It’s a Thursday, which for me means wrap-up day. All of the tasks that we have been working on for the week, or proposals that need to be sent out, inquiry e-mails that have follow-up questions, or any other general loose ends that need some tying have to be complete, addressed, or otherwise handled.

As a writer at DDA, a large portion of my job is in communicating with clients, prospective or existing, as I know I have mentioned so many times before. This holds true in project coordination, New Business Development, or in my writing tasks. What this ultimately means is that it is my responsibility, as it is for the three other degreed writers on-staff, to make sure that each client is fully aware of what’s going with his or her project or inquiry at all times.

We take this very seriously. We try not to have too much time lapse between an e-mail or phone call sent and our response. This often means running (in my case sometimes literally) around to get the answers I need from those assigned to the project — animators, videographers, graphic designers, programmers, etc. That’s one of the coolest things about this company — the fact that we are full service and do offer everything needed for a marketing and advertising campaign under roof, so oftentimes there are multiple people involved one project, bridging the gap between departments — programming, design, video, websites, search engine marketing and optimization.

It’s not always keeping track of everyone and everything. People make fun of my handwritten list which I tape to my monitor. It might look a little archaic in this age of spreadsheets, software to keep you organized, and Blackberrys. But it works for me.

Like right now I am looking at the list of nearly 20 items, with only four crossed out, and I am thinking it’s time to get a move on on wrapping it all up.

This morning we have a kick-off meeting for a website we will be developing. It will be a highly-optimized site, with 35 pages of new content developed by DDA’s writers, specifically crafted to reach top rankings on search engines like Google.

It’s a common affair here at DDA — not just website development, or developing optimized copy, but a kick-off meeting.

For nearly every project we undertake, the first step is a meeting with the client to determine their goals and the direction of the project. It’s the first taste of a what will be a long string of client involvement.

Regardless if it’s a video, website, animation, brochure, or trade show booth, we are developing the product for our clients, which means their opinion and feedback is vital. We don’t move forward during any stage of development without approval.

This approach is indicative of so much of what DDA is and does — the fact that we were created with the needs of the marketing or advertising executive in mind; that each project is customized specifically to that client no matter how many times we have developed something in that medium; that we have a strong sense of pride in the work we create.

The other week we had a conference call with an existing client. Before finding DDA, this client had signed on with another company to do website development. We had undertaken a completely separate project for this client, but during the course of working together, it was apparent on both sides that there was a strong working relationship. As it turns out, the company this client signed up with for website development, did not treat them well, or more like not at all. After the initial meeting, this client barely heard a word again and had no clue as to what stage the project was on.

While we of course were more than happy to take on the website project, it was bitter sweet. They should have never had to go through that in the first place. There are so many companies out there that care little about the work they produce or their clients.

I am glad I work for a company that respects its clients and values their business. And as for my kick-off meeting this morning, I know that it’s just the start of what will be a long relationship.

“Can you give me just a standard price?”

I often hear those words several times within a week. Working with New Business Development means answering several inquiries a day, through e-mail or phone. It’s in these moments that I am often reminded how fundamentally different Dynamic Digital Advertising (DDA) is from all other advertising and marketing agencies.

It’s not just that we are a full-service agency, able to meet multiple needs under one roof, the difference is in those words that I hear.

Many times people shop around for quotes, whether it’s for videos, website development, animation, copywriting, or graphic design services.  They expect that since they are able to get a one-size-fits-all estimate from the other guys, that we can do the same. Right there, they began to realize the DDA difference. Everything we do is customized to the client and their specific project, which is why we prefer to schedule a conference call for each inquiry that comes in.

Knowing the details of the project is more than just about customization, it’s about integrity. We pride ourselves on being honest and forthright from the very beginning. We also pride ourselves on never having missed a deadline. We will never just throw a random price out the window, only to go back and charge a company three times what we originally said.

Those cookie-cutter quotes may OK for the other guys, but there is nothing standard about DDA.

A large part of juggling multiple tasks and making sure nothing splatters on the floor is always being as efficient as possible.

I am a thinker, so for me whether it’s Project Coordination duties, New Business Development or Copywriting,  I try to map out what I am going to do, formulate some sort of plan before tackling the job. This works especially well with my writing. The first sentence has always been the toughest for me. If I don’t have that perfect intro then I am unable to continue. So plotting out what I’d like to say before I begin writing speeds up the process exponentially.

There is a fine line between being efficient and rushing the job, so it’s really important to be as relaxed and calm as possible, regardless of the task at hand, kind of like the hurry up but take your time theory.

It’s a bit of trick learning how to continuously keep time on your mind but at the same not letting it bog you down with added anxiety or stress. Once you get it down, however, you can sail a lot smoother through all of the obstacles ahead, rather than rocking back forth against the jarring waves.