It is important to begin by acknowledging that neither founding a digital agency nor growing one is an easy task. Both demand skill, resources and the ability to develop strategy. That said, based on my own experience, I can say that growing an agency is a far more challenging and complicated process than founding one.
As the founder of New Health Media, the first 360° digital health agency in Turkey and the world, I can add that the hard part is not setting up just any agency, but building a successful agency system from the very start. Throughout my brand-growing journey I discovered challenges and requirements unique to the industry, and I keep seeing new challenges unlock as we move forward. In this article, I will address both scenarios and share my insights on what it takes to succeed.
Founding a Digital Agency
Launching a digital agency from scratch is a set of processes that requires a solid business plan, thorough research and a clear vision. Being organized and hardworking is the roadmap of the job. The first challenge is identifying a market niche and a target audience. Defining which services the agency will offer and how it will differentiate itself from competitors is essential.
During the pre-launch evaluation phase, you may find yourself wrestling with questions such as what to do or where to start. If you are undecided, you may need to do some research. You can carry on in a sector where you gained experience in the past, or move into a new field where you believe profit margins will be higher or the line of business will become popular. The ideal may even be to create something from a combination of the two. You can limit your service area to the local market, target the whole country, or play big by including markets abroad. Examining sectors, external incentives, supply-demand charts and government grants will help you decide more accurately.
► The Right Investment:
You should research well, stay informed about the innovations of the digital world and bring these innovative units into your company's scope. Minding your budget, you should invest correctly in workforce and equipment, incorporating the essential factors first.
When founding a digital agency, the key to success is identifying the factors that set the agency apart from its competitors and presenting them to the right people with the right offers. This may call for specific expertise and a unique approach.
Before founding New Health Media, I asked myself, "With so many digital agencies out there, why would clients want to choose mine?" With that in mind, I embraced the healthcare sector and wrote the agency's story in that direction.
► The Right Team:
Another challenge in founding a digital agency is building a team of experts. In fact, in one respect this is the first leg of growing the newly founded agency. Finding people with the right skills, attitude and vision is crucial. In the beginning, the agency may need to turn to freelancers to deliver the necessary services, but eventually building a core team of full-time employees will become essential.
For better organization of team members and better tracking of the work, a departmental structure should be adopted, which is also a leg of the growth process. Each department should have a defined working principle, and there should be consensus on maintaining client relationships and reflecting the brand identity.
One must also remember that as the agency grows, the quality of the team needs to rise in parallel. By the nature of the business, it is not possible to walk every level with the same teammates. The reality is that you will move on to the next stage with those who prepare themselves for that progress and growth, while unwillingly having to let some go.
► Branding:
Branding, and marketing alongside it, are critical factors to focus on when founding a digital agency. It matters that the agency builds a strong brand identity that resonates with its target audience. Having a comprehensive marketing plan covering social media, content marketing, search engine optimization (SEO) and other digital marketing channels makes a difference in attracting clients and turning a potential audience into a loyal one — and that never fails.
To be able to build a brand, you first of all need a story. No agency without a story can ever become a brand. That said, with the right strategy, resources and team, it is possible to build a successful agency that delivers high-quality services and forms long-term relationships with its clients.
► Growing a Digital Agency:
Scaling an agency up within the industry is different from founding a new one and, as I said in the introduction, more challenging. Both the questions asked and the answers given will now be different. In other words, a different approach needs to be developed. If you have founded the agency and remain stuck around the same questions and problems, this may mean there is a growth problem. One of the preconditions of being sustainable is incorporating innovation into the company culture. And the fundamental challenge of development and progress is to keep going while preserving or increasing quality and profitability.
► Ensuring Client Satisfaction:
One of the significant battles in scaling up an agency emerges when you try to keep every one of your growing number of clients highly satisfied. As the agency grows, service lines multiply and expectations rise, building strong client relationships can become harder. To keep clients happy and continuing to use the agency's services, it is important to invest in customer relationship management (CRM) systems and processes. Having a CRM infrastructure and giving clients the necessary training so they master the panel is quite important. We have been using this system with our CRM specialist for years, and we can naturally observe its positive effects on coordination and client satisfaction.
► Preserving Team Culture:
Whether you are scaling a startup or evolving a mid-sized business into a large-scale organization, the "team" is one of the dominant factors. Moving forward with a strong team, sustaining the team culture, and ensuring employee motivation and engagement are essential. To create a positive work environment and retain top talent, you should invest in training, development and team-building activities. This attitude will bear fruit in both the short and the long term.
► Digital Advertising and Branding:
Marketing and branding play a key role in the growth of a digital agency. Attracting new clients and remaining a strong brand in the market is only possible by continuing to invest in advertising. Especially if the agency also offers digital advertising services to its clients, the marketing work it does for itself will carry the weight of a reference. To stay ahead of the competition, the agency needs to constantly renew itself and offer new service lines and solution scenarios.
► Balancing Profit and Growth:
As the agency grows, there are changes in items such as cost, profit and new capital. Balancing growth with profitability prevents losses. Having a sustainable business model through new investments and business partnerships affects profitability positively. To increase production, productivity and efficiency, factors such as pricing, reliability and integration must be kept running smoothly, and integrating new technologies and investing in new resources may be required.
So, Laying the Foundation or Adding Floors?
Rather than framing it as one or the other, we can conclude that the two feed each other: a good start enables fast progress. Whether founding a business or growing a company, success will come with visionary management, a dedicated and motivated team, a vision sharpened around satisfaction, a system that continuously improves and evolves, fast adaptation and technological integration.