Building a great company culture that makes employees and customers happy can be tough for many organizations. Company culture is complex and always changing, so naturally, it can be a challenge for leaders to spot issues.
Think about company culture as being on a spectrum. On one end, you have businesses that focus on hard culture — things like systems, processes, and metrics to boost performance and get results. On the other end are those with soft culture, which emphasizes employee engagement, values-driven decisions, and how people interact with each other. The organizations that manage to strike a balance between these two approaches typically stand out in the marketplace.
This applies to marketing agencies, too. When you’re looking to hire one, it’s smart to dig into their culture. A lot of agencies might offer similar services, but if you take a closer look, you’ll often find key differences in their cultures that set them apart.
Finding the right agency that values both hard and soft culture traits can be a bit tricky, but understanding how agency culture affects clients is crucial. A well-rounded culture can lead to the best results for clients.
Hard Culture — The Foundation of Results
Companies that lean toward a hard culture are all about using clear, measurable systems to keep things scaling and smooth while ensuring accountability. They focus on hitting those quantifiable results, which means they tend to see a solid return on their investments. These organizations put a lot of emphasis on workflows, performance metrics, and meeting deadlines.
For instance, they might rely on project management tools to send out updates every couple of weeks. It’s a smart move, as businesses that follow tried-and-true project management practices waste significantly less budget — about 28 times less!
A great example of this is Zappos, the online retailer. They’ve got hard-culture vibes down pat, using the latest tech like AI chatbots to make operations easier and offer personalized recommendations, which helps build customer loyalty.
Soft Culture — The Key to Relationships and Innovation
Businesses that lean toward a soft culture focus on intangible things that aren’t always measurable, like teamwork, creativity, and trust. This approach is key for building strong relationships with clients and establishing long-term partnerships. They make an effort to understand their clients as people rather than just business transactions. For example, they might hold quarterly strategy meetings to really listen, fine-tune goals, and brainstorm new ideas together.
This soft culture isn’t just good for clients; it also has a positive impact on employees by boosting engagement and well-being. When employees feel connected to their company’s culture, they’re four times more likely to be engaged at work and 43% less likely to look for new jobs, according to Gallup research. A culture emphasis can also help companies see a 33% revenue boost.
A great example of this is Google, which fosters a people-first vibe that connects employees to the company and ramps up productivity. They’ve created a space where everyone feels they’re contributing to something bigger. This culture not only keeps employees motivated but also helps Google innovate more effectively. Plus, employees get awesome perks like free meals, fun games, nap pods, and on-site doctors, all while using cutting-edge tech to tackle some of the world’s biggest challenges.
Why Marketing Agencies Need a Balance of Hard and Soft Cultures
When it comes to marketing agencies, there’s a strong connection between company culture and success. Agencies with a more structured approach prioritize effective strategic execution, while those with a people-first approach to culture value creativity and teamwork more, which helps them adapt to what clients want.
The top marketing agencies find a good mix between being results-driven and caring about values, relationships, and teamwork with clients.
What Happens When One Is Missing
A balanced agency culture is essential. Focusing too much on hard culture can create stiff processes and stifle creativity, while leaning too much on soft culture can lead to inefficiencies and missed deadlines.
There are plenty of ways to find that sweet spot. For example, an agency could use data to track how well their marketing campaigns are doing and also hold workshops to brainstorm strategies with clients. As they prioritize the most important aspects of both hard and soft cultures, agencies can boost employee engagement, which is a win for both staff and clients.
A Well-Balanced Agency Culture Is the Best of Both Worlds
At Avalaunch Media, we take pride in being a marketing agency that strikes a great balance between the hard and soft sides of agency life. We’ve got solid technical and digital skills, along with well-defined processes and metrics.
Avalaunch Media’s Culture of Heart & Hustle
Our North Star is client success — plain and simple. Everything we do is anchored in the belief that when our clients win, we win. That’s why we’ve built a culture designed to support that mission from every angle.
Our nine core values showcase the softer, more personal side of our culture:
- Create Believers – Turn skepticism into belief with undeniable results.
- Project Positivity – Infuse optimism into every campaign and client interaction.
- Be Proactive – Anticipate obstacles and opportunities to keep clients ahead.
- Deliver Distinguished Service – Elevate every aspect of the marketing partnership.
- Thrive on Communication – No more black boxes, but clear and consistent partner collaboration.
- Trust the Team – Great work moves forward when trust is mutually earned.
- Initiate Innovation – Challenge the status quo and always push new boundaries.
- Live Integrity – Live up to our word and back it up through our actions.
- Enjoy the Ride – We love what we do and work with pride to get the job done.
But our values aren’t just for show. We live our values every day of our work lives. Here are some examples of our values in action:
- We foster trusting client relationships through our Adventure Club, taking clients on outdoor excursions that build real, lasting bonds.
- Inside our walls, we operate in pods — small, collaborative teams that embed themselves in each client’s business, building trust and delivering faster, more personalized results.
- We thrive on autonomy, innovation, and trust. We hire people for their expertise and give them the space to own it, and we push each other (kindly, but competitively) to deliver the kind of work that becomes a case study worth bragging about.
- Our shoutout culture keeps positivity high and recognition flowing — because when one person launches something great, it lifts the whole team.
- We’ve built a space that encourages innovation. Every team member is empowered to pitch bold ideas and backed with the resources to bring them to life.
- Our culture of collaboration emphasizes face-to-face teamwork with each other and with our clients.
And behind our collaborative, people-first approach is a hard-driving operational culture grounded in performance, transparency, and results:
- We track KPIs rigorously, tie our goals directly to our core values, and check progress every two weeks in all-company meetings.
- We’re constantly refining our processes to give clients a consistent white glove experience.
- We’re diligent about QBRs, deeply analytical in how we track our clients’ success, and relentless in optimizing toward real results.
- We practice accountability. Our peer-to-peer performance surveys allow team members to receive actionable feedback from colleagues they work closely with — and even those they don’t — creating 360° visibility and continuous improvement.
- Ongoing learning is baked into our DNA with lunch-and-learns, team trainings, and a commitment to staying sharp, informed, and ahead of the curve.
The outcome? A high-performance culture that delivers real impact. Explore our case studies to see the return on this approach!
How It Benefits You to Work With an Agency That Gets It
When you team up with a marketing agency that balances its culture, you can count on a few good things, like fast, reliable project delivery, a flexible approach, and plenty of fresh ideas. Plus, you’ll build stronger and clearer relationships that lead to better results. You’ll also get great service from employees who are genuinely engaged.
As an example, Agency A might have a strict, hard culture, but they don’t communicate well, and their rigid processes don’t cater to what clients actually need. Agency B, on the other hand, has a laid-back, soft culture that sparks creativity and teamwork to adapt to changing client demands, but they often deal with inefficiencies and late deadlines.
Then there’s Agency C, which strikes the right balance. They get things done efficiently while also focusing on personalized service for their clients. Unlike Agencies A and B, Agency C has what it takes to deliver the outcomes clients want. With their balanced approach, they provide top-notch service and achieve the results that lead to long-term financial success.
Examples of Great Hard and Soft Cultures
Many companies have been well-served by hard, soft, and balanced cultures.
Take Tesla, for example; it has a hardcore culture that emphasizes innovative problem-solving. Employees are driven to come up with profitable solutions to challenges. This focus on pushing boundaries and constantly innovating is why Tesla keeps rolling out advanced electric vehicles at lightning speed.
On the flip side, you have Patagonia, which is all about a supportive culture that values employee well-being. They emphasize work-life balance and even have an on-site childcare center. Their mission focuses on sustainability, and they give back by pledging 1% of their sales to environmental causes. This nurturing culture has been key to Patagonia’s success.
Then, there’s HubSpot, a standout company that manages to strike a good balance between hard and soft cultural elements. They create a harmonious environment that caters to customers, the company, and employees alike, which results in happy clients and loyal customers. HubSpot prioritizes its people while offering technical and data-driven products. Their people-first culture includes flexible work options, leadership training, and open channels for feedback.
These examples show how important company culture is to success. Similarly, businesses can achieve great results with a marketing agency that balances its culture to meet both employee and client needs.
Questions to Ask Prospective Marketing Agencies
Knowing how important culture is, look for agencies with well-balanced cultures that prioritize the appropriate aspects of hard and soft cultures. Agencies should emphasize both metrics and relationships in their client interactions.
Partner With a Culture-Driven Agency Today
Marketing agency culture has an undeniable impact on how well clients perform, and it’s important to have both hard and soft culture in this fast-changing field. Marketing agencies that focus on aligning their culture and balancing these two types create a space where collaboration and creativity can thrive. This is key for building strong client relationships and achieving long-term success.
When picking a marketing agency, culture is a big deal. A balanced culture leads to better results, stronger connections, and a more enjoyable partnership. Reach out to Avalaunch Media today to learn more about our unique approach to building meaningful client relationships and achieving real success.
