Dealing With the Ghosting Problem
03 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Are prospects not responding to your follow-up after you submit a proposal? Blair goes through what ...
Defending the Castle When the Moats Are Drained
19 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
One characteristic of our industry is disappearing moats. After a brief overview of the fourteen moa...
The Four Priorities of Winning New Business
05 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What do we do in those situations where we have to pitch? Blair simplifies some important principles...
Understanding Earnouts
22 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
If/when you sell your firm, it'll likely be the largest transaction of your life, and so it makes se...
Grow or Die?
08 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Blair recognizes growth opportunities in every area of life and business, yet sees many people chasi...
You're Cheating Clients Unless You're Repetitive
24 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
David recognizes that the fear of repeating ourselves in our client work is motivated by the right t...
How to Get $500M to Build a Website
10 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Blair tells the story of recreation.gov and how its performance pay deal has been nothing but wins f...
When a Key Employee Wants Equity
27 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
David provides a framework for one of the most important conversations in a creative agency principa...
SpamHack Your Way to Growth!
13 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Instead of railing against AI-generated spam, Blair decides to "get in on the action" with his brand...
What I Learned From Teaching Motorcycle Racing
30 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
David recognizes more than a few parallels between his passion for motorcycle racing and the work be...
A DIY New Business System
16 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Instead of just relying on the talent of individual sales people, Blair recommends creative agencies...
Dealing With Today's Employee
02 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
David finds the courage to address a topic he's been putting off for awhile, as he is seeing more ag...
There Is No Credential Meeting
18 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Instead of beginning the relationship with a prospective client by presenting a deck on why your age...
The Waterfall of Differentiation
04 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
When it comes to positioning, David is still seeing creative firms failing to answer three essential...
Always Be Anchoring
21 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Blair sees high price anchors everywhere—from buying a suit to ordering a burger. So what factors ...
What to Ask, Sign, and Share With a Potential Buyer
07 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Following up on the recent episode on whether you should be considering that offer to sell your firm...
The Power of a Metaphor
23 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The more unexpected the metaphor, the more information it carries. Blair has four less-obvious metap...
Should You Entertain That Acquisition Offer?
09 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Ignoring any unexpected offers to buy your business that might come your way is not in your best int...
When Your Clients Talk to Each Other
26 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Your clients are far more likely to talk to each other when you have vertical positioning. Blair has...
Facing an Existential Crisis?
12 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
As we are hearing about more firms that are closing during these challenging times, David offers som...
Who Should Set Prices?
26 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
As Blair continues to encourage expert practice owners to price the client and not the service, he a...
10 Reasons a Buyer Might Want Your Firm
12 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
David thinks principals should build their firms as if they were going to sell it while Blair's advi...
To Standardize or Customize
29 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Through the process of writing his latest book, Blair's thinking has evolved on whether or not firms...
Don't Bother Eating Your Veggies
15 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In Blair's experience, the most common reason a lead generation plan doesn't get executed is it does...
Adapting Hiring Strategies Over Time
01 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
David describes the differences in what kind of people principals should hire during the early stage...
The Barbell of Pricing Risk
18 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Blair borrows a concept from finance and fitness to help creative agencies find the balance between ...
Selling Your Professional Services Firm
04 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Blair interviews David about his new book, Selling Your Professional Services Firm: A Primer. LIN...
Questions, Not Answers
20 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Blair interviews David on his recent article about the idea that expertise does involve supplying an...
Assume an Advantaged Player
06 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Blair shares how to determine whether or not we are the advantaged player the "polite battle for con...
The Four Conversations: A New Model for Selling Expertise
23 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
David interviews Blair about his new book, which lays out his proven framework B2B service providers...
200th Episode Special
09 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Blair and David reminisce about their podcasting journey since Blair first pitched the 2Bobs idea to...
How Account Managers Deliver Strategy
25 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
David unpacks six principles that can help creative firms benefit from delivering strategic guidance...
How to Avoid Commodifying Your Offering
11 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Blair sees four common behaviors when business owners are looking to get deals moving in times of ec...
Are Email Newsletter Even Viable Anymore?
28 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Every few years we're told that we need to move on from using email newsletters as a part of our mar...
How to Make Horizontal Positioning Work
14 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
David provides some clear examples of what is required for a firm to be successful at offering one s...
Are You Fishing in the Right Pond?
31 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Given these uncertain economic times we are in right now, Blair is asking if some creative firms mig...
Leading in a Chaotic World
17 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
David shares his decision-making framework that will help agency principals make better decisions du...
Creating a Premium Pricing Culture
03 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Pricing is a prison cell of our own making. And it's cultural. Blair has come up with a series of pr...
Building a Scalable Sales Strategy
19 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
David wants agency principals to develop new business plans which delivers more new leads with less ...
Have We Hit Peak Strategy?
05 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Blair thinks too many design firms and other service providers are trying too hard to raise prices b...
What Tech Bros Get Right...and Wrong
22 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
David definitely doesn't want anyone to be like tech bros, but he has recognized a few things creati...
Turning Your Delivery Team Into a Sales Team
08 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Blair has five steps creative agency leaders can take to turn their account managers, project manage...
Advising Clients Ethically
24 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Whether you call yourself an advisor or consultant (or not), David has seven core ethical principles...
Just Stop Talking
10 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The fact that sales people tend to talk too much is nothing new, but Blair has observed in recent cl...
Working With a Maverick
27 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
When it comes to qualifications for ideal clients, David doesn't hear anyone talking about how agenc...
The Dichotomy of the Expert Salesperson
13 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
As Blair is finishing his new book that drops later this year, he comes to the realization that pret...
Maximizing Pro Bono Opportunities
28 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
While discussing eight ways creative firms can do pro bono work better based on an article David wro...
Attending the Way
14 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Blair recognizes how a Confucius quote is really bad business advice, but is still moved by how a hi...
A 7-part Theory of Principal Compensation
31 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
David frequently gets hired to help resolve issues at firms between multiple principles when it come...
The Time Value of Knowledge
17 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
David interviews Blair about his recent article in which he takes a lesson from investing with compo...
Revisiting Remote Work
03 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
David looks at the current data and weighs all the pros and cons of continuing to have staff who wor...
Ditch the (Sales) Script
20 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Blair sees too many creative firms talking at prospective clients using sales scripts instead of hav...
Constrained by Artificial Boundaries
06 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Blair's latest obsession is bounded rationality, in which he sees too many creative firms failing to...
A Theory of Leisure
22 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
David shares his thoughts on some bad advice he hears involving the focus on pursuing personal passi...
The Death Throes of the Pitch
08 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Blair weighs in on this year's Forrester report, which shows the ridiculous amount of money agencies...
How Much Should You Spend on Your Own Marketing?
25 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
David addresses another frequently asked question, looking at what creative firms should budget in t...
The Conflicting Ethics of Selling and Negotiating
11 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Blair identifies the differences between the ethics of selling expertise and the three schools of ba...
Doing Employee Orientation Right
27 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In an era of rapid turnover and remote working arrangements, developing a structured onboarding proc...
The War on Payment Terms
13 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Blair sees non-standard payment terms as a two-sided issue, where agencies should be creatively leve...
What Your Team Wants From You
30 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
While analyzing data from his Total Business Reset surveys, David has noticed five significant trend...
How to Ask for Referrals
16 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
As a follow-up to the discussion in the previous episode, Blair has some criteria for firms that wou...
How to Make Referrals
02 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In part one of a two-part discussion about developing a business referral strategy, Blair is surpris...
Do You Even Need New Business People?
19 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Blair runs through one of his constraint driven exercises with David by having us imagine running ou...
Predictive Traits of Successful Owners
05 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
David has observed six common characteristics of agency principals that can affect whether or not th...
Six Barriers to New Business Success
21 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Even after understanding and trying to adopt the philosophies from Win Without Pitching, Blair sees ...
Ten Questions I Want to Ask You
07 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This is your intervention and David has some tough questions about the important decisions you shoul...
Qualities of the World's Best Project Managers
24 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
David feels like project managers get a bad rap and has tried to raise their profile within creative...
CRM and the Mistakes to Avoid
10 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
A lot has changed since Blair wrote his article about seven mistakes he sees creative firms make wit...
Why We Suck at Negotiating
26 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Blair has six challenges creative agencies face when it comes to being compensated for the actual va...
Developing a Client Conflict Strategy
12 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
David addresses how vertically positioned agencies can manage a client roster containing multiple co...
Inbound, Outbound, and In Between
29 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Blair has been getting too much spam lately and sees an opportunity with warm leads that lies betwee...
The Perils of "Good/Better/Best" Pricing
15 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Blair wants sales people to stop ranking proposal options in a way that assigns judgement for prospe...
Reverse Trojan Horse Syndrome
01 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Blair is confused by David's mixed metaphors about creative agencies being able to sell strategy ser...
Is Your Firm Addicted to New Business?
15 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Blair sees some creative firms as "black holes" where accounts go in and seemingly never come out, a...
Secret Tradecraft of Elite Advisors
01 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
David has a brand new book, Secret Tradecraft of Elite Advisors: Covert Techniques for a Remarkable ...
Innoficiency in Your Agency
18 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Blair has talked many times on the podcast about how innovation and efficiency are mutually opposabl...
Churn, Baby, Churn
04 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
David gets flack for his contrary perspective on how agencies shouldn't necessarily aim for long-ter...
Reboot Your Culture Through New Business
21 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Blair frequently tells his clients, "You reinvent the firm one new client at a time." So looking ahe...
Who Should Be Promoted?
07 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Have your firm's managers been promoted based on technical proficiency and status, or was it because...
Maintaining the Expert Position...After the Sale
23 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Without turning everything into a power play, David provides seven sources of leverage that can help...
When Your Engagement Level Drops
09 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
David has 16 things for principals to try when they feel the need to do something different from run...
The Marketing Procurement Problem
26 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Blair talks about his new podcast with Leah Power, 20% - The Marketing Procurement Podcast, in which...
The Agency Gatekeeper
12 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Blair recommends five things firms need to be effective at qualifying new business opportunities in ...
Prostitutes and Scope Creep
28 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
David thinks creative firms can learn something from sex workers about how to run their business. Re...
How Would You Prepare for a Downturn?
14 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
David is not an economist so he doesn't have any idea if an economic downturn is imminent, but the s...
Selling Should Be Fun or You Aren't Doing It Right
31 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Blair had fun on a week of sales calls and came up with four reasons why he thinks most people can l...
Models Everywhere
17 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Blair and David go into detail about what a model is for a creative firm and how they can be useful ...
How Categories and Positioning Options Might Change
03 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
David and Blair follow up their previous discussion about how marketing firms have evolved, going de...
The Evolution of a Marketing Firm
20 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Creative or marketing firms look a lot different today than they did 20 years ago. What happened...
Shortcomings of the EBITDA Multiplier
06 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
David keeps getting asked: "what multiple are you seeing these days?" As if there's some simple, mag...
The Emotional Journey of Buying and Selling
22 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
When someone makes Prospect Theory generalizations—saying that buyers either over-weight gains or ...
Hard Lines, Soft Lines
08 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Inspired by some observations of what sometimes happens to people on the journey from vendor to ...
Designing Your Service Offerings
25 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Does your list of service offerings look like a Cheesecake Factory menu? David identifies five hallm...
Secrets Behind the Killer Website
11 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In a follow-up to the popular "Secrets Behind the Killer Proposal" episode, David unloads everything...
Why All My Content Is Ungated
27 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
David has seven reasons for removing all barriers on his website for readers and prospects to access...
Selling to Different Buyer Types
13 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Blair details each buyer type (Convenience, Relationship, Price, Value, and Poker Player), and demon...
The Power of Process
30 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Blair discusses what they mean by having a process, how to develop it, what to avoid, and how your p...
What Would YOUR Employee Review Look Like?
16 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Would you fire yourself based on the firm's results? Fortunately, David cannot fire you. Unfortunate...
Secrets Behind the Killer Proposal
02 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
WARNING: If you only listen to only one episode of 2Bobs it should NOT be this one. In this send up ...
Six Hidden Benefits of Client Concentration
16 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Every firm will face the possibility of a client concentration challenge, and every client should pr...