10 Regional Agencies That Sell Things

Remember selling? It’s gotten a bad reputation in the creative community

Excuse me, but I thought the purpose of advertising was to sell things. There’s a rumor out there that “people don’t want to be sold.” Don’t believe it. People want to buy. They want to be sold. Just ask any good salesperson.

That’s why people spend so much time online researching stuff: hotels, airfares, automobiles, clothing, food, beer, booze. And that’s just the essentials, I haven’t even mentioned the special interests: sports equipment, musical instruments, cigars, Bibles…people want to buy what they need and what they want. That’s why advertising exists.

In the rush to create content that “doesn’t sell,” we’ve lost our reason for being. When I look at agencies for my reviews, the first question I ask is, “What do they sell?” When I look at creative people to recruit for a job, I ask the same question. And I’ve learned not to entirely trust the case studies and the portfolios.

As children, when asked what we wanted to be when we grew up — we likely answered “astronaut,” “baseball player,” “teacher,” “nurse.” As we grew up, the answers often changed to, “lawyer” or “doctor,” etc.. NOBODY said “I want to be a salesman!” But, almost everyone winds up being one; even if you are a lawyer or a doctor.

You don’t need me to tell you BBDO or Ogilvy sell things. But, if you’re an underdog/challenger brand requiring priority attention and service — please allow me to identify 10 regional agencies that actually sell things. These are the sleepers, the needles in the haystack:

SANTY  Scottsdale, AZ  Arizona was once the place where ad people went to die. Not so anymore. These guys are change-driven and help you manage change but they never lose sight of the prize — they sell.  What they sell: Snacks, Pizza, Ice Cream

BLUE SKY AGENCY  Atlanta, GA  This 25 year-old shop prides itself on being the go-to agency for growing Southern brands. But, they are all about the sale. What they sell: Hams, Braves tickets, Hotel rooms, Natural Gas

TOMBRAS GROUP  Knoxville, TN  No longer a “sleeper,” but I could not omit them. True, they connect data and creativity for business results, but if they didn’t sell things very well, that would just be another hollow agency tagline. What they sell: Beer, Baked Beans, Health club memberships, Cake, Insurance (Did I tell you I have the utmost respect for insurance salesmen?)

&DONOVAN  Greenville, SC  This agency takes hard-core sales to an art form (and a science experiment). They combine sales content with technology to form a method they call Contology. Sounds good, but “Can you sell me this pen?” as the Wolf of Wall Street said. The answer is yes. What they sell: Tacos, Beer, Cars (Did I tell you I also respect car salesmen?)

BRIGHT RED/TBWA  Tallahassee, FL  Speaking of “sell me this pen,” these folks actually do sell pens. Hey, if you can build a 160-person agency in Tallahassee and sell it to Omnicom, you can sell anything.  What they sell: Pens, Hotel rooms, Vacations, Burgers, Socks

FIZZ  Atlanta, GA  A real wildcard, they do Word-of-Mouth marketing. This is not to be confused with idle chatter. Their conversations sell. One-of-a-kind solution. When your advertising is not working, try this and count the money. Triple-digit ROI. What they sell: Beer, Milk, Energy drinks

quench  Harrisburg, PA  Nestled (or maybe Hersheyed) in the heart of America’s “snack belt,” these guys move food and beverages by the SKU off the shelf. You want to sell packaged goods? Check out this joint. What they sell: Tunafish, Beer, Iced Tea, Vegetables

SCOUT  Atlanta, GA  Recently acquired themselves, these guys put the “human” in humanizing your brand. And they get real humans to spend with brevity. No dog whistles here. What they sell: Bread, Carpet, Shrimp, Frozen seafood

ADMIRABLE DEVIL   Washington, DC  Some startups are more compelling than others. This one really grabbed my attention. What’s in a name? Everything. What does their name mean? That’s for you to figure out; but when you do it could change your life. What they sell: Apparel, Fishing tackle, Accessories

CUSTOM NYC  The only NYC agency to make the list. Why? They are different from any other agency I know. Why? They focus on complicated technology platform offerings and simplify the messages so businesses understand the value and benefit. The result? Companies buy.  What they sell:  Technology platforms

So, sell me this pen…https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ftFAbPnNYrg