Celebrating the Strength of Women at INFUSE

Summary

By Natasha Matthewman, EMEA Agency Director

As members of a dynamic B2B industry, we’re all constantly evolving to meet change and develop the competitive edge that will skyrocket our clients’ success. Looking outward, consuming thought leadership content, reading detailed 3rd-party state of the industry reports, and staying up-to-date with the latest trends has become routine.

However, in reality, the question “what is the key to success?” is one with a myriad of ever-changing answers, all dependent on the unique makeup of your target market, products, and, most importantly, the DNA of your company.

The women of INFUSE

Our all-women EMEA agency team is just one example of how our business is empowered by collaboration, support, and encouragement. As director of our own “sisterhood of success” as I like to call it, I truly believe our team’s passion to build each other up and our mix of unique perspectives are what makes us great. After all, our best success stems from working together to make our vision become reality.

In that spirit, if you’re looking to create or optimize your own strategy for meeting the goals of your agency clients, we’ve put together some tips for you based on what has worked for us.

The 3 pillars of building an agency strategy
that delivers success for your clients

There are so many different strategies out there, however, these are the core elements that we believe are the most crucial for getting your clients the results they need.

1. Find the right team to champion your strategy

Building a strategy that helps not only to move forward your clients’ goals and growth, but also your own, rests on having the best team for the job.

Experience

Now, most employers prioritize finding candidates who have direct experience in the exact same role and, while that makes logical sense, we’ve found this really isn’t necessary. In our case, rather than building our team with salespeople, we brought in individuals with experience in campaign and program management.

This means that all our team members are able to use their experience of being “in the weeds” themselves. They understand how to craft a campaign that delivers the results our clients need and are able to bring their unique perspectives into the role.

Passion

This may seem obvious, but finding individuals who are passionate and aligned with your mission is crucial to success. After all, how are you supposed to be able to meet clients' needs if your team has no interest in working together to drive your growth?

Passion should also include the way that your team interacts with prospects and clients alike. Find people who take the time to network and treat clients right by genuinely getting to know them outside of business.

It’s so important to remember that behind these organizations, job titles, and campaigns, we’re all humans with real lives and aspirations. Showing that you care and that you’re interested in their needs and goals, rather than just securing a sale, goes a long way to building real relationships that last. Plus, you’ll find great friends along the way.

Of course, the right onboarding process will help get your whole team on the same page, however, when it comes down to authentic passion, you’ll know it when you see it.

2. Lead with a human perspective

These past couple of years have led to us all living through some crazy, life-changing experiences that have not only impacted how we work but also how we now live.

While transformation is to be expected and is essential, it’s imperative to demonstrate an understanding of the needs of the people who you do business with, how they are having to adapt, and most importantly why. This knowledge will allow you to better help people meet the evolving circumstances and fast-paced stresses of the modern workplace.

I touched on this earlier in my previous point (and it may sound terribly obvious) but leading with a human perspective is crucial. Apply this approach to all aspects of your strategy, including your outreach.

Leverage LinkedIn

LinkedIn is a fantastic tool at your disposal, but more often than not communication on the platform misses its mark. Rather than approaching LinkedIn the same way as email marketing, deploy strategies specific to the capabilities of the platform that also bring a human touch to your outreach.

Instead of sending an aggressive sales message via inMail, keep it light. Consider sharing a quick video message to lay the foundation for a genuine conversation. This not only allows your prospects to connect with you as a real person but it also serves as an early demonstration of the kind of individual dedication you bring to each of your clients.

Support this approach by encouraging open discussions on your own posts and joining others. This is a great opportunity to field pain points and, most importantly, to establish yourself as a thought leader and a real human your audience can relate to more easily.

Human to human (H2H)

Essentially, although we are business to business (B2B), we are primarily human to human (H2H). At the end of the day, we are all real people who not only deserve but also need real interaction that goes beyond purely business needs.

We’re not robots and a quick catch-up can go a long way. The alternative is quite miserable for everyone and certainly does not help to create a memorable, meaningful experience.

3. Collaboration and transparency

We all hear how (obviously) important it is to meet clients’ needs on a regular basis. While this certainly rings true, it’s also imperative to go about this the right way and tailor your approach to each individual client.

Be a consultant

Too many fall into the trap of taking a brief and following it down to a T. Instead, what you should aim to do is to act as a consultant for your client. Listen to their needs and preferences and work with them to tailor-build a campaign that meets the goals they want to achieve.

This way, you demonstrate your knowledge and the value you bring to the table with your offerings, while getting the best results for your clients. Rather than just accepting briefs, don’t be afraid to say “no, but” if it means a better outcome for your client.

Take your audience insights and bring new suggestions to the table that are in your clients’ best interests. They’ll love you for it, and tackling things together means you provide a great service.

Be true to your promises

At this point, you’ve probably noticed a recurring theme in the way we work with clients: be real and be genuine.

This extends to how you deliver outcomes. Being purely transactional does nothing for your clients and, as a result, nothing for your brand. Instead, be more strategic.

Set expectations at the outfront and be honest. If there are challenges that arise or that you can foresee occurring, let your clients know and work together to overcome them in the best way possible. Your clients will appreciate transparency over radio silence.

Finally, make sure to leverage your internal resources if you have them available. This will add additional value to your services and help to not bloat costs for the client.

Conclusion

These are just a few pointers for delivering the best experience for your clients that are at the core of how our team operates. After all, without your clients you have no business. Put them at the center of your strategy and processes by showing each one how important they are through collaboration and human touch.

Meet the team:

In the spirit of celebrating the strong women here at INFUSE, I’d like to introduce my fantastic EMEA agency team and help you get to know the people behind our quality, high-performance demand programs:

Tasha Matthewman, EMEA Agency Director

1. What is your role within the team?

I am the EMEA Agency Director and oversee the Agency Account Managers within the team. My role, alongside managing my own portfolio of agency accounts, is to support the wider team with net new agency acquisitions, day-to-day account growth, and general queries.

2. What do you enjoy most about working with your team?

The passion, collaboration, and mutual respect within our team are key drivers of our success. Everyone works closely together, no matter how busy we may be, to help resolve potential issues, and share creative and forward-thinking ideas to help win new business. (And the shared love of GIFs and memes keeps things interesting.)

3. Tell us a bit about yourself (who you are, your hobbies, interests, etc.)

I come from an English Literature and Creative Writing background and, like most, stumbled into the world of Demand Gen by chance.
I have always been a keen theatre lover and find myself in the West End watching shows whenever possible.
I am a Dog Mum to a particularly lively German Shepherd/Belgian Malinois-cross called Toby.

4. What has been your favorite project that you’ve worked on?

The various themed marketing campaigns that we have run to attract net new agency contacts. One in particular that stood out was our Valentine’s Day campaign back in 2019, before working from home was an accepted norm. Various lucky individuals from key agencies received flowers in their offices and a note from their “INFUSE Secret Admirer.” This created quite a buzz within our outreach efforts and led to some really interesting conversations and new relationships.

5. What is the key to meeting client expectations/needs?

Communication. We first and foremost need to understand what success looks like to the client and how we can set the right expectations to ensure those goals are aligned and met. We always outline the key objectives and KPIs before starting any program, whether it is our first time working with a client or a renewal campaign.

Bronte Nicoll, Senior EMEA Agency Manager

1. What is your role within the team?

I work within the Agency Team, managing and developing INFUSE’s portfolio of agency relationships throughout EMEA and APAC.

2. What do you enjoy most about working with your team?

The freedom we have to manage our own time, the support from senior management, and the fact that everyone is always on hand to offer help and feedback whenever needed.

3. Tell us a bit about yourself (who you are, your hobbies, interests, etc.)

I have just turned 27 (eek), and currently live in Brighton just a few minutes away from the sea. I am a social butterfly, which is another way of saying I can always be tempted out for a cheeky pub trip!

I have a passionate interest in current affairs and politics, completing my Masters in Politics and Human Rights in 2018 with a focus on reproductive rights in Ireland and Northern Ireland.

4. What advice would you give for keeping active/ productive?

Everyone is different. I personally find that it is crucial to work out what times during the day you’re most productive. For example, I am most productive between 11 am - 2 pm and then again at 4-6 pm. So I focus on the majority of my high-energy tasks during these times, whilst making sure that urgent/priority tasks are completed within the correct timeframes.

I also think that a change in scenery can massively help. If you don’t have access to a coworking space, going for a walk at lunch, eating/having a coffee away from your desk, or taking a 5-minute break can all help boost productivity.

Lastly, especially when you’re 100% remote, it is really important to ensure you have a dedicated area for working, whether that's an area in your home used solely for that purpose or a library/cafe/coworking space you can use during the week. I find my coworking space so important because it helps me to dissociate my home environment where I relax from my working environment.

5. Is there any advice you’d give your younger self?

You’re capable of more than you think!

Keira Jenkins, EMEA Agency Manager

1. What do you enjoy most about working with your team?

How helpful everyone is and how much we all work together.

2. Tell us a bit about yourself (who you are, your hobbies, interests, etc.)

I live in Devon and spend most of my time enjoying the beautiful beaches and walking my two dogs. When I’m not at the beach, I’m usually horse-riding and finding other ways to enjoy the outside…or playing tennis (although I’m not very good at it)!

I’m really people-focused and have tons of experience in Account Management, but I’m new to Marketing. I am finding my feet and looking forward to making waves!

3. What would you say sets INFUSE apart from other providers?

We’re quality-focused and agile. We always find ways to do things better. When we see something working for our clients, we put more focus into that area. A lot of companies say they’re agile, but few rarely are in my experience.

4. What makes your team unique?

I think I’d say (although I’m new) I have never worked with a team that is so focused on supporting each other. This helps when people are on holiday etc., and means our clients really get taken care of no matter what.

Jodie Parker, EMEA Agency Manager

1. Tell us a bit about yourself (who you are, your hobbies, interests, etc.)

I’m Jodie, one of the EMEA Agency Managers. I have years of experience working in B2B and have spent a lot of my career working on the agency side, so I have insights into how agencies run and the obstacles they're up against.

I’m based in Devon so as you can imagine, I spend most of my time near the beach or in the water. I am a lover of paddleboarding, rollerskating, and golf - not ideal for living in the UK with the amount of rain we get.

So on rainy days, I tend to resort to gaming - whether that's board games or computer games, shopping for home accessories, clothes, or more plants that I can’t fit in my home, and eating as much pick and mix as one girl can consume.

I have three cats: Prince is my oldest, he certainly plays up to the name. I also have my two rescues, Luna and Logan. They’re all such great characters.

2. What do you enjoy most about working with your team?

That nothing is ever too much. There is no limit to what we can achieve. We’re all on the same page and all are driven to be the best for our clients and ourselves. We are continuously looking at new ways to develop and we always put actions in place. We don’t sit around for the opportunities to come to us. We’ve got this.

3. What makes your team unique?

We’ve been in our clients' shoes. We know what works well against the objectives and how best to capture their audience. We are here to provide recommendations, bespoke to each brief, that we genuinely know will work.

4. What is the key to meeting client expectations/needs?

My previous experience working agency-side allows me detailed insights into the challenges they face and gives me the ability to align more closely with them. Alongside understanding agencies, the real key is to listen and understand the brief, and most importantly, recommend the correct solutions that will really help elevate their creative.

If you enjoyed this article, I’d highly recommend reading our article, “Leadership Lessons from the Women of INFUSE”, which catalogs some great life advice from the women of INFUSE.

We are dedicated to building custom campaigns tailored to your specific needs and working with you to deliver you the results you are looking for.

If you enjoyed learning about the team and would like to meet us officially, let’s talk. We would love to help you exceed your goals.

BOOK A MEETING WITH THE TEAM

About the author:

Based in Windsor, Tasha Matthewman, EMEA Agency Director, has over 8 years of B2B media experience, working across Campaign Management, Client Success, and Account Management teams. Considering her execution background, she is able to apply this specialist understanding of the operational requirements when building out campaign strategies for clients. As an avid theatre fan and keen reader, having studied English Literature and Creative Writing, Tasha brings her creativity to the INFUSE team.