How important is the name that I give me new lead generation agency?

I agree with Joseph: an objective assessment from a professional will provide the balanced insight you're looking for. You can accomplish that very inexpensively with a Clarity call ... or a couple of calls to different experts. Here are some of the things we'd want to know (and which you can ask yourselves): - What does your current name say about your products, your services, your brand? If you think of it as the title of a story, what story does it promise? - What are the advantages of keeping the name? - How is the name holding you back? - Does the name have built-in limitations? For example, is it hard to pronounce? Does it suggest a service offering you no longer wish to be associated with? Have you been faced with a trademark challenge? I do not advise polling your customers or suppliers. They are apt to prefer the familiar over the new, and if you are contemplating a significant rebrand -- branching into new areas, dropping some key offerings -- you risk tipping your hand.

I'd argue that adding "app" to your domain name *strengthens* your brand by making it more transparent and honest. It's accepted practice; see, for example, bufferapp.com and umergencyapp.com. "Try__.com," on the other hand, is less advisable: it sounds tentative and uncertain. For other URL options--slogans, extensions, puns--see my blog post: http://nancyfriedman.typepad.com/away_with_words/2014/02/a-pure-dot-com-domain-you-dont-need-it.html

There are 3 schools of thought about what to call a marketing agency. The first says be practical and call it something that relates to the product that you are selling. Good examples of this include "Ideo" and "Whatif!?" in the innovation space and "mindshare" in the media space. The second is call it something more iconoclastic, abstract and creative like "Elephants can't jump" or "Lucky Generals". the third days call it after a name, whether yours or someone else's. This leads to "Ogilvy & Mather" or "Saatchi and Saatchi". There is no right or wrong way. You need to choose a name that you and your partners can get behind and that will work over a long period of time and as your agency evolves and morphs what it does. The only key point to remember is that a) you should be able to tell a story off it - after all this is what creative people are supposed to do - and b) it is memorable

I've worked in digital marketing since 1997, led business operations at two digital marketing agencies, and advise digital agency owners on improving the business side of their agencies. Agencies tend to use some version of the standard consulting phases: Discovery, Analysis, Recommendations, and Implementation. Some agencies like to give them cutesy, proprietary-sounding names. In my experience, I'm not sure that really fools anyone. You also want to convey that you understand their problem. When I evaluate proposals by agencies, the biggest problem is talking about the agency and not the client. Focus on how they'll benefit (including likely metrics and potential results), not what you'll do. Milestones and deliverables will depend on the nature of the project. If it's implementation work, you might list typical deliverables (e.g., landing pages, nurture campaigns, or eBooks). If it's strategy work, your deliverables will be the research, analysis, and meetings you do to make recommendations. Beware of getting too specific about granular deliverables -- you don't want to prescribe a solution before you [get paid to] diagnose the problem. Which leads to your second point -- don't give them the plan/strategy you have in mind until they pay for your help. Don't treat your strategy advice like the free coathangers at the drycleaner (so value-less that they're thrown in with your cleaned shirt). Many prospects won't like this. I think you should refuse to do business with them. When agencies deliver spec work (a la 1960s ad agency pitches from "Mad Men"), they're making it harder for everyone else (and themselves), by showing prospects and clients that strategy has so little value, you're willing to give it away. What can you do instead? Position yourself as an expert as solving their problems in their industry niche. (If you call yourself a "full service agency," you're already doing it wrong.) People hire specialists. If you need heart surgery, would you hire the surgeon who does general heart surgery or who's done your specific procedure 500 times? I know I'd pick the specialist-specialist! Instead of sharing specific recommendations, use case studies of how you've solved similar problems for similar clients before. And if you don't have similar clients yet, use the closest analogy you can. You've got to start somewhere. And it's a reminder about doing the same type of work over and over again, rather than jumping around to a million types of projects. Ultimately, don't over-invest in the proposal process. Once it becomes clear someone isn't a good match, gracefully bow out and invest your energies in working with clients who value your expertise by paying for it. Good luck on your proposals! I'm glad to do a call to answer any followup questions.

Hi there. Have managed thousands of attorney online programs, I'll see if I can provide any suggestions. However, it usually depends on what type of practice you have. Commercial litigation might have a much different strategy than personal injury, for example. Let us know and I'll come back with some thoughts. Google ads may be a good place to look, though, if not already doing. Although $1k in Los Angeles market might be spent quickly.