How to open an advertising agency from scratch? Advertising business. How to open an advertising agency and what is needed for this? How to start advertising

I understood perfectly well that in our age of information overload, this business is the future, because... Conventional advertising no longer works and is losing ground. People perceive information in which they see real benefit or benefit for themselves, and simply ignore the rest. Therefore, I decided to organize an advertising business not in a standard way, but to use a completely new approach to advertising - “advertising without advertising,” which today has no competitors at all.

I decided to implement this idea in the form of publishing a publication of narrowly themed advertising brochures, where all the necessary information on a specific issue was collected and presented in the form of articles, advice and interviews with advertisers offering services and goods for this category of buyers.

I decided, I decided! It started working right away! I decided to devote the first issue to the issue of buying real estate and solving all the issues related to it (registration, repairs, moving, insurance, interior, etc.), because I had experience working in real estate in my (other) city.

Firstly, I agreed with a real estate agency to distribute it to their clients for free. Well, of course, using my experience, I added various marketing techniques in order to interest readers))) In the end, it turned out to be a very cool brochure. Everyone is happy: realtors, advertisers and, first of all, clients-readers!

Now about expenses: yes, I completely forgot to say that I didn’t invest my own money at all! (If you don’t take the little things: money for the phone, printing out commercial proposals, and for travel to potential advertisers) I didn’t even formalize the individual entrepreneur at first, who needed an agreement, and payment by bank transfer, I agreed with the director of this Academy of Sciences to go through them, the rest paid in cash, against a receipt on their passport.

I had to use all my charm and power of persuasion, but it still turned out to be easier than my imagination had imagined the day before))))

So, about the issue: Printing of the circulation (5,000 copies), payment for the designer, layout, etc. - this is all from money received from advertisers. I published the issue in 2 months, my net profit was more than 200,000 rubles.

Although I delayed it, I wanted to release it in 1 month, but there were more advertisers (and this means more work on writing articles, design layout, coordination, etc.) But I realized all my mistakes. I analyzed the experience, calculated the future, and, inspired, I decided to publish such issues on various topics.

The next one was already 15,000 copies. on the topic for tourists, because I live in a resort town. Considering my mistakes in the last issue, and with experience it was already easier. The second issue brought about 300,000 rubles in net profit, but I had an assistant (so his salary expense increased - more than 70,000 rubles! Now I’ve already earned money myself, and helped a person earn money!!!).

I could have just continued releasing it like this and been satisfied, but I didn’t stop at this stage. I went further: I described in detail the entire process - from the idea to the distribution of the circulation. I developed a step-by-step methodology, worked through all the materials: com. proposals, Excel calculation tables, diagrams, competitive advantages over a regular magazine, texts for working out objections from advertiser clients, etc., I tried to take into account everything down to the smallest detail in order to turn the whole process into a full-fledged working system.

Like-minded people joined me, now there is a whole team of professionals, each in their own field. Thus, a business was formed, and we prepared a business package for replicating a business that even a beginner can implement. Something like that…

If anyone is interested in such a business, I will be happy to train and help set it up in your region. Write: [email protected]

In times of fierce competition, every entrepreneur wants to distinguish his company from many others, emphasize individuality, and create a unique image and style. Therefore, everyone without exception resorts to outdoor advertising. An outdoor advertising studio is a profitable line of business, which we will consider.

Even in difficult times, an outdoor advertising business can flourish. After all, many companies have to change locations due to the high cost of rent; some, unfortunately, go bankrupt, and others take their place. And they need a sign to indicate their location.

Signs (office, outdoor);
- evacuation plans (established as mandatory by law);
- stands (in educational institutions, public places);
- pointers;
- and finally, billboards and signs.

That is, not everything is called advertising, which is what it is. To begin with, you can produce small, maybe not even very expensive, but in demand products, and then, expanding the list of equipment, accordingly move on to larger-scale and more expensive outdoor advertising.

Before we begin

1. Direct earnings from the production of a finished advertising product, the cost of which, as a rule, is 2 or even 3 times higher than the cost of the source materials.

3. Coordination with city authorities - your additional efforts in coordinating the location of outdoor advertising with the urban development plan are also paid by the client, unless he prefers to take on this issue himself.

4. Maintenance of advertising objects. Under the influence of climatic factors, outdoor advertising loses its “advertising” appearance, so from time to time it needs to be updated and repaired, which leads to additional waste for the client and your additional earnings.

What needs to be taken into account in the first couples? Of course, there are initial costs. Renting a room, depending on the location, will cost from 12 thousand rubles; if it is necessary to make repairs in the room and purchase furniture, then the estimate will include another 55 thousand. The largest cost item will be equipment, which in a standard set starts from 240 thousand. rubles In addition, for initial orders you need to purchase material for 25 thousand rubles. In total, the functioning of your company in the first couple of years should be ensured by at least 360 thousand rubles.

How soon will such investments pay off? The cost of advertising depends on the price category of the region and the type of advertising. On average, for example, signs cost from $150, urban posters from $115, light box - 200, banner - 150, etc. In total, the profitability of the business varies about 40%, the payback of the project is approximately one and a half years.

Main risks: in the production of outdoor advertising it is quite dangerous to concentrate on one narrow area. The payback in this case is quick, but sometimes orders need to wait quite a long time. Therefore, it is worth investing in additional equipment and performing several types of advertising. New clients are not always predisposed to give advance payments to market newcomers, so in the first couple of days you take a risk by fulfilling orders without collateral.

Location

Choose a room on the first or basement floor of the building. Carrying large items up the stairs will be completely inconvenient. Also make sure that the entrance and corridors are wide for the removal of large items.

You can separate the location of office and production space: for example, rent up to 30 m2 in the city center for an office and separately about 100 m2 for the production of outdoor advertising in any area with inexpensive rent. You can receive customers in the office space, where an order manager and designer will work. The production facility must have convenient access and a designated area or room for storing finished products.

Equipment

The range of necessary equipment varies depending on the range of services chosen; if it is wide enough, it will require large initial investments. But the business can expand gradually:

1. If you know specialized programs, such as Photoshop, then you can start with the minimum: a computer and a (household) printer. Your job will be to find customers, create an advertising design, and you can print it from a third party.

2. The first equipment you own should be a wide-format plotter. It will allow you to cut out the contours of images of future advertising from a number of materials: self-adhesive film, banners, vinyl, etc. This is the main tool for work, so you should take its choice seriously.

3.Equipment for large-format printing is very expensive; for a long time you can use the services of printing companies. This includes a digital solvent printer and wide format laminator, as well as sprayers.

To make billboards you will need welding equipment, a grinder and a drill. In addition, you need a machine for cutting and bending metal, an engraving and milling machine and installation equipment. To make neon signs, you can organize a mini lighting workshop by purchasing a set of equipment: glass tubes, gas burners, electrodes, compressors, vacuum pumps.

Personnel

Working alone is quite difficult and sooner or later you will have to hire people and expand your staff. Delegate everything that can be done by someone else; technical processes are performed by hired workers, and you run the business. The work of an outdoor advertising agency is divided into the following blocks:

Administrative work and searching for clients can be carried out by the business owner himself. In addition, an accountant is needed; if your workload is small, you can hire an outsider on a part-time basis.
The advertising is designed by a designer. Often, with a heavy workload, a full-time designer cannot avoid templates, so for fresh ideas, use the services of a freelancer, and your designer will handle the layout.
Manufacturing. Printing equipment specialists directly produce advertising products.
Installation. In some cases, a lighting specialist will be needed to develop lighting schemes and provide instructions to installers. For a small company, 2 installers will be enough.

Documents and licenses

Before making your first transaction, you must register with the tax authorities. If the owner does the work independently, or there are no more than 2 people on staff, it is enough to register as a private entrepreneur. This will allow you to work under a simplified system of taxation and financial reporting. However, for large-scale production of outdoor advertising, it is better to choose an LLC.

Marketing

The search for clients begins with compiling a list of services and price list. You shouldn’t decide about the price during the process, so to speak “by the client” - this will show you not at your best and will scare off customers.

At first, it will be difficult to grab a large customer, so focus on small entrepreneurs. A good method for promoting services would be to provide installment plans for large-scale orders, as well as provide discounts. Add free services to your price list. For example, free installation or design development. Perhaps the cost of these works will be included in the price of the finished product, but the buyer will be attracted by the fact of free offers.

Get creative with your own advertising. Let it be your calling card. Collect your portfolio, let the customer see what you did and how it turned out. It must be placed on a company website or one-page site.

Summary

The least creative, but most common, at first, may be the production not of the advertising itself, but of signs, stands, plaques and signs for government agencies. These are typical orders, but they are quite stable. Full-fledged outdoor advertising requires creativity and experience, but it also brings in more income. The return on investment in a small outdoor advertising agency varies from a year to a year and a half.

Don't want to do sales and production isn't for you? Find out how the advertising business works. Perhaps this way of earning money will suit you.

♦ Capital investments – 700,000 rubles
♦ Payback – up to 1 year

There is a misconception that creative people will never be able to open a profitable business and, on the contrary, entrepreneurs who are completely devoid of imagination will never launch a creative startup, preferring old proven methods.

However, there is a field of activity that combines creativity and business, which is suitable for both “physicists” and “lyricists”, which is quite easy to start from scratch.

If you don’t want to engage in buying and selling, and production is not for you, then ask how to open an advertising agency.

This creative and fun way to make money might be right for you.

Advertising business: what is it and how to open it

• distributes outdoor advertising;
• promotes the product in the media;
• conducts PR campaigns, including political ones;
• advertises its client on the Internet;
• conducts SMS marketing.

These are the types of activities that most advertising agencies engage in.

Domestic businessmen who want to open an advertising business often focus on one thing.

They think for a long time about where to start, and in the end they begin to promote their client on the Internet (the most promising and inexpensive way of advertising) or they organize a PR agency, promoting the latest brand, politician or star.

On the one hand, opening a narrow-profile agency is profitable because you don’t need to hire a large staff or rent a giant office.

On the other hand, there is a risk that you will not be able to form a client base, because few people who need advertising will enter into contracts with several agencies to promote their product in different ways.

How should an advertising agency work if I decide to open one?

Advertising business owners have two options:

1. Promote one client in various ways.
2. Form a base of many clients of varying profitability.

The first option is not very popular in our country, unless we are talking about a political PR campaign (often advertising agencies are created by a specific politician to promote himself or herself).

But abroad, production giants prefer that PR specialists focus only on advertising their brand, without scattering themselves on others.

That is why companies such as Coca-Cola, Pepsi and others know where to start conquering the market of the next country: by opening a branch of an advertising agency in that country.

The main thing for you is to start forming a client base, and then you will get your bearings: if you manage to hook a big fish, you will only be engaged in promoting it, but if not, you can make good money on small clients, the main thing is that you have:

• advertising space (agreements with the media, websites, etc.);
• personnel who are capable of creating impeccable and creative PR products;
• designs (banners, cubes, etc.);
• normal technical equipment;
• partnerships with, which will quickly and efficiently print the products you create in large quantities.

What is it impossible to open an advertising agency without?

Creativity.

You must be a creative person with a rich imagination.
If you are a hopeless “physicist”, you will not be able to control the actions of your subordinates.

Stress resistance.

In the advertising business there are different examples.
Sometimes products have to be remade several times until you please the client.
Moreover, the customer will not always express his dissatisfaction politely and tolerantly.
There are different types of entrepreneurs, and you need to learn to find a common language with everyone.

Be a good psychologist.

Again, you will have to deal with different clients.
Some will come to you with ready-made ideas, expecting only their high-quality implementation in advertising products, and someone will contact you with the wording “I want this, I don’t know what” and you must quickly evaluate the client in order to understand what exactly he needs offer.

Communication skills.

You will have to communicate a lot with people, and if you start to blush in the company of strangers, then it makes sense to think about opening something other than an advertising agency.
You can’t do this without communication skills.

Be a good manager.

The advertising business is still a business.
If you are bursting with ideas, but are not able to organize the work of your staff, calculate your income, or figure out how to cut costs where possible, then your agency will quickly burn out.

Of course, the lack of these qualities should not necessarily prevent you from opening an advertising agency.

You can hire people who will have all the necessary qualities for the advertising business.

But it is still better if the boss sets an example for his subordinates and is well versed in the business he is involved in, which cannot be said about many unsuccessful businessmen.

If you decide to open an advertising agency from scratch, then you may want to take advice from professionals who know where to start in order to quickly build a client base and make your first profit:

1. Come up with a creative name for your business.
   Customers will pay attention to your company name.
   They will understand that if you cannot come up with an interesting name for your company, then how can you come up with a creative and effective advertising campaign for them.
   The name of the agency should be short, memorable, and easily match the products that you will use to promote your business.
2. Don't rush into trying to catch the big fish the day after you decide to open an advertising agency.
   Work with small companies, completing small orders for them.
   This way you will gain experience and learn to understand the customer better.
3. When offering your services to potential clients, talk about your uniqueness.
   When calling clients, you cannot say the same thing to everyone over the phone: “Hello. Manya's name is Ivan Ivanovich.
   I decided to open an advertising agency and am offering you my services.” Tell us exactly how you differ from your competitors.
4. Be sure to study your competitors: the advertising campaigns they ran, their pricing policy, what their customers were especially pleased and dissatisfied with (if possible), etc.
   This will help you avoid common mistakes at work.
5. Don't forget that the advertising business also needs to be advertised.

How to advertise the advertising agency that you have decided to open?

The most effective ways to promote a new agency are:

Phone calls.

You take a directory of enterprises in your city and begin to methodically call them, informing them that a unique advertising agency has finally opened in your city, which can conduct an effective and original PR campaign from scratch.

You need to get the email addresses of businesses in your city and send them letters offering cooperation.
Work on the text of the letter to hook the client from the first lines, otherwise your message will end up in the trash before being read.

Mass media.

Banners, cubes, notice boards, etc.
The main thing is that your advertising is interesting and attracts attention.

Don't underestimate their power in disseminating the information you need.

Word of mouth.

One satisfied client will tell another happy client about a great advertising agency that has opened, and you will quickly build a client base.

The presence of a website immediately suggests that you are a serious company with which you can do business.

How to open an advertising agency: calendar prospects

If you decide to open an agency, then you need to take care of the standard steps: registration, finding suitable premises for work, recruiting staff, purchasing equipment and finding clients.

If you quickly implement all of the above and get smart assistants, you will be able to launch a startup from scratch in 5 months, or, in extreme cases, in six months.

How to open an advertising agency: the main stages of launching a startup

We have already talked about what needs to be done to open an advertising agency.

Now let’s take a closer look at all the stages of launching a startup.

Registration

Choose one of the suitable forms for opening an agency: individual entrepreneur, LLC, CJSC.

The simplest form in terms of registration is the individual entrepreneur, but the other two will require cooperation with a qualified lawyer, because it is quite difficult to figure out all the nuances of the procedure on your own.

Choose a form of taxation that will not bankrupt you at first when starting an advertising business, for example, UTII.

Room

However, it is not worth going to the remote outskirts, since it is unlikely that any businessman will want to travel so far to get acquainted with samples of your products.

If you nevertheless decide to save on rent and open an agency too far from the center, then be sure to take care of creating a website to make it easier for your clients to get to know you.

You should not invest too much money in renovating your rented premises.

You are not a restaurant, so you shouldn’t impress with the interior.

Neutral colored walls can be decorated with samples of your agency's best products.

But the area of ​​the room in which you will work depends on how large an advertising agency you decide to open.

If you are setting your sights on a modest business, then at first you can rent 1-2 rooms for an office in one of the office buildings for several employees.

Serious agencies need offices with a total area of ​​at least 50–60 square meters.

Staff

The number of employees you will need to hire depends on how large an advertising agency you decide to open.

To start a small agency you must hire:

• two designers, one of whom will be involved in the production of a creative product, and the other will perform technical work: layout, etc.;
• a manager whose main task is to attract new clients;
• a cleaning lady - without her you will drown in dirt.

You will perform the functions of the head of an advertising agency: negotiate with clients, conclude contracts, arrange advertising in the media, etc.

If you can handle the accounting yourself, you will save money on the position of an accountant. Otherwise, you will have to hire an accountant or enter into an agreement with an outsourcing company.

You also cannot do without a programmer, since your main equipment is computers. He can be hired part-time.

Equipment

Equipment for an advertising agency is expensive.

You will definitely need computers, and designers need powerful machines for their work, which are very expensive, printing and office equipment, furniture, office supplies, and so on.

The main costs for office equipment will be as follows:

Expense item	Qty	Cost (in rub.)	Amount (in rub.)
Total:			500,000 rub.
Computers or laptops	4	40 000	160 000
Laser printer	1	10 000	10 000
Scanner	1	10 000	10 000
Xerox	1	30 000	30 000
Large format printing press	1	100 000	100 000
Cutting plotter	1	70 000	70 000
Telephone sets	2	1 000	2 000
Tables	4	4 000	16 000
Visitor and work chairs	8	2 000	16 000
Plumbing for the bathroom		10 000	10 000
Other		76 000	76 000

How to open an advertising agency and how much does it cost?

People interested in the topic of how to open an advertising agency are worried about the question “How much money will have to be invested in launching this startup?”

Those who were hoping for minimal spending will be disappointed.

As you can see, you need decent capital investments to open an advertising agency.

If you were unable to raise the required amount on your own, then it makes sense to think about attracting a partner who would take on part of the costs.

After all, not only one-time, but also monthly investments await you:

We offer you to watch a video about what you need,

If you open an advertising agency, how quickly will the expenses pay off?

Another way is personal visits by a director or manager to an organization that needs advertising.

You set the prices for your services yourself, focusing on the price level and financial capabilities of the residents of your region.

You can work in the low, middle or high price category.

• script – 10–20,000 rubles;
• company logo – 20–30,000 rubles;
• banner layout – RUR 5–8,000;
• layout in the media – 10–15,000 rubles;
• original layout for a corporate publication – 20–30,000 rubles;
• souvenirs – from 1,000 rubles;
• full-fledged PR campaign – from 100,000 rubles. etc.

In addition to orders from clients, you will receive a percentage from advertising in the media (this should only be done after agreement with the client).

An income of 400–500,000 rubles per month is considered good.

It is very possible to have such an income if you manage to acquire at least ten regular customers, do not ignore small orders and constantly work to expand your customer base.

The main thing is that the income of your business should not be lower than 200,000 rubles per month (after all, this is exactly the amount of your monthly expenses), otherwise you will work at a loss, which means there’s no point open an advertising agency gets lost.

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Advertising in Russia today is one of the most popular areas of business. Creative, brave and non-trivial individuals who understand fashion trends and human souls are entering this industry. Despite the fact that the lion's share of the work of advertisers is to perform complex calculations, many of them fail to open an advertising agency from scratch, as unforeseen problems arise that were not suspected at the very beginning.

Let's try to figure out together what an advertising agency is, why it is needed and how to build a successful advertising business with minimal investment.

• universal;
• highly specialized.

In the first case, the word universal means that the organization provides a wide range of advertising services, and can also affect the field of PR or marketing, in general, everything that the client’s heart desires.

In the second, the organization is engaged only in the activities of one of the few advertising areas, and this is the main profile of its activities. Such an organization could be:

• creative agencies;
• organizing the purchase of time or space in the media;
• working for an audience of a certain age, status, etc.;
• specializing in a specific industry (for example, medicine or IT technology);
• those who prefer to work with a specific type of advertising (television, radio, outdoor, etc.).

1. The organization has advertising space and is engaged in issuing them for rent.
2. The organization produces various structures containing advertising, for example, billboards, stands, etc.
3. The agency distributes advertising online (develops Internet pages, promotes resources).
4. Implements a wide range of advertising opportunities;
5. Promotes the goods and services of the client company.

In addition to the types listed above, there are all sorts of mixed varieties, but we have listed the main ones. You can open any of them either from scratch or with an investment of capital. Of course, the second method seems better, but in reality, without the proper skills, you can fail in both cases, which means you can lose not only the effort expended, but also your capital.

What role do advertising agencies play in the development of modern business?

In fact, running an advertising agency is quite expensive. That is why not every company can afford to include this division in the organizational system. In essence, it is like holding another independent organization on the basis of the organization. That is why the work of third-party advertising organizations is so relevant and attractive, because it consists of employees with a creative view of things, a special mindset, who can look into the soul of not just one person, but an entire segment of the population at once. In addition to advertising work to promote products, a business also needs PR support from outside in order to build not only active sales, but also a strong reputation.

The advertising process is based on identifying and working with the target audience - the mentioned segment of society that potentially consumes the product of the customer company, by disseminating information about the product, developing interest in it and increasing the level of final popularity.

The feasibility of opening an advertising agency and the difficulties encountered

Even if you have a seemingly ideal plan for creating an advertising agency in your head, pay attention to the statistics. Every day a new advertising agency opens in Russia, the organizers of which believe in success. However, after a year, or at best two or three, most of them fail and close forever. Such a high percentage of defeats in the advertising field can be determined as follows.

1. Serious competition. The field of advertising business is not so new today. In addition to the advertising giants, whose work is no longer carried out at the regional, but at the federal level, each more or less large city already has its own advertising leader and companies vying for his place. They have all existed for many years and overcoming them, as well as newcomers like you in the advertising world, is not an easy task.
2. Location of the future agency. Simply put, the size of the city within which you are eager to start a business. It is completely unprofitable to open an agency in cities of various regions that do not reach at least 1 million inhabitants, since otherwise they already have their own “king of the hill”, and the main income will continue to come to him, due to the small number of orders and the experience of the above-mentioned leader in the field of advertising. After all, the customer reasons like this: “why pay the same price to an unknown company when you can turn to a contractor with 10 years of experience?”
3. Complete absence of investments. Of course, you can start and develop a successful business from scratch, however, this deprives the enterprise of any advantage. Your advertising aimed at your own business can be so creative that it will make potential customers run to your office and not notice that it is located in the farthest corner of the building and there is no air conditioning inside. However, only geniuses or lucky ones manage to amaze the public right away. If you are not one of them, not making even the minimum investment will have a bad impact on your business.
4. Lack of established customer base. It often happens that an advertising agency is opened by people who worked “for their uncle” in such an organization. They might not be satisfied with the conditions, the lack of appreciation of their talent, or the low salary, so they packed up their things, took the established base of clients with whom they worked, and went free. This is an almost utopian case, because usually things are the other way around: there is no experience, no base of people, but only a great desire to create in the world of advertising.
5. The triviality of the advertising produced. This complexity is not of a technical nature, but rather of a creative nature. The fact is that the consumer is fed up with advertising of all kinds, it is difficult to surprise him. Only a true creative advertiser can awaken people's imagination and force attention.

1. Availability of a starting (small) customer base or potential clients makes a significant difference. One satisfied organization will pass news about you to another and gradually the list of customers will increase to an acceptable level and the agency will be in relative safety.
2. Low competition. This option is utopian, but there are cities with a fairly large population and the absence of decent advertising agencies. In 2015-2017, the cities of Crimea, which was recently annexed to Russia, ideally fit this description. Business on the peninsula was of no interest to anyone until huge masses of people from Donetsk moved there, and those moving from the mainland to be closer to the warmth. The advertising niche is still unoccupied in some cities and you can compete for it.
3. Locality size. Who in their right mind would open an advertising agency in urban settlements, villages and small towns? That’s right, no one, due to the lack of advertising customers, and as a result, profit. But if the location of the organization being opened is a large city, the chances of success increase significantly.
4. Availability of a creative team. All activities of any enterprise depend on the team, its professionalism and literacy. This also applies to an advertising agency. It is simply impossible to open such an organization without creative geniuses. It will do if there are only two people, but if there are none, the business will burn out.

Having considered all the dangers and opportunities of opening an advertising business, let’s talk more specifically about what investments and actions will need to be made to achieve success.

Video - What you need to start an advertising agency

Assembling a team

As already mentioned, the team is almost the most important aspect for the favorable growth and development of an advertising organization. If all the right people are in place, the appearance of clients and first profits will not take long.

The team may not be complete at first, but ideally you should have the following employees:

• designer (better than two);
• creative;
• organizational manager;
• director.

For which aspects of activity each employee is responsible, see the table below.

Table 1. Areas of responsibility of advertising agency employees

Each of the listed employees needs to be paid a salary, so remember all the criteria under which an investment in hiring staff will pay off:

• if you have a specialized basic or at least additional education;
• communication skills;
• ability to work in a team;
• ability to distribute tasks according to importance.

Intuitively, you can choose a few abnormal people for positions who speak about their field of activity with aspiration. Such people themselves will not perish, and they will not let your common cause perish.

In addition to the permanent team, it is necessary over time to develop a base of temporary employees working on all sorts of projects, distributing leaflets, demonstrating the company’s product to consumers, etc. The selection of participants is carried out as a result of a casting, which is necessarily attended by the main responsible person - the director.

Necessary props and premises for the first time

The office doesn't have to be big. Zoning the workspace of employees and refusing to allocate a separate office to the agency director can solve the problem.

In principle, an advertising agency can easily spend its formation period, as well as its subsequent long life, in a small office. It is desirable that it be divided into two or three, ideally four rooms, serving the following purposes:

• room with a projector for presentations and negotiations;
• director's office;
• design office;
• office of the rest of the employees.

Additionally, it will be great to have a warehouse in which to store props prepared for use at various promotions and events.

If there are not enough funds to rent a four-room office, it is more rational to save not on offices for employees, but on the director’s room, since it is he who is interested in seeing the business burn out.

According to the recommendations, the square footage of the room should not be less than 40 units. The ideal rental price is no more than 30 thousand rubles, but we all understand that such a price today is only possible in small regional cities. A tactically advantageous office location is the central or business district of the city, where the business environment reigns. This way, you place the agency right in front of potential customers, and the cost of renting the premises will pay for itself.

Profitable advertising activities and agency specialization

Depending on the dominant business situation in the city where the agency is located, the main type of advertising activity is selected. So, for example, if the bulk of business enterprises do business within the region, turn your attention to radio and television advertising, but if only within the city, it is most reasonable to limit yourself to the development of promotions and outdoor advertising.

According to statistics, the advertising segment is in greatest demand among advertising agencies. BTL, which stands for “below the line.” This part of the advertising process refers to direct marketing - all non-traditional ways to influence the consumer here and now, for example, promotions, events, and so on. The advantage of BTL is its low cost and precise spontaneous impact on the buyer. It is this activity that will bring the advertising agency a significant percentage of its total income.

Segment advertising ATL(above the line), which contains mass traditional methods of influencing the audience, costs much more and is used only by large business organizations. Medium and small enterprises prefer only outdoor advertising from ATL funds, which they can afford.

According to recent trends, the main creative efforts of agency personnel to make a profit should be focused on:

• working with email newsletters;
• organizations of trade events and corporate events (fairs, exhibitions, conferences, corporate parties, etc.);
• Viral marketing;
• PR work with the target audience of the customer company;
• Promotions;
• Online advertising (including SEO).

Costs of opening an agency

So, we come to the most important aspect - the costs that will have to be overcome in order to organize a successful advertising agency. Let's consider each direction in order.

Agency registration

Let's look at the table of costs for self-registration of a limited liability company.

Table 2. Costs for self-registration of an LLC

In this table we have presented you with the maximum possible amounts that some entrepreneurs spend on organizing an LLC, however, do not be alarmed, on average the amount never exceeds 20 thousand rubles.

Find out everything about how to open a legal entity yourself from our articles. In the publications “” and “” you will find detailed step-by-step instructions for opening a legal entity, a list of necessary documents and their samples for downloading.

Office rental

As mentioned above, the cost of renting an office will differ depending on the size of the city where the agency is located. We present a table containing information on prices for renting offices measuring 40 square meters or more, for one month, in the business districts of some cities for 2017.

Table 3. Prices for renting offices from 40 m² per month

The average rental amount including utilities will be about 35 thousand. If we are talking about Moscow - much more, but we are still calculating options for smaller cities.

Salary to employees

We will calculate the minimum wage for the minimum number of employees. So, since the team we have designed has at least four people, each of them must receive a salary of about 10 thousand rubles, otherwise they simply will not want to come to work for you. In addition to the salary, employees are paid a percentage of closed transactions, therefore, monthly payments per person at first are about 15 thousand rubles, which means 60 thousand for everyone.

An employee’s salary is an expense on which you can’t save money.

Office arrangement

In addition to renting an office, you need to spend a certain amount on purchasing equipment, such as:

• tables;
• chairs;
• projector (preferably);
• telephone;
• 1-2 computers (minimum).

All of the items listed above will work for the first time in used condition, since you need to open an agency with a minimum of costs. If desired, all the items described above can be collected for the amount of 100 thousand rubles, since the agency simply cannot do without productive equipment for designers.

Agency advertising

The agency's own advertising will consist primarily of creating a website. It’s good if one of your employees has web development skills, but if not, creating a simple website based on well-known platforms will cost about 10-25 thousand rubles minimum, including the purchase of a domain.

the total cost

Let's calculate the resulting costs:

• about 20 thousand will be spent on registering the agency as a limited liability company;
• 35 thousand were spent on renting premises in a strategically advantageous area of ​​the city;
• 60 thousand will be needed to pay salaries to employees in the first month;
• it will cost 100 thousand to equip the office with the necessary equipment;
• Agency advertising will cost approximately 25 thousand rubles.

In total, we got 240 thousand rubles. Even an ordinary store employee can accumulate such an amount in a few years if he dreams of opening his own agency, that is, the amount does not seem large. In modern realities, this amount fits the description of “from scratch”, since it is impossible to imagine lower costs. They can be reduced only in the following cases:

• if office equipment is borrowed from friends for free;
• members of the organization have web development skills;
• with incredible luck.

In all other cases, before opening your own advertising business, you will have to work hard and save the required amount.

What to count on

Now let’s discuss what you should expect at first when opening an advertising agency. First of all, you need to remember one golden rule, which sounds like “don’t miss a single client.” Even the most successful advertising venture will not receive dozens of orders from day one. The prices for the first orders should be set small if you expect that the customer will not run away and tell his friends about you. Yes, at first you won’t make money from this, but you can gain fame and develop an image, which is much more valuable than short-term profit.

It is profitable to work with young companies that are leaving the shadows and entering the market arena. No matter how small and insignificant it may seem, such work will allow you to gain experience in developing a brand book, logo and advertising in the media.

Often the agency will receive requests to place video advertisements on various services, for example, YouTube. It will not be expensive for the client to pay for such work, just as it will not be difficult for you to perform it. Orders for outdoor banner advertising will be popular. By processing such orders, the agency will engage in technical development, design and conclusion of contracts for the rental of space.

At first, promotions will bring big profits, since the development of even a small-scale event will result in 25 thousand rubles of net profit.

The services of designers are valued at the highest price, so at the initial stage there will be minimal demand, however, as the popularity of the organization increases, the situation will change, and they will begin to bring in money.

Video - How to open an advertising agency in the region

Let's sum it up

As you can see, the seemingly impossible task of creating your own advertising agency with minimal costs is not at all so unattainable. It is important to prepare for hard work and give your all to achieve your goals. The main thing is to clearly calculate each step and make a minimum of mistakes.

It is impossible to imagine any type of business without advertising, so many people are thinking about opening their own agency. The demand for such services has not subsided for a long time. The relevance of the advertising business is difficult to underestimate.

In Russia, like any other country, many large and small entrepreneurs use the services of such companies. But to have a highly profitable company, it is not enough to create a company and hire employees. We need to develop, expand the range of services and offer customers truly high-quality products.

The advantages include the high profitability of the company with proper organization of work. Such services are in great demand, so problems with finding clients usually do not arise. Also, the advantages include relatively small capital investments at the start.

The disadvantages include a lot of competition in the market. At the initial stages of work you will have to work with small and medium-sized entrepreneurs. The income may be small, but it will allow you to build a good reputation and portfolio, which will give you the opportunity to find larger clients.

Types of similar agencies

Before opening a company you must decide on its format. She may be:

• full service agency;
• design studio (specializing in the development of signs, logos, styles, and so on);
• a narrow-profile agency that specializes in one type of advertising;
• manufacturing company (production of business cards, banners, souvenirs, etc.);
• buyer (advertising on TV, radio and other media).

It is easier for a company that provides a full range of services to get promoted, but it will also require a large amount of money to open.

Interesting information about this type of business is presented in the following video:

Possible range of services

Nowadays, advertising has different forms, ranging from printed materials to banners on the Internet. You need to decide what services you will provide, since the full range may not be affordable for you at the start.

Services include:

• placement of outdoor advertising, including banners, signs and billboards;
• production of printed products (flyers, brochures, business cards, etc.)
• placement of information in the media;
• carrying out promotions and PR;
• creating videos and commercials;
• website promotion;
• production and distribution of souvenirs and so on.

To make it easier to decide on a direction, you need to study the market in your region. Find out what types of services are in greatest demand and what services your competitors provide. Remember, to interest your customers, you need to offer them something new, something that others don’t have.

Registration and required documents

After you have decided on the concept and direction of activity, you need to register the company. To register, select one of the organizational and legal forms: .

The package of required documents depends on the chosen form. You can find out what documents are needed at the tax office. You also need to pay a state fee:

• for individual entrepreneurs in the amount of 800 rubles;
• for LLC in the amount of 6,500 rubles.

When registering an LLC, you need to pay half (its minimum amount is 10,000 rubles), and the second half is paid during the first year of the company’s activity.

Signing agreements with partners

In most cases, the agency needs to collaborate with production bases. For example, if you are engaged in printing products, then you need to work with a printing house.

Be careful when searching for partners. Don't agree to the first offer. Study the terms of cooperation in detail, find out about the company’s reputation. This will help in the future to avoid unscrupulous partners who will let you down at the most inopportune moment.

Selecting a location

The next step is to find an office. The size of the room depends on how many people will work in it. Typically, meetings with clients take place on neutral territory or on the customer's premises. Despite this, it is advisable for the office to be located near the city center or in a well-developed area.

It should be convenient to get to, as the customer may want to visit you at the office.

Equipment purchase

When renovations are completed in the selected premises, you can purchase equipment. You definitely need to purchase:

• several computers;
• Printer;
• Xerox;
• scanner;
• telephone sets for multi-channel communication;
• devices for connecting the Internet.

Keep in mind that designers need powerful computers. You also need to take care of installing the necessary software.

Recruitment

When selecting employees, remember that the success of your company depends on the experience and qualifications of the staff. To minimize the risk of bankruptcy, hire personnel with experience in the advertising field. Such workers will be able to perform their work efficiently and on time. In addition, they often have their own clientele who will use the services of your agency.

The number of employees depends on the size of the company and the number of services provided. For a medium-sized company, you need to hire:

• creative director responsible for developing new ideas;
• two managers who will search for customers;
• two designers, one of whom is responsible for the development of the advertising product, and the second for the layout;
• directors, who will negotiate with customers and sign contracts with them.

But it is not advisable to hire an accountant. It is better to seek help from.

It is also advisable to have several freelancers on hand. They will help in-house designers get the job done when an emergency happens.

Advertising and customer search

• To find customers, you need to create a database of potential clients. Decide what industry you would like to work in. For example, your priority is to develop advertising for cafes and restaurants or companies specializing in a particular production.
• It is necessary to write down the names of companies, their phone numbers and emails. The manager then contacts them and offers agency services. But keep in mind that you can find clients this way if you offer them something new.
• Don't forget about the so-called word of mouth. If you do your work efficiently, clients will tell their partners, colleagues and acquaintances about you.

Potential problems and solutions

Many agencies close within a short period of opening. The fact is that this type of business also has problem areas. But if you approach possible problems correctly, your company will be able to operate for a long time and generate good income.

The main potential problem is the lack of clients. This is due to a lot of competition in this business segment. But the problem is completely solvable, you need:

• choose a catchy company name so that it is easy to remember;
• after opening the agency, place information about it in city directories, since many potential clients often use it;
• at the start, work with small and medium-sized entrepreneurs to earn experience and reputation, which will make it possible to conclude contracts with large and prestigious customers.

Opening and operating costs

Investments at the start depend on the size of the company, the number of employees and other factors. Below are approximate costs:

• rental of premises – 60 thousand rubles;
• office renovation – 25 thousand rubles;
• purchase of furniture - from 25 thousand rubles;
• Internet and telephone connection – up to 10 thousand rubles;
• purchase of equipment – ​​from 125 thousand rubles.

After the first month of work, it is necessary to pay salaries to employees:

• director – 30-40 thousand rubles;
• designers - 20-25 thousand rubles;
• managers - 10-12 thousand +% of transactions.

You also need to pay for the services of an accountant (5 thousand rubles), allocate funds for bonuses, pay taxes, telephone, internet, and purchase consumables.

Calculating project profitability

It is quite difficult to calculate how much income your company will generate. This is due to the fact that each agency sets its own markups, but usually at least 40% of the order value is profit. In addition, profitability is influenced by cooperation with partners and their prices for work.

With an average pace of work and completing two to three orders per week, the company’s income is 200-300 thousand rubles per month. A good company can make a profit of up to 600 thousand per month.

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