At this year’s Mirren Agency New Business Development Conference, I learned that many mid-to-small agencies aren’t getting the attention of the “traditional/old school” search consultants.

It appears that most of these agency search consultants tend to only focus on bigger agencies and if they are looking at smaller firms, it’s usually only those that are “hot”, like a Crispin or Arnold.  Many agencies of great talent are lost and never to be found by marketers turning to agency search consultants.

Marketers who don’t use search consultants either rely on references from co-workers or rely on experience from past jobs to find talented agencies, but again, there are so many agencies in the market today, with so much talent, that you might be missing opportunities.

So if you’re a marketer looking for “the right” agency, what do you do?  Where do you turn.  Here are five options for you to consider.  Could prove a little time consuming, but it’s a good starting point:

1) AAAA’s has a listing of their member agencies with some profile information that could prove useful;

2) SecondWind is a firm that works with small agencies.  They have about 700 agencies on retainer;

3) LinkedIn advertising groups.  There are many out there that you can tap into and give a look;

4) Google search for the firm you’re looking for.  Many agencies buy into paid search, so keep an eye out;

5) (Self serving, I know)…but let us help you.  We won’t cost you a dime, we’ve helped big players like Nissan and Legrand mid-size players like Domain Chandon and University Hospitals.  We’ll scour our database of 5,000+ agencies and work with your specific search criteria to find you what you’re looking for.  We make our money by taking a small commission from the winning agency.

So bottom line, regardless the technique, open your perview and look broader than your backyard or what you’re familiar with.  There are over 70,000 marketing services firms in this great big country of ours and there is not only some great talent out there, but there’s great talent out there that can align very nicely with your needs and the demands of your business….so give a look!