Today is officially the last day of summer, though one could be forgiven for thinking it ended 4 weeks ago based on the weather we’ve been having. Next year, even if UK PLC is in the grip of a double-dip recession, British Airways cabin crew have elected Bob Crow as union Chief and Iceland looks like it’s about to explode I suspect this August’s record of abysmal weather should hopefully mean the phrase “staycation” has had it’s day. I’m undecided as to whether this has been a price worth paying.

The Sales Team had much to live up to in July following a record June for quality new business meetings set. In the end we fell just short of June’s peak with a highly creditable performance that delivered the 2nd best set of results for the year so far. August has been storming though; we’ve bettered June to establish the best set of results for over 4 years.

I know that clients often ask whether August is a good month for new business prospecting and we’ve occasionally had a job convincing them that it is. Most people acknowledge that September-November is a great time for seeing prospects and picking up briefs and will see the benefit of laying the groundwork in August but I often hear “surely so many key decision makers are on holiday, getting through to people must be impossible?”.

This sounds logical but actually we enjoy a higher than average access rate (ratio of attempted calls to actual decision maker conversations) in August. For every Marketing Manager regretting their staycation (hoping this will be the last ever recorded usage of the term) on the soggy south coast there are half a dozen sat in an office but unable to progress full pelt because at least one cog in their wheel is being washed out on an English beach somewhere. Consequently they have the time to reflect on the year to date and what’s required as they approach the final quarter. Crucially, they also have time to take calls and talk to new agencies.

We find Marketing Decision Makers to be particularly frank around this time of year. Regardless of when their company’s financial year runs August seems to be a natural time to take stock of things, which is why so many agency reviews take place in the Autumn.

Prospects rarely criticise their incumbent overtly when they’re on the phone to us but we’re more likely to hear rumblings this time of year, which makes our job MUCH easier.

The irony is that many marketing agencies consider August to be a lost month and chose to take their holidays. The guys in the office holding the fort will be servicing clients and won’t have time to prospect for new business, which means many marketing agencies are missing out on a very fertile period for making new connections. This is where a New Business Agency that is working day-in, day-out on your behalf can be such an asset.

While many agencies have put their new business efforts on ice over the summer we have been very busy indeed. A quick analysis of meetings we have set show that 12% of the FTSE100 and 21 from Top 100 UK advertising spenders will be meeting clients of ours as a result of work over July & August. Not bad considering most of the companies we target would fall just outside of these league tables.

July was also the month for momentous sporting events of course. The Alchemis Rounders Match on 9 July saw the company split into two teams, each under the captaincy of a Director. Three innings and much arguing later and my team emerged victorious. Some special mentions for:

John for volunteering to referee. To describe this role as a poisoned chalice would be a gross understatement. He was still taking stick for decisions made in the 2009 match so that took some courage.

Pete, Dan and Algie for the most outrageous act of cheating; over the course of one innings the distance between bases grew from 20 metres to 40 as they shuffled them further and further apart.

George for almost decapitating two of his colleagues with a wildly struck ball and Amanda and Claudia for bravely taking said baseball in the face in relatively good spirit.

The other sports event of note in July was the world cup. Much has been written about the mockery that unravelled in South Africa so I won’t comment further here but two guys who took more from the tournament than most are George and Richard who each earned a big night out with optional hotel for winning World Cup based team incentives.

So a great few months for Alchemis and our clients. Brilliant though August has been for the sales team I don’t expect the record to last until the end of the year. September to November is usually our strongest period so the challenge is to meet or beat August’ performance every month until December.

By the way, December can be a good month for similar reasons to August but there just aren’t enough working days to be breaking records for absolute performance numbers. Needless to say we we’ll be looking at setting a new high for productivity instead.

Being a life-long West Ham fan, I read with a huge amount of resentment and bitterness about Tottenham’s latest cunning plan to make more money last week. Not content with having one sponsor, they’ve only gone and got themselves a second one – just for cup and European games.

Why didn’t West Ham think of that? Aside from the fact that we’re not in Europe, will no doubt get knocked out of the Carling Cup by Oxford United tonight and possibly of the FA Cup by, hmmm… let’s say Bolton in the fourth round, it seems to be a pretty good idea to generate more revenue for clubs in these tough times for the beautiful game.

Realistically, this brainwave will mainly suit the bigger, more successful clubs as the additional sponsors would have to feel they were getting enough exposure for their money and therefore a decent run in these competitions. But why not extend the idea even further to have a separate sponsor for home and away kits?

Logic would dictate that this will result in one of the following outcomes:

either the floodgates will open for the marketing departments of companies not currently represented to get their brand names splashed across the kits of other top-flight clubs in some way, shape or form;

or existing sponsors will up their money to retain exclusivity across all competitions.

The other scenario is that brands won’t play ball at all – but I suspect the lure of all that publicity will be too great and there will always be someone who will jump in to fill their shoes.

And let’s not forget the replica kit sales – 4p to make, £40 to buy and now you not only need home and away, but also the limited edition Champions League, FA Cup and Carling Cup version. All revenue for these cash-strapped clubs!

Come to think of it, why stop at football – there are plenty of other televised sports to target too.

I suspect there will be a window of opportunity opening for affiliate marketers and sponsors following Tottenham’s tactics and my advice to agencies is to hit those phones now – or better still get the longest established (and best) new business agency to do it on your behalf!

PS – for any Spurs fans reading this, check out http://www.dearmrlevy.com – it’s a cracking site.

New business is an interesting space to be in at the moment; although if I’m honest, it’s been interesting for 23 years!

We have approximately 55 clients and a good proportion of these have won business this year, with fees totalling £3.5m so far. There is, however, a fine line between those who win business and those who don’t, particularly in this climate.

Setting the meeting with the right person at the right time is our job, but maximising the opportunity is obviously the responsibility of our clients. Our approach on the phone tends to focus on a rational sell (relevant experience, case studies, size and location of the agency we’re representing etc). The meeting itself then tends to be more about the emotional part of the sell (chemistry, trust etc) as well as the reiteration of the experience.

So, based on our experiences this year (and in no particular order), here are our top 5 reasons why prospects are prepared to give out a brief or an opportunity at a cold meeting:

1. A willingness to listen to the prospect’s priorities and challenges

2. A demonstration of flexibility of approach and potential solution

3. A clear and simple proposition with absolute relevance to the prospect

4. A desire and hunger to work with the prospect

5. A Trojan Horse such as an audit or workshop

Do you have any others to add?