The Secret to Growing a Successful Agency Team with Brett Sirianni

Are you having trouble filling roles in your agency with the right people? Is your team having trouble building relationships with the client and each other? Building the right team isn't easy! Don't let your agency business suffer because of making the wrong hiring choices. Building a successful agency team might be easier than you might think.

In this episode, we'll cover:

• 4 ways to empower your team.
• #1 best candidate to hire for growing your agency.
• Why you need to always be hiring

Today, I talked with Brett Sirianni — surfer, agency owner, graphic design enthusiast, and relationship builder extraordinaire. Brett and his partner own Social Supply Co. What originally started as a means to hit the beach when the surf was just right, developed into an agency that specializes in content, SEO, social and high-fives (+193,000.) Brett has built his successful agency team on the basis of effective communication, and he's here to share some insight so you can do the same.

4 Ways to Empower Your Team

Want to know how to create a team that develops robust client relationships? We all want to keep clients around longer and the best way is with solid communication. That's what builds relationships! People do business with people - so empower your team to be great communicators and you'll retain clients longer.

1. Hire the right staff. I know you know, but it's worth repeating. Get the right people in the right seats first. If you want to find staff that understands how to build solid relationships, bake relationship-building into your hiring process - it's a skill that you need to assess very early on.
2. Build a personable team. Make sure your staff has the natural abilities to handle clients. That means hiring people who handle stress well, have a little charm, and have the right amount of extroversion. You can teach skills, but a great personality cannot be learned.
3. Create a culture of employee success. Want your team to care about the agency's success? Care about theirs! If your employees feel like your agency is "just another stepping stone in their career" they aren't going to care about the business's success. They will make decisions based on what's best for them. But by breeding a culture of success everyone wins.
4. Get involved in the introduction. When you first introduce new team members to clients, do it right. Give your team the ability to own the room. Position them as a rockstar. Make them the experts very early and give them the freedom to really dominate the relationship.
5. Emphasize person-to-person communication. Give your team the freedom to know clients on a personal basis. Encourage genuine and honest relationships. Let them be personable and real - clients want to do business with people, not businesses.

#1 Best Candidate to Hire for Growing Your Agency

Who works for free, wants to prove themselves, and tries extra hard to succeed? Interns!

Here's a tip for hiring interns, though. Don't think of them as "free work." Instead, think of them as try-before-you-buy team members. You can see whether or not they have what it takes up close and personal.

If you're looking to start an intern program, try local college campuses which are filled with quality candidates. These students are eager to learn and hungry for real-world experience. Talk to a department chair or administrator and let them know you want to help them with their programs. Then, follow through and actually provide a meaningful experience for the student while also making the relationship beneficial for you, too.

Take it from me - intern programs can produce some of the savviest, hardest-working team members. Plus, you don't have to deal with team management logistics with interns :)

Why You Need to Always Be Hiring

Here's a question. Are you hiring? Better yet, does your website say your hiring? Tons of agencies think they actually need to be hiring before they add it to their homepage. You don't! Putting up a "we're hiring" banner on your website (next to your logo works best) does two things...

1. Helps attract great talent. Sure, you may not need them right away. But, when it does come time to hire, you're going to have a list of candidates right at your fingertips.
2. Helps attract and reassure clients. If your prospects think you're hiring, it helps them think you're in high demand and very busy. It also gives your existing clients a sense of security and adds some peace of mind that you probably didn't even know they needed.