Insights from the 2023 Mailchimp & Co Report

Whether you’re a seasoned agency pro or just beginning your journey as a freelancer, attracting and retaining new clients can be an unceasing task.

In this article, we’ve distilled key industry insights from the 2023 Mailchimp & Co Benchmark Report, made exclusively for agencies and freelancers and filled with industry feedback from marketers worldwide.

We’ll also explore 3 approaches that can help enhance your ability to land new business: the benefits of having a business plan, the power of specialization, and the importance of saying ‘no’ to misaligned ventures.

Dive in as we share tips that can help increase your chances of landing your next major endeavor in 2024 and beyond.

Having a Business Plan

Having a strong growth plan is one of the most valuable things you can do for your agency or business. It’s not only great for your peace of mind—its efficacy is backed up by research, including Mailchimp & Co’s.

In the 2023 Mailchimp & Co Benchmark Report, surveyed agencies say that they are not where they want to be in terms of planning:

The report revealed that only 22% of agency respondents say they have a clear, written growth plan in place. Additionally, nearly half of respondents say that while they have some defined objectives, they don’t have a detailed plan.

What explains this discrepancy? It could be an effect of the changing business landscape, which has made long-term planning more complicated. It could be a consequence of agency owners and...