Education First by Chad Mullins

The Scenario

FORGE often finds itself in the position of talking to potential clients with little, if any, history of working with creative firms. While some of our clients have a solid understanding of the branding process and the associated cost, many companies have no proper frame of reference when it comes to their marketing needs. With little to no budget, many potential clients are looking for a quick fix to address an immediate need, rather than solid advice for achievable results.

So what does this mean to FORGE? It simply means that we are educators first and creatives second. The reason there is a market for our services is that the field of design and web development is ever-changing and complex. Firms like FORGE have a mandate to keep up with, and sometimes drive the industry forward. Our unique mix of artistic talent and technical ability is difficult to replicate in-house for many companies.

Creating Value

Even in this difficult economy, a company like FORGE can create value. It is false thinking that marketing is a money-sink. Perhaps it should be re-stated: bad marketing is a money-sink. Correctly used, marketing dollars can keep a business afloat in tough times. The very definition of marketing is:

“the process or technique of promoting, selling, and distributing a product or service.”

From this definition, marketing is crucial to business. Sounds great from a business school standpoint, but we are routinely asked to create a brochure, website, or marketing piece that has little chance to increase sales or add value. As a rule, we always work with our clients to ensure that the proper context is applied to their projects. This is where our greatest value exists.

We recognize that it’s difficult to properly understand all of the internal and external forces being applied to a company; however, marketing dollars are best used within the context of a holistic view of the company. While it is impossible to achieve this 100% understanding, it is much easier for an external company, working with an internal marketing department, to help analyze the business realities and work to create a plan to address all of the appropriate touchpoints in a concise manner. FORGE is continually working to never look at a project outside of the business realities of our client. This is difficult, but necessary in order to provide the appropriate value.

The value that a company like FORGE can add to an organization is substantial and ultimately works to ensure that the present needs, as well as future concerns, are being addressed. Claims of “SEO” or “e-marketing” companies will never add the appropriate value, as a great website is just a touchpoint for the overall brand. The “SEO Company” is especially grating for us, having seen many unsuspecting organizations fall for this incredibly short-sided view of the web. It is simple: to achieve good search engine results, create a website that is full of well-written, relevant content. However, it’s much quicker and, requires much less work, to plop down $10,000 on a small ad campaign with less than 5% click-thru results. In the end, there is no doubt that this approach is more expensive and less effective than letting a well-built website increase rankings organically over the course of six months or so.

Great Clients Equal Great Work

We actually like our job as educators. Our partnerships with clients are what drive us forward as a company, and we hope to continue to find great companies to work with.