Starting a marketing agency is equally as exhilarating as it is nerve-wracking. Throughout the 8.5 years of owning my agency, Elysium Marketing Group, I’ve made it a habit of reading books and articles from the best marketing minds and agency owners. One common theme I had read over and over again was that a marketing agency should be niched by services or industries. Every time I read that; I couldn’t fathom making the change. We were good at so many different things, so why would I want it to change?

For starters, I love working in different industries, learning how they operate, what they do, why they started, and what the magic formula to market them effectively is. Secondly, I knew I didn’t want to niche into a specific service because I worked hard to bring in subject matter experts into all the roles needed to be a dynamite agency. Once you find the right key players who fit with your agency, you hold onto them – tightly. 

When I finally got to a point where I thought it made sense to really think about niching, I knew food and restaurants would have to be part of it. Over the years, more than 50 percent of our business was related to food: restaurant groups, new restaurants opening, and breweries that needed to stand out. 

As much as I love restaurants and food marketing, I knew that it wasn’t going to be our end point. I was just as much in love with the franchise work we were doing. We were excelling at Franchise Development, Local Store Marketing, and Brand Development. While a large majority of our franchise clients were food-related, not all of them were. We were still able to learn about how various businesses operate and work hard to figure out their magic strategic and creative solutions. 

It may have taken me longer than it should have (stubborn, much?) But I can finally say that I’m glad we niched our agency to food and franchise clients. Our expertise in these segments is now being recognized and recommended by our clients and partners. 

Learn more at Elysium Marketing Group.