The traditional notion of an account executive was that of someone ordered around by the client and disdained by the agency creative. Or, they were the ones living large on ...

It has always been true that for an agency to do good work and make a fair profit at doing it, the client has to be a “good” client. The ...

There are some important issues that good account executives consider when doing their daily jobs. Following are some thoughts from a very savvy Second Wind member who teaches his AEs ...

Sometimes, agency owners or managers feel like the proverbial dog chasing its own tail. You keep going in circles and never seem to get ahead. Considering that problem from the ...

Second Wind has conducted account service training for ad agencies since we launched Second Wind Training in 1989. We have worked with many ad agencies directly, consulting to help them ...

Why Clients “Go Quiet” and How to Reactivate Them

New clients are hard to find.  It is crucial to keep your current clients engaged and active. Here’s the scenario ...

It’s a good question: most agencies have an account mix that is far from ideal. Frequently, a single account controls the life of any given agency—a “gorilla,” if ...

For a small to midsize agency, one of this business' most dangerous situations is having a large account. We define a large account—a “gorilla”—as one that controls more ...

We’ve been thinking lately about how agencies can regain their former strategic partner status with clients. The glory days of agency of record, retainers and marketing partnerships seem to ...

We work in a tough business environment. Accountability, multiplying media, evolving technology and an increasingly global economy all drive client demand for more responsive, more efficient agencies. This tends to ...

Do all industries include at least some “clients from hell”? Apparently so. The Twitter feed Clients From Hell (@clientsfh) asked followers if any specific industries had a higher percentage of ...

Winning a really big account can either float a smaller ad agency’s boat, feeding new growth for the agency and employees… or sink it under the weight of client ...

Funny how things go in the agency business... You work hard, build great relationships, create great work, and before you know it the client moves on to bigger and, they ...

Over thirty years ago, our founder Tony Mikes started Second Wind with the goal of helping small ad agency owners gain valuable skills to help them succeed and grow their ...