We created AgencySoft because we wanted to source the best software solutions for advertising agencies. That’s because we saw that a lot of solutions that agencies were/are using are not designed specifically for them. Staff then must manage a lot of manual workarounds to compensate. Worse still, many agencies don’t believe that there are tools built specifically for them, so they try and manage with email and spreadsheets. So, let’s look at one of the products that we resell, Deltek WorkBook, and ask the question “Why do we say WorkBook is built for Agencies?”
Collaboration on Deltek WorkBook
One of the keys to managing a successful 21st century post-pandemic agency is being able to collaborate effectively. Of course, there are tools on the market designed for collaboration, but WorkBook has collaboration built in. That means that teams/colleagues can collaborate on projects, tasks, clients, and, in fact, virtually any record in the system. There is no need to try and find the latest email related to a specific project or task because it’s right there in the system. If you want to collaborate on something that’s not related to a specific task then WorkBook has still got you covered. You can store documents, presentations, etc. in chats and even record voice messages which may be useful if you’re using the app on your phone on the go.
Collaboration also extends to clients, because WorkBook allows the agency to add client contacts and collaborate with them directly in the system. It’s super-efficient as it means that the client can see a high-level (don’t worry, configurable) view of the project progress AND they can contribute to the chat. WorkBook also has a Public/Private feature meaning that the client only sees conversations that it needs to.
End to end Solution
One of the main reasons that clients choose Deltek WorkBook is that they are fed up with having to manage lots of different systems. They love the fact that WorkBook manages the entire client process from lead to cash collected. They’re fed up with having a CRM, a Project Management system, a traffic system (usually excel), and then a finance system. Each costs money and few agencies have the appetite to integrate them all so spend lots of time double keying the same data in different systems. I can personally say that the data is not consistent 99.9% of the time. That’s from 1st hand experience working in the industry.
Imagine the savings of time and money from having everything managed in one system. Well, that’s WorkBook.
Integrations
If you still want to integrate WorkBook with another system, then it still has you covered as it has an open API. That means it’s easy to integrate it with whatever solution you want. A great example of that is if you have a full-service agency and you want to integrate WorkBook with a media solution. WorkBook already has interfaces and integrations with MediaForce and Strata in the US, but we can also integrate with any other system*
Briefs
The concept of a Brief is quite agency-specific so not many systems have a specific Briefing module. This goes back to the point made above about just needing one system because WorkBook has Briefs as part of the project management module. You could create a Brief from scratch but why would you? You can load templates into the system from Word/Docs, save them and have specific brief templates for different types of work. After all, developing a website is very different from TV/video production.
You can load attachments to the brief. Oh, didn’t I mention that WorkBook has its own data storage (6TB as standard)? You can just integrate it directly with Google Drive or OneDrive if you want to keep your files stored there. You can still see and manage them in WorkBook so they are always to hand.
Where was I, oh yeah, you can load attachments, collaborate (internally and externally), AND incorporate approval flows to have it approved in the system. Approval flows are a standard feature for WorkBook and can be applied in all the areas that you would expect. Finally, the system keeps track of the revisions just in case a client changes its mind
Retainers
The retainer functionality is something quite specific to ad agencies. Retainers may be less common than they were 10 years ago, but agencies still have them. That’s not a problem for WorkBook. Its retainer functionality lets you monitor your retainers at both the retainer and the delivery level.
KPI's
So, what are the key performance indicators (KPIs) for an agency?
- Client/Project Profitability – ✅
- Employee Profitability – ✅
- Revenue Forecasting – ✅
- Employee Capacity – ✅
- Employee Chargeability – ✅
- Sales Pipeline – ✅
Those are just a few examples. WorkBook comes with over 400 standard reports. If that’s not good enough then we can develop reports for you. Still not satisfied, coming soon we have WorkBook business intelligence which integrates it with a BI reporting tool.
Bringing it all together
We hope that we have answered the question: “why do we say WorkBook is built for Agencies?”
You can see now why Deltek boasts that WorkBook was “built by agency veterans.” It really does cover everything that a modern agency needs to manage its business.
Check out the videos on our product page to see more or contact us if you want to see what WorkBook can do for your agency.
*As long as the system can integrate.
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