"Akhia has built and maintained a team of long-time members whose types of experience––hands-on, substantive, educated, advancing––and loyal longevity are rare in this industry, but make a compelling case as a resource for manufacturing marketers."
I’ve been at Akhia since August 2013. Going on 13 years.
But around here, I’m practically a rookie.
Ben, Patsie, April, Angela, Eric, Bill, Sarah, Camille, Dave, Jan … they’ve all been here longer than me.
Jane, Jason, Morgan, Courtney, Toni, they’ve all been here almost as long as me.
A majority of our staff have been here since Obama was president. And our least experienced member has been in the industry for eight years.
With Akhia, you’re stuck with marketing veterans all the way.
Important today, when there's not enough time for...anything. Here? We understand the your organizations, your industries, your customers. How roles work together and the best way to get the most from them. It takes time and stability to build that experience.
Akhia has had both.
Good for you, because in a topsy-turnovery field such as marketing, that experience and staying power––so much experience in one place––says a lot about how efficient and impactful we can be for your business.
But the wise contrarian will say, “Not all experience is good. ‘Experience’ can lead to complacency. Over-confidence. Old ideas.”
How has Akhia made sure our experience and longevity––relatively rare in our field––is the kind of experience you’d want on your side? Well, Mr. Straw Man, I’m glad you asked.
Experience is easy to claim. But harder to prove.
Choosing an agency for ANYTHING is a leap of faith. I’ve yet to meet a client who said from the jump, “We trust you completely!” Meanwhile, I’ve yet to work for or see an agency that hasn’t assured a client that “We will do what you ask, do it well, and do it on time and on budget.”
By that yardstick, we’re all the same. Parity reigns! Throw a dart at the “Pick an Agency Board,” and you’ll be fine. No leaps. All faith, right?
The real world is more complicated, nuanced and demanding. Rightfully so. You want things done faster but without sacrificing quality. Experience like ours chips away at the peripheral details that ultimately allows you to turn a wish list into a to do list.
Here’s how we do it.
- Our Learning Curve Is Hairpin: Whether it’s a new client or a new project, the normal ramp-up can seem like a drawbridge. The proverbial “planning to plan” meetings and “just a little more research” interminably delay “getting to the real work.”
Akhia’s experience is a foundation for faster. We know the questions––and follow-ups––to ask your SMEs, and our knowledge of your industry means we don’t have to learn the basics from the start. (“So what does a fitting do anyway?”)
- Our Mistakes Helped Make Us: We’re not perfect. But we’ve perfected. Early on in our careers, we were newer in our roles, figuring things out, learning on the fly, paying close attention to our mentors. And inevitably, we made some mistakes. And we NEVER forgot them. And that hindsight gives us better insight into knowing what will work and what doesn’t.
- Improving Upon Best Practices Takes a Lot of Practice: Where do best practices come from? From doing things over and over and assessing the results. We also respect the process to keep you fresh. Today’s best practices are tomorrow’s “played out.” The instincts honed from decades of experience adjustments keep us ahead, progressing with less guessing.
- Saying “Trust Us” Doesn’t Build Trust in Us: Trust is earned. And we know that while it sounds cliché, it’s 100% true. And it’s 100% non-guaranteed. The phrase that “one oh no can upend 100 attaboys” has been a mantra (and warning) of mine since I first heard it, back when I was a real rookie, to keep me honest and improving.
- We’ve Seen Fire. We’ve Seen Rain. All of us at Akhia have been here or in the industry for to see a few things (COVID!). Some of us for the housing crisis of 2008. And a few of us for the recession in 2001. That is to say, we’ve weathered multiple economic storms alongside our clients. When the dips happen, having partners who accelerate the thinking and doing when budgets tighten is a huge differentiator. Relying on our experiences ensures you have a partner who guides with rationale rather than reaction.
- We Got Very Good at Manufacturing: Sometimes, when you keep doing something, you find your niche. We didn’t decide decades ago to be the manufacturing experts. It coalesced … more and more of our clients were in the manufacturing space, we saw their operations firsthand, working with them elevated our knowledge, and it just grew exponentially from there.
And on a personal note, it’s come full circle for me. I worked in a factory for four summers in college in the mid 1990s (Union Metal in Canton, Ohio). I lived a Springsteen song, getting a union card, punching a time clock, carrying the Igloo® lunch pail, driving the tow motor, manning an industrial saw made in the ‘40s, helping the millwrights fix it, BS’ing with the crew, and gaining an education and experience ingrained in my bones. And manufacturing is ingrained in all of us.
- We Don’t Like How Complacency Makes Us Feel: Oh sure, coasting along is fun for a while. Reach the mountaintop and enjoy the view for a stretch. Next thing you know, you're herding sacred cows. We’ve been in the habit of avoiding complacency, and challenging our clients to do the same, for decades.
To wrap it up, because a blog has to end somewhere––Akhia’s longevity of teams working together is a blessing. We’ve learned from clients, we’ve learned from past projects, and maybe most importantly, we’ve learned from each other. We ask each other for help, we drop knowledge, we tune in.
The whole Malcolm Gladwell “10,000 hours to be an expert” theory has some merit. But those 10,000 should be substantive, not passive. Watching 10,000 videos helps. Making hundreds of them helps even more.
One last cliché before you go.
The industry is changing. Today you need more from your agency than to just do things. It helps if they can think through things, too. Strategize. Build frameworks. Listen rather than just hear. We’re your eyes, ears, hands, feet, brains and core. To be able to help with just about anything takes a foundation of experience from people who have seen just about everything.
A lot of agencies talk experience. We’ve lived it.
Want to know what this means for you? Find out more by emailing our CEO & president, Ben Brugler. (ben.brugler@akhia.com)