Question

I have been working with a client since Dec last year. Since Jan to present, I have returned him 859% ROAS and edging ever so close to 1, 000% ROAS. The last call with him was very positive, very happy. Today I saw him add a competitor email in for read access only. Now I'm not too worried if I lose this account for whatever reason but should I call him out on it and find out why or just carry on and deliver great results? I feel slightly betrayed in a way but I must remind myself it's not personal and just business.  

Answer 1

Honesty/transparency is always best. Just ask him about it, but give him the benefit of the doubt. "I noticed this email and just wanted to ask you about it. "

Comments

@hegumen +1

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Changed my mind, I sent him a short email, nothing too confrontational. More of a "I would like to learn. " type of email.  

Answer 2

Firstly, congrats on your results! I don't think you should be calling out your client, especially on things that have no impact on what you're doing. It's their business = their decisions. That being said, what you CAN do is ask them if they're okay with everything you're doing and/or if some of your marketing activities might not be aligned with what they've imagined. You're certainly bringing in numbers, but are you staying consistent with their brand's market positioning and goals? If I were you, I would approach the problem carefully. Clients are always replaceable, but losing them to something trivial isn't really the greatest idea.  

Comments

Well the arrangement has been simple, bring in sales figures close to 10x and he's been happy so far, so yes I'm doing the job I was called for. I was literally about to send the email but I won't. It's not illegal for anyone to get a 2nd opinion. just have to work hard in building trust and understanding the client.  

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@excelsior “losing them to something trivial. ”. Ummm. client sharing access with another agency is NOT trivial. Huge red flag & breach of trust. Josip. You’re an e-commerce guy. If you use language like “brand’s marketing positioning & goals” to a brick & mortar business, the SCAM alert goes off, and you’re opportunity is gone. That’s useless fluff. They want to hear about lead counts, cost & ROI. The lesson learned for @differ is that he needs to own the accounts. If a new client has an existing account, we still build new. and never use the client website.  

Answer 3

I feel you. Had the same issue in the past. What I did was ignore the second set of eyes that the account had (it was a big marketing agency in fact) and kept working. What ended up happening was the agency just siad it was impossible for them to improve uppon my results and strategy. Fast forward a year, still managing the account. Don't get me wrong, in this process you win some, you loose some, it's normal. But clients aren't dumb, they usually know who gives them results.  

Comments

Thanks, I will do that. More comms and keep delivering.  

Answer 4

It's always when not if .  

Answer 5

Yeah bring it up but just say your asking for security reasons an see what he says etc.  

Comments

@tims434 this is a good point to open a discussion. Then ask l your client what his intention was in giving access. It's not unusual that scammy companies deceive owners or use shady tactics to get new customers. Someb owners don't realize what they got into.  

Answer 6

Just ask him about it. Don’t think of it as calling him out just a friendly convo

Answer 7

Got a reply. "still safe"  

Comments

@differ Nice! Lol although still kinda interesting to not tell you since "you all" may learn something new. I just hired someone to help me manage my campaigns and now I'm going to be wary of making him feel uncomfortable haha I'll definitely ensure I'm upfront and transparent with him!  

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@differ good call!  

Answer 8

Sent you a pm!  

Answer 9

1. Whenever possible, own the accounts & websites. The competitor more than likely downloaded your intellectual property immediately. 2. Clients will screw you when least expected. I had a 25k/month client leave after I achieved 4:1 when every other agency’s max was 2. 3:1, and my fees were 20% less! 3. Add a buy-out option to your client agreement for a “permanent license” to use your campaigns & websites. I charge the average of 3 months management fees times 6 + a 30 day cancellation notice. In this case, the client paid 202k to leave. Get an attorney to look over your (2 page max)agreement. 4. Feeling betrayed is a good sign. It shows we have passion & concern for the work. A lot of agencies only see $$$. The good ones engage & care as partners. 5. Get more clients. The only way to eliminate the pain of losing a single client is by having more. I’d rather lose 1 out of 100 than 1 out of 3.  

Answer 10

Increasingly common behaviour from clients. Had one do this last year in July, I ignored it. He emailed me at the start of February this year to say he was going to hand it over to the other agency for 3 months, with their offer of free management, and then hand it back to me when it ended as they charged over double my fees. I refused and said if you go you don't come back. I haven't heard from him since. This was a client of 10 years. They just want everything cheap to allow them more money to have a high end lifestyle.  

Comments

I agree, it's very common behaviour. The thing is it's easy to dismiss somebody else's work since there are many ways to achieve the same results. One person may think SKAGS are great whereas another can criticise them, nobody is right or wrong, the proof is in the results. I would personally feel upset if a client had added another user on an account without notifying me of the reasons first.  

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@glottal464 Lesson learned: New client, new account. Don’t use existing client accounts or websites.  

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@subminiaturize I take it you take full ownership of the accounts and you charge a monthly retainer but then should the client leave you keep control of the account?  

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@glottal464 You have a strategy. I have a strategy. If you’re as obsessed with ROI as I am, then you’re probably constantly optimizing your methods for better performance. Well, with a proven strategy in-hand, I’ve been able to rinse & repeat successful campaigns over the country. If I give account access to the wrong people, I lose the edge. So yes. If a client is benefiting from my hard work, and I’m not getting paid, there’s a problem. I like win-win. You must own the accounts & websites.  

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@glottal464 To be clear, don’t “take full ownership” of their current accounts. Create new Customer IDs under your MCC. Their existing IDs just take a break. hopefully for 20 years  I also request access to that Customer ID to see if there’s anything to learn.  

Answer 11

Lol feels like a spouse seeing their partner cavorting with another. Who knew PPC could be so saucy ?  

Answer 12

Can you PM me rates?  

Answer 13

Here's the update. Client wanted ideas to basically pass on to me. The competitor agreed the account was running well but did give a tip. Increase desktop spend. I'm alright at G Ads but sometimes I do miss things. Just this change alone should get us another £1k revenue in May from 6p bid to 12p bid. It was worth him getting that audit. So now I pass this on to you, check your devices.  

Comments

@differ That's great insight. Are you guys adjusting bids for specific demographics?