We launched Nuera in February of this year with confidence in our ability to positively impact clients’ businesses but with reasonable expectations around growth trajectory and market share. In the crowded agency space, we knew it would be difficult to attract attention and position ourselves immediately as thought leaders in a space we were just entering.
So we didn’t focus our early resources on those things. No press release, no ribbon cutting, no grand opening event, no launch campaign… no noise. We talked about it numerous times and knew we could quickly realize media coverage if we reached out to regional press contacts. We also knew how to make a splash and generate leads through a well-executed launch campaign. Those temptations were strong. But we kept returning to one truth: Jacksonville, where almost everyone loves to announce an optimistic version of what they’re planning to do before they do it. People get excited, they congratulate them, and they often show support as early advocates and even adopters. Then more often than not, the thing they planned to do inevitably scales down or quickly fades away as their initial resources are depleted. It’s disappointing to watch, and it can be devastating to experience first-hand.
“
You can’t build a reputation on what you are going to do.
-Henry Ford
So we put our heads down, quietly directed our relationships toward securing our first handful of clients, and applied our initial resources toward delivering for them. Our goal was clear — to let our strongest work iteratively frame our business while our clients and the results we delivered for them did the talking.
It worked.
Ten months later, we maintain twenty-five carefully curated client accounts from Jacksonville to San Francisco, a perfect little office in the heart of San Marco, no debt, and a rising agency that’s growing in a sustainable direction. Some clients, like Pratt Guys, have seen their gross revenue increase 43% this year in large part due to our work together. Others have confidently launched new product lines and experienced immediate success through newly established or reinforced connections with their audience. We’ve been pleased to watch 100% of our social media clients rise to the top of their competitive landscapes across all measurable categories. As one could expect, these wins have been a hot topic amongst our clients and their partners. So the buzz around our quiet little agency has been growing organically while the referral business is only just beginning to trickle in.
We learned a lot this year, but the most important thing we learned was that sometimes being quiet can make the right kind of noise.
About the Author
Got questions? Good! Email joe@nueramarketing.com for answers.
