PPC management agencies help their clients maximize ROI from paid advertising by creating and optimizing campaigns, showing the right ads to the right people at the right time, and providing insights for data-driven decisions.

Sometimes however, this process can be difficult when clients are reluctant to follow the advice from the agency team that they’ve hired.

This blog will explore why this may occur and will present what to do when a client fails to heed agency recommendations. 

Why Clients Hire a PPC Management Agency

The first step in understanding why a client may be noncompliant is to look back upon why clients hire an agency in the first place. Elite sellers and brands who don’t have the time to manage and monitor their own PPC campaigns often turn to PPC management agencies for help. 

Because agencies maintain a singular focus on advertising, they are often better equipped with the tools and knowledge required to maximize ROI, target more relevant audiences, and make more advanced strategic decisions. 

Additionally, they can help their clients stay on top of their competition by monitoring and improving campaigns, as well as leveraging the right platforms and channels to increase brand visibility.

Reasons Why Clients Don’t Follow Agency Recommendations

There is always a reason or reasons why a client is responding in a non-compliant manner. 

Agency account managers should seek to understand the client’s perspective and the motivations behind their behavior, rather than viewing their behavior as simply ‘resistance’. Managers should instead strive to see it for what it truly is. 

The client…

• is not confident that the agency’s advice will provide the expected results.
• does not have the necessary resources or time to implement the advice.
• perceives the agency’s advice as too costly for their budget.
• may have read something about a strategy that they think would be beneficial for their account or heard that a certain metric should be higher or lower than a specific amount. 
• feels that the agency is not taking their individual needs and goals into consideration.
• is not sure that the agency has the best interests of their business in mind.
• is unfamiliar with the agency’s strategies and is hesitant to trust the advice without understanding the process.
• is reluctant to change from the current PPC strategy that they are employing.
• is uncomfortable with the level of control they are giving up to the agency.
• does not believe the agency has the knowledge or expertise to provide accurate advice.

Once the agency has gained an insight into the client’s point of view, they can work to bridge the gap between their hesitancy and the advice being offered by the agency.

15 Strategies for Effectively Interacting with Challenging Clients

Having the right strategies in place to deal with challenging clients who are unresponsive to advice is critical for agencies. Without these strategies, there can be delays, disputes, and significant difficulty in achieving advertising objectives. 

To ensure successful results, it is essential to take the right approach.

These include:

1. Explaining the rationale behind the agency’s recommendations, highlighting the potential benefits and why they should be implemented.
2. Offering alternative solutions that address the client’s concerns and still meet their goals.
3. Demonstrating the value of the agency’s recommendations with data-driven results from previous campaigns.
4. Providing detailed reports and analysis that explain the effects of the agency’s recommendations on performance.
5. Keeping communication open and consistent to ensure that the client understands the recommendations and feels heard.
6. Asking for feedback and incorporating it into the strategy to make the client feel involved in the process.
7. Being patient and understanding of the client’s needs and concerns.
8. Offering incentives or discounts to encourage the client to try the agency’s recommendations.
9. Keeping an open mind and being willing to compromise where necessary.
10. Listening to the client’s ideas and integrating them into the overall strategy.
11. Educating the client on industry trends and best practices.
12. Keeping track of the client’s goals and objectives, and adjusting the strategy as needed.
13. Offering additional services and support that directly relate to the client’s needs.
14. Remaining flexible and being willing to make changes if the client’s goals change.
15. Being transparent and honest about the progress of the campaigns and any potential risks.

If the client is still not open to listening to the agency’s perspective, the agency should be ready to compromise. 

This may involve modifying the timeline or budget, or finding an alternate solution that takes the client’s ideas into account. It’s important to ensure that the compromise is fair for both parties, and that it won’t significantly impact the success of the campaign.

Remember Your Role

When working with clients, it is essential to remember that they are the ones paying and their ideas should never be dismissed or disregarded. The agency should always approach the client with respect and be open to hearing their opinions and ideas. 

Every PPC management agency has its own approach to account management. For instance, some may focus on one platform such as Amazon Ads or Facebook, while others may manage ads across multiple platforms. 

Also, some agencies may be more hands-on with account management, while others may rely heavily on the machine learning capabilities of the platform to make changes and optimize the account.

Regardless of what strategies and tactics are employed by a particular agency, it’s important that they remember that with successful communication on both sides, a successful campaign can be achieved if both parties are willing to collaborate.