I will, however, provide some insight into the more common answers to questions we face, and in doing this, it is my hope that I pique your interest to inquire further.  So, naturally, one would start with “What is an advertising agency?”  Well, the answer is an ad agency can be many things… much like the question “what is a restaurant?”  You know they all serve food, but what kind?  Do they have a specialty or can you order anything you want?  Mad Men Marketing is a full service agency, which means we can provide you with anything you might need. Basically, we can become your own personal marketing team. Only we won't ask you for a salary and benefits, including dental. Instead, we can make your media buys for you, help you with creative ideas and mock-ups, and consolidate your billing to make sure your advertising is running as smoothly as possible – and we do this at no extra cost to you!

SO, naturally, your next question is “Well then, how do you make money?” Valid question. I'm glad you asked… We make our money much like any other accounts services department, like any other company would. If you are placing your TV ads personally, there is a percentage of that spending that goes to the account executive, and the rest to the station itself… When you hire us, we enter as just another slice of the vendor's pie. They pay us 15% of whatever you are spending. We basically charge them to work with us instead of you.

Now, this brings us to the question of additional agency fees…  Some agencies will charge you an additional percentage of your ad budget to spend it for you.  We at Mad Men do not believe in this.  We do have some additional services beyond those an “Agency of Record” would perform that cost us money such as SEO, website development, mobile sites and so on. These services take time and need to be developed, but that is the same across the board.

A common misconception is that working with an agency will cost you MORE money.  This actually couldn't be further from the truth.  In most cases, we ensure your budget would not need to change in the slightest; and, we can almost guarantee that in working with us – being experts in the field – not only can we save you time, we can also actually save you money – all the while generating better results while spending what you already have (or even less), more efficiently than ever before.  Furthermore, because we now have perceived control over your entire ad budget, media outlets tend to be even more accommodating and in turn, provide additional incentives to work with their company.

Another fear companies have is, once they sign with an agency, they worry they will lose control of their advertising.  Our services range on the spectrum of control.  We will follow your comfort levels and direction to be as much or as little involved as you would like us to be.  Of course, every decision is sent for your approval before we move forward, and all creative ideas are run by your team first.  We are simply here to make your job easier, and take some time off your hands so you can focus on running your business, while we keep the customers walking through the door, or picking up the phone.

How about this concern: Will we be working with your competitors?  That answer is simply, NO!  Mad Men Marketing operates as category exclusive.  We made a partnership with you, and we have become your advocates… sharing sensitive information and working hard to make sure your business excels in its field.  While you are our client, we will not work with anyone else in your category, as we hope you would do us the honor of letting us be your sole full service agency.

So, now you might be asking yourself, “Do I need an agency?” or “Would working with an agency be right for me?”  Well, that is a question you must answer yourself.  But in my experience, the answer is almost always, YES!  Every business is different, with individual needs, owners and infrastructures.  But, if you want to make more money, grow your business, spread your ad dollars, consolidate bills, or expand… an agency is just the partnership to help you reach those goals.

With our collective expertise, we can assure that you get the most bang for your buck. We have done the research, we conduct additional research on your behalf, we have credible and already established relationships with media outlets and we know what we are talking about when it comes to consumer driven advertising.  Give us a shot and let us be your pinch hitter… It doesn't mean you're completely out of the game – it just means you're calling in some help to give you that extra edge above your competition.
That's what an agency can do for you.