Being the lead consultant of a successful digital marketing agency can come with a lot of pressure, and a hectic schedule, leaving me sometimes chasing for time.
When onboarding clients, I want to be safe in the knowledge that they will receive the very best customer service and care, someone will always be on hand to provide consistent communication and a successful project will be delivered as a result.
Thankfully I found a solution nearly three years ago when I welcomed Hannah Stocker to my team.
After being made redundant during the early part of the COVID-19 pandemic, I stumbled upon Hannah when browsing LinkedIn and within just a few days after connecting, she joined us as one of our skilled content writers.
Since then she has built up a great portfolio of work for businesses across the UK and the rest of the world, producing content for social media, digital brochures, email newsletters and of course, the websites built by us.
Besides her talent for writing, it’s Hannah’s willingness to learn on the job, her warm personality and her ability to effectively communicate with our clients that made me recognise that she could be the perfect fit for our Account Manager position.
After some conversations with Hannah about her growth within the company, she slowly took a step into the role in October 2020, successfully managing our web development and SEO clients at a time that was incredibly difficult for everyone due to the global lockdowns.
Since then, Hannah has gone from strength to strength, and now manages our whole pool of clients – whilst still providing her content writing skills!
Hannah is the glue of the agency, working closely with our developers and marketing experts to deliver projects she & we are proud of. Her polite and professional nature never falters, even when her patience is tested, or unfortunately when clients do not provide her with the same level of treatment.
As Hannah approaches her third year of working with Myk Baxter Marketing, today she provides her guidance on how to be a successful Account Manager and insight into why she loves being a part of the team.
Organisation is Key!
If you want to communicate with your clients effectively, you need to be organised. As a whole, we use Teamwork to track progress on projects and keep up-to-date on what the rest of the team is working on.
But I like to take it a step further. I’ve learnt the importance of labelling your emails, so communication can be tracked/or collated if needed and I also like to keep a hand-written diary, used for jotting down meeting notes and important project deadlines. It can also be rewarding to look back on what you’ve accomplished later down the line.
Take your time and be patient
Over time, I’ve learnt taking the time to respond to an email or phone call can result in better project delivery and an overall happy atmosphere.
If a client is being confrontational or challenging you, don’t be afraid to go to another team member for their support or just to gain their opinion. Even if you don’t respond for a few hours, or the next day, you will be reassured that you are going down the right path.
You also want to be patient with those around you. If a deadline is expected, it’s fine to give them a nudge or ask for an update, but don’t bombard them. This will only add extra stress they don’t need. They’ll be aware of the deadline too but must work at their own pace.
Handle one job at a time.
As a natural multi-tasker, I’m the worst example of trying to handle one task at a time. But, this year I’m challenging myself to take it one step at a time and I already feel like a weight is being lifted.
You need to be patient with yourself. You’ll deliver better work because of it.
Finally, working for Myk Baxter Marketing is such a privilege. Working alongside Myk and the rest of the team every day has helped me grow so much as a person. I am more resilient in certain situations and have expanded my knowledge in almost every digital marketing sector.
I finish every working day feeling as if I’ve accomplished something, and the fear of ‘Monday morning’ doesn’t exist anymore.
I look forward to seeing what 2023 and my third year of working for the agency have in store.
Thanks for reading,
Myk Baxter, eCommerce Consultant
