling of the latest BD100 list celebrating the most influential business developers in the UK, as well specific awards for Business Developer of the Year, Rising Star, BD Team of the Year and New Business Win of the Year.
To sign up for Winning Together on November 18th click on the link below. It’s a must-attend event for agency leaders and business developers to have in their diary.