Reimagining the B2B marketing agency

Richard Hadler, Managing Director at alan, talks heritage, how the agency name came to be and the five ways we plan on reinventing B2B marketing.

It's launch day. Day one of what we hope will be a magnificent adventure. 

Today we launch alan, a full-service, B2B marketing agency with a focus on problem-solving excellence. It’s a response to repeated client requests. But although our brand is new, as a team we are veterans. 

alan. is a spin-out from Raconteur, known across the country as the publisher of specialist reports for The Times and Sunday Times. In over a decade we've worked with 1,000+ brands and with hundreds of journalists. As we grew long-term relationships with companies such as EY, Schroders, Dell Technologies, Thomson Reuters and many more, we realised the demand for our services is almost inexhaustible. 

We’ve been asked: can you run a product launch? Commission a YouGov polling? Research market demographics? Ghost-write a speech for a FTSE-100 chief executive?

The more we said “yes”, the more we expanded. By sheer force of demand we grew into a full-service marketing agency. 

At that point, we realised we could better serve clients as a stand-alone agency with the flexibility to give them everything they need.

alan. is the result. For the name, we were inspired by legendary problem solver Alan Turing. He was the master of creativity, with the power to turn ideas into a reality. He stands for everything we want to be.

Our mission is to reinvent B2B marketing. How? Let me give you five ways.

1. Problem solving

We love difficult challenges. Got an underperforming company division? Need a complete rebrand? Come and talk to us. Together we'll think it through. Our experience means we can share the success stories of dozens of brands we've helped in similar circumstances.

2. Relentless creativity

Our favourite question is “what if...?”. We supply ideas without being asked. Our designers create multiple solutions, looking for a brilliant concept lying just outside the narrow briefs. This method has produced stunning results for us time and time again. 

3. Expertise

Our network of sector specialists is unparalleled. Do you need an insight into artificial intelligence? We've produced many reports for The Times on it, and know the professors, the writers, the entrepreneurs and inventors at the cutting-edge. Our contacts book is vast—not only do we know your industry, we also know your audience. That’s a rare combination for an agency.

4. We listen

We aim to build long-term relationships. So we get to know our clients. We take time to understand their products, their processes, and their goals. Commercially, we win repeat business by being closely aligned — our clients know they are working with an agency that is truly committed to understanding everything about them.

5. Results-driven

Our commercial model is built on deliverables, for two reasons. First, we want to help clients escape the world of lock-ins and retainers. Second, our track record gives us confidence in our ability to deliver as agreed. When we say we want to reinvent B2B marketing, we mean it.

alan. begins life with a stock of loyal clients. But we are also looking for new challenges, new brands to work with. If you are a technology, financial services or professional services brand in need of a B2B agency then get in touch with us.

We’ll listen. We’ll map out your challenges until we understand every fine detail. And then we’ll solve your most pressing problems.

We can't wait to get started.

Richard Hadler

Managing Director, alan.