There’s a lot going in the world right now and plenty of economic uncertainty for any business.
Small PR and marketing agency owners are feeling the stress that it brings, yet maintain a generally optimistic view of the next 12 months, according to the latest SAGA survey.
Later in this week’s newsletter I’ll talk a little bit more about those findings (which you can explore in detail here), but first let’s look at what Jen has rounded up for us this week.
— Chip Griffin, SAGA Founder
Weekly Roundup
Below are some articles, blog posts, podcasts, and videos that we came across during the past week or so that provide useful perspective and information for PR and marketing agency owners. While we don’t necessarily endorse all of the views expressed in these links, we think they are worth your time.
— Jen Griffin, SAGA Community Manager
Latest from SAGA
- How to support your team in times of stress (featuring Patrick Rogan) (Chats with Chip)
Articles & Blog Posts
- Do What Others Aren’t (RSW/US)
- The Power of Presence (Anchor Advisors)
- New Research on Agency Growth in 2025 (Bureau of Digital)
- ROI vs. ROAS: How To Explain the Difference to Clients (AgencyAnalytics)
- Responding to an Interested Buyer (Punctuation)
Podcast Episodes
- Personal And Professional Challenges Of Cybercrime (That Solo Life)
- Winning Business Without Proposals (Spin Sucks)
- Turn Niche into Revenue, with Tom Conlon (The Innovative Agency)
- Prove Your Value & Increase Retention, with Mari-Liis Vaher (The Agency Profit Podcast)
- What Happened to Authenticity? (Working/Broken)
- Traditional PR is Dead (Again) (For Immediate Release)
- Rena DeLevie – Mindful Leadership (Agency Bytes)
- Make Better Decisions for Your Agency with George Arabian (Smart Agency Master Class)
Videos
- It’s a Waste of Time To Speak at Agency Conferences (Bureau of Digital)
- Consistent follow-ups can turn past losses into future wins (RSW/US)
- Bonus Criteria (Agency Management Institute)
Agency owner survey shows optimism mixed with concern
As many of you know, SAGA has been surveying agency owners each quarter to get a sense of how they see the outlook for their businesses. At the same time, we take a deeper dive on specific topics to gain a more detailed understanding that we can share with the community.
The Q1 2025 survey took a look back at last year’s performance and found that it was really a mixed bag, with almost equal numbers of owners reporting a better year than 2023 as those who said it was tougher for their businesses.
Although most owners expect to see both revenue and profits increase, many took a personal hit to their own finances in 2024 and not many expect to increase the size of their teams in 2025.
There was strong agreement that the economy (and to a slightly lesser degree, government policymaking) gave reason for concern about the next 12 months.
There’s lots more to learn in the full report, but what does this all mean from a practical standpoint?
It’s always a good idea to try to stockpile at least three months of cash in your business account to give you a cushion and enable less-panicked decision-making if you suddenly face declining revenue.
At the same time, you need to be careful about managing your business too cautiously. If you truly are optimistic about the future, carry yourself that way and continue to drive forward rather than bunkering down.
Perhaps most important, you need to be out there cultivating and expanding your network, demonstrating your expertise, and working hard to attract business — even if you feel you are busy enough already.
If you don’t believe you have the time for that, then look at what you can move off your plate to give yourself that time and space.
In good times and in bad, you will never regret having had more conversations with people who could become clients or might be able to refer business to you.
Optimism will only be fulfilled if you are embracing it and putting yourself out there. At the same time, the best way to handle economic uncertainty is by planting seeds that will grow so that you can survive even the toughest drought that you may face.
