Accelerate
A four billion dollar hidden gem.
Shaping the next chapter of this well-loved agency’s story.
The challenge.
In the eight years since Emmy Smith launched her film production company, Milsen Smith, the business has grown significantly YoY with little investment in marketing activity. Through word of mouth introductions, and from that years of repeat business with the same clients, things have been great.
At the end of 2023, Emmy decided she wanted to relocate to London and focus her time on growing her client base and scaling for the next stage of growth. That’s when she contacted me about a refreshed direction for the Milsen Smith brand, an approach to bringing in new business, and a simple marketing plan for the year ahead. Everything needed to be quick and easy (yet impactful) to implement, but with the potential to scale further down the line.
Whilst Milsen Smith works with a range of different clients and industries, the majority of their business comes from advertising and media agencies, for their own business development efforts. Emmy also wanted to launch a new division called Milsen Smith Women, that creates content targeted towards women, created by women. So the big question was how to sell both B2B and also a specialist B2C offering, without confusing the audience?
The solution.
I already knew Emmy from when I was her client. Milsen Smith produced all of our pitch films and award entry videos at Maxus (now Wavemaker), and so I had a clear view of how she sold herself in currently, and how this could be dialled up for more impact to new clients. Her biggest potential growth market was within advertising and media agencies, so I recommended she focused here first.
From researching other B2B film production companies and women-focused entertainment brands, I identified a list of opportunities for Milsen Smith to stand out. The most significant area that was neglected by almost all of the 40 companies I studied, was results: surprisingly no one was demonstrating any meaningful ROI on their websites and case studies. And the #1 goal for agencies, particularly in the current climate, is to win new business. So I asked Emmy to calculate how much in pitch wins Milsen Smith films had contributed to for clients - and that number was a massive £4 billion - this was the hook she needed.
I then devised three new positioning approaches and Emmy went with my preferred option: Films that Move People. This allowed me to create sales language that talked on a broader level, and still made sense when diving into more detail on the core business (B2B), and the Milsen Smith Women division. Most importantly, it was something that Emmy felt really comfortable using to describe her company, particularly in LinkedIn outreach that needed to feel authentically her.
Everything else I created for Milsen Smith from there tied into the new positioning, and I left Emmy with a pack that she could use herself as a busy Founder, or in time, share with a marketing hire that could hit the ground running. She will also revamp her website later down the line, and now has the content and direction for that project, ready to brief in.
The results.
“When you work with talented people, it’s such a relief, as well as a joy!
Tamsin has helped us evaluate where we sit in the market, refined our positioning (but not scarily) and supported us as we push and drive for new business.
Her suggestions have been backed with deep research and critical understanding. Her industry (and people) insights have been invaluable.
Within a couple of weeks we have noticed a distinct energy change, have meetings booked with three of the world’s largest media agency networks and are expecting 2024 to be a major milestone on our journey to become a major player in B2B video production.”
Emmy Smith, Founder, Milsen Smith
