agility marketing. the blog.

Agility Announces New Director of Sales

Tue, 11 Feb 2014 11:41:12 -0500

Agility Marketing, a nationally recognized provider of business and customer relationship services, today announced the appointment of Matt McClay as Director of Sales.

In addition to Mr. McClay’s role as Director of Sales, he has been named to the Agility Executive Team alongside Joe DiFuccia and Terry Smith.

“Mr. McClay’s vast experience in sales on all levels enables him to think outside the box for the benefit of our Fortune 100 Clients,” stated Joe Difuccia, Executive Vice President of Operations.

Senior Vice President of Client Sercvices Terry Smith added, “Matt understands our clients concerns and goals and has implemented procedures to ensure our Client Services Managers are successful and always available to assist our clients.”

Before joining Agility, Mr. McClay was Executive Vice President at Brian Patten and Associates, a Pittsburgh-based nationwide full service insurance enrollment firm.

About Agility Marketing

Agility Marketing is a nationally recognized provider of business and customer relationship management (CRM) services, specializing in a highly professional approach to direct marketing and customer care.

Dedicated to high standards of excellence and technological superiority., all systems are proprietary, and developed internally by a team of programmers well versed in each client’s needs and styles. Agility works closely with its clients to customize programs based on overall goals and unique business requirements. Tremendous flexibility and experience provide the edge which makes us extremely successful in achieving client satisfaction.

Agility’s pledge is to continue the quest for technological advancement and education, which will enable the company to meet the continuing needs and increased sophistication of each clients and business partners.

Exciting News for Agility

Fri, 02 Nov 2012 15:43:55 -0400

Agility Marketing has upgraded to a 40,000-square-foot large multichannel contact center with state of the art technology, learning labs and space for increased production activities. The new facility is located at 2323 West 38th St. in Erie, PA. The transformation has been seamless to Agility’s current clients due to new data/communication infrastructure purchases and enlistment of organizations who specialize in the movement of data/phone centers. Key team players are Infinite Solutions based in Indiana and Velocitynet, a local Erie provider.

We are very excited to embark on this important expansion initiative and remain committed to keeping our headquarters in Erie, PA. This modern facility provides an efficient platform to support the large pipeline of new clients over a variety of marketing delivery methods such as text, chat and social media, as well as traditional voice and print. Further, Agility is developing next-generation capabilities for Customer Relationship Management (CRM) solutions through their strategic partnerships.

Agility Marketing...There’s An App For That!

Fri, 31 Aug 2012 15:09:52 -0400

You can’t go anywhere today without seeing someone peeking at their smart phone, you may be checking yours in between reading this blog!

Well, Agility Marketing recently landed a program that will tie us to a Smart Phone Application that is being marketed as a “Personal Security” tool. Here’s how the app will work:

1. An individual activates the tool by placing their thumb/finger on the application icon. This action puts the individual “on the offense”.

2. When the individual removes their thumb/finger from the app they have 20 seconds to enter a 4 digit disarm code signaling they let go of the app of their own free will.

3. If the disarm code is not entered within the allotted 20 seconds, the app sends an auto alert (text/e-mail) to each of the user’s lifelines.

4. Users will set up 5-7 lifelines of their own. All app users will be tied to the 8^th life line which is the Agility Marketing Contact Center.

The Blog thinks this really cool. (Though it’s no Angry Birds!)

Agility Marketing’s MIS department will supply an Application Programming Interface (API), in order for the system to provide information about the user. This API will only populate at Agility if the user has not entered a disarm code within 20 seconds.

Our production team will then retrieve all alert situation data, such as the user’s height, weight, location, etc.

All of this would take place in seconds….SECONDS!

Now we do a lot of things here at Agility, but acting as an emergency responder is not one of them. Our contact center agent will serve as a means for validating whether the alert text requires outreach to 911.

We’re really excited to be involved with this mobile app technology, and certainly happy to be part of helping anyone involved in an emergency.

Someone queue the Baywatch music!

“Without the reps at Agility, we would not be successful.”

Thu, 19 Jul 2012 15:05:39 -0400

We would like to extend our sincerest thanks to our production team for their hard work during a drastic increase in call volume. Our client sent along a note of gratitude as well, and we’d like to share it with you…

Engagement is good!

Fri, 13 Jul 2012 15:16:00 -0400

Engagement, What Is It Good For? Absolutely Everything!

Engagement, as defined by Merriam Webster’s Student Dictionary, has numerous meanings. I am not referring to “a promise to be present at a specified place or time” or “the period during which one is pledged to be married” in this post. You may think that I am referring to the latest meaning of engagement as it refers to social media and customers ”engaging” your company by commenting or referring your goods or services through socially visible websites, however, I am not. Rather my favorite of the meanings, ”the state of being meshed into a working arrangement in which one part drives another”.

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Tue, 19 Jun 2012 11:34:56 -0400

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Thu, 17 May 2012 14:42:42 -0400

What about Blog's Day?

Fri, 11 May 2012 11:14:38 -0400

Upset by the fact we celebrate Mother’s Day, yet Hallmark hasn’t gotten around to creating “Happy Blog Day” cards to honor them, the blog has taken the weekend off (a long one, apparently) and allowed a guest contributor…

Engagement, What Is It Good For? Absolutely Everything!

Engagement, as defined by Merriam Webster’s Student Dictionary, has numerous meanings. I am not referring to “a promise to be present at a specified place or time” or “the period during which one is pledged to be married” in this post. You may think that I am referring to the latest meaning of engagement as it refers to social media and customers "engaging" your company by commenting or referring your goods or services through socially visible websites, however, I am not. Rather my favorite of the meanings, "the state of being meshed into a working arrangement in which one part drives another".

As Agility moves forward, I am reminded daily of the importance of engagement by listening in on many outbound sales programs we are running. I love technology, social media, and how all of these tools make life more efficient both at home and the office. In today’s business world, being connected to the web is no longer an option but a necessity. While at home, I can’t imagine what I would do without answers to just about any question, the ease of sharing photos and information with loved ones, and of course staying up to date with my favorite teams. The phrase “there’s an app for that”, could not be more true, unless of course you need an app for engagement.

As many saw on the game show Jeopardy, Watson, named after IBM’s first president Thomas J. Watson, is an artificial intelligence computer system capable of answering questions posed in natural language. Watson had its abilities tested in a human vs. machine match against Jeopardy’s most successful contestants. In a two-game match, Watson beat these human competitors and proved to many that the future was here. I am sure “the blog” and Watson are buddies.

As impressive and complex as the Watson system proved to be, I always enjoy telling training classes they all possessed a key skill that NO machine will be able to replace…….the ability to ENGAGE.

Strong salespeople ask questions that will give customers and prospects the feeling that you understand and care about their needs, but, most importantly, they are gathering information in a manner that is not a typical “sales pitch”. I learned early on that if you’re having trouble getting a prospect excited about what you are offering, you better be doing everything possible to get them excited about themselves. How and why? Simple, we all know that in order to sell something your prospect needs to understand what they are about to invest in. If your prospect has doubts or does not understand how you are trying to help, trying to close at this point is setting up for disaster. Salespeople faced with this critical situation need to take a deep breathe and start over, sometimes from the beginning of the sales process. Are we conveying the wrong solution? Are all of the prospects questions answered? Have we picked up on the true objection?

Time to ENGAGE!

To go back to my favorite definition of engagement, your prospect is not in “the state of being meshed into a working arrangement in which one part drives another”. Successful salespeople can sense the point when a prospect is in this state. Subtle questions the prospect asks and the overall demeanor of your prospect will, if handled correctly, lead you right into the “closing signals” we all patiently wait for. Linking features and benefits to specific needs of your prospect seems pretty obvious, but how you go about uncovering those needs is ENGAGEMENT and it is everything.

You can “tweet” about your product or service until your fingers hurt, spend countless dollars on advertising, even annoy your customers with countless Facebook posts. However, each one of these methods can, in some fashion, be helpful and worthy of your time. How can you make the most out of our technologically driven world? Engagement.

Agility has representatives who have for years honed their skills of engagement. Customer retention, acquisition, up sells, cross sells or even a friendly calls to be sure everyone is happy has time after time proven to be what our clients rely on us for. Although forever evolving, Agility knows customer engagement.

-Garrett

Garrett Mays is part of the Business Acquisition team at Agility Marketing. He can be reached at garrett_mays@agilitymarketing.com

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Fri, 04 May 2012 10:04:56 -0400

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Mon, 30 Apr 2012 08:59:00 -0400

the blog presents...

Tue, 24 Apr 2012 14:03:55 -0400

Time for a new look

Fri, 13 Apr 2012 16:26:00 -0400

There are many exciting things happening here at Agility, new clients, different program types (more on that soon!) and cloud-based technologies. However, we’d be remiss not to mention a total redesign of our website is under way as well.

We want the site to reflect our updated brand, as well as provide several channels to access us via social media, perhaps including a live twitter feed on the home page.

Agility also plans on providing insights to all aspects of the company via departmental blogs. You’ll be able to hear about the goings on in the MIS and Business Development areas, as well as what employment opportunities are available in the Human Resources blog. We all know The Blog could use the company!

Videos, white papers, podcasts, IVR audio samples and a mobile site are on the slate as well, so stop back for updates.

The Blog has access to some early designs, let us know what you think!

Customer Service Heroes

Tue, 10 Apr 2012 14:09:53 -0400

“Without the reps at Agility, we would not be successful.”

I wanted to take a moment and sincerely thank you and your staff for all the hard work you have performed over the last two weeks with our new Client. Your hard work, dedication and more importantly patience with both the cardholders and us goes a long way. Even though it has been a rough two weeks, the reps courteous manner has helped weather the storm. Without the reps at Agility we would not be as successful.

Thanks again to our production staff, the blog thinks you rock.

Off and running...

Thu, 05 Apr 2012 17:04:00 -0400

Welcome to Agility Marketing, the blog, where you will find all kinds of exciting stuff regarding the company and a little bit of everything else.

We start with some exciting news with First Lady Michelle Obama’s Joining Forces initiative. Agility is proud to be named as a partner in the military spouse employment announcement…

Firms pledge 15,000 jobs for military spouses

WASHINGTON — White House officials on Wednesday announced commitments from customer-service firms to hire 15,000 military spouses in coming months, many in work-at-home jobs with flexible hours.

The pledges are part of a push by the administration’s Joining Forces campaign to help military families. First lady Michelle Obama said the companies not only recognize the value of hiring military spouses, but also the challenges they face in their careers.

“We’re trying to meet those spouses where they are,” she said. “When the next set of orders come in, and they have to move across the country, they’ll be able to move these jobs with them.”

Most of the jobs are call center and Web chat services, although the announcement also included positions in hospitality and health care.

Brad Cooper, executive director of Joining Forces, said the jobs are a mix of entry-level and mid-career positions. The majority are designed to be portable and allow the spouses to build seniority within the companies, and in some cases employees will be able to continue their careers even if they are transferred overseas.

“Every indication we’ve received is that this is right up the alley of where military spouses want to work,” he said.

The jobs will be made available in coming weeks through employment resources on the Joining Forces website, www.whitehouse.gov/joiningforces, and the Department of Defense’s Military Spouse Employment Partnership programs.

Next week marks the one-year anniversary of the Joining Forces campaign. White House officials said the effort has helped find jobs for 50,000 veterans and military spouses since its launch.