If your agency meetings have started to feel like a recurring subscription you forgot to cancel, it’s time for a reality check. There is a massive difference between a partner who drives your growth and a passenger who just enjoys the ride (and the retainer). Before you commit to the soul-crushing paperwork of a full-blown pitch, you owe it to your budget – and your sanity – to ask these ten questions:
1. When was the last time you surprised and delighted us ?
And no, a box of lukewarm cupcakes with the agency logo on them doesn’t count. We mean a strategic pivot or a creative “aha!” moment that didn’t make you wince. If the last time you were delighted was during the pitch, you’re officially in a “ghosting” phase.
2. If we didn’t speak for a week, would we actually notice?
This is the ultimate test of your retainer. If the agency disappeared into a silent void for seven days and your business kept humming along perfectly, you aren’t paying for strategic partnership – you’re paying for a very expensive security blanket.
3. What’s the last really smart thing you shared with us?
Agencies should be your external brain, not just your extra hands. If the last “insight” they gave you was “video is big on TikTok right now,” you’re paying for a news feed, not a consultant. You want the kind of smarts that make you feel like you’ve just had a double espresso.
4. Who actually works here anymore?
Is the senior lead who sold you the dream still on the business, or have you been quietly handed off to a more junior team? If the turnover is higher than a pancake house, your brand soul is leaking out the door.
5. What’s the AI plan (besides “we’re looking into it“)?
If your agency doesn’t have a clear AI roadmap, they’re basically bringing a horse and carriage to a Formula 1 race. You need to know:
- Are they using it to save time (and are they charging you less for that time)?
- Do we have guardrails so our data doesn’t end up in a public bot’s stomach?
6. Are you caught up in Holding Company Hunger Games?
With all the mergers and synergy talk you need to know: Is your account lead focused on your ROI, or are they busy updating their org charts because their department was ‘consolidated’ into a different business unit.
7. Are you growing our business or just keeping the lights on?
Is the agency a thermostat (changing the environment) or a thermometer (just telling you it’s cold)? If they’re just executing the SOW like a robot, they aren’t a partner; they’re a utility bill.
8. Is there a turf war happening on my dime?
If your creative agency and your media agency are fighting over who owns the brand’s soul like divorced parents at a birthday party, you’re the one losing out. Performance should be the only goal, not who gets to claim the most line items in a budget.
9. Does our contract belong in a museum?
If your Scope of Work hasn’t changed since 2021, you’re likely paying for ‘print ad coordination’ while your competitors are winning the Metaverse (or at least the current version of it). A stale SOW is just a slow way to overpay.
10. Would I recommend you to a friend, or would that be a mean prank?
Be honest. If a peer asked for a recommendation, would you enthusiastically hand over the agency’s number, or would you change the subject and ask about the weather? Your gut usually knows the ROI before the spreadsheet does.
The Request for Transformation (RFT)
If these questions left you feeling a bit awkward, don’t panic.
You don’t have to fire everyone and start a grueling six-month pitch process. You can issue a Request for Transformation. It’s the marriage counseling of the marketing world – a chance to reset the rules, fix the fees, and get the A-team back in the room without the drama of a breakup.
Agency pitches are essentially high-stakes first dates: A choreographed dance of tailored suits, polite laughter and a collective effort to keep the ‘quirks’ under wraps until the second meeting.
Whether you’re looking for a media, digital, or PR partner, a pitch is a rare chance to peer into the industry looking glass – and hopefully find a partner, not just a vendor who’s really good at PowerPoint.
When you invite smart people into a room to tell you how great your business could be, it’s bound to spark some soul-searching.
That’s the dream.
But sometimes, the dream starts to feel more like a fever dream.
And while most pitches go smoothly, keep an eye out for these six red flags that suggest you might be getting ‘pitched’ in more ways than one.
1. The Guru
The agency brings in a ‘Guru’- a person with a brain the size of a planet and insights that make you feel like you’ve reached enlightenment.
The catch? The Guru lives in a different time zone, possibly on a different tectonic plate, and is about as likely to work on your daily account as a unicorn is to lead your Tuesday status call. Once the contract is signed, they vanish into the mists of ‘Strategic Oversight’.
Reality check: What is the actual, physical access to this person? Will they be in the trenches with us, or are they just here for the opening act?
2. The Shiny Object
We’ve all seen it: a flashy VR experience, a viral stunt involving a high-altitude balloon, or an app that does something cool but totally useless. It’s easy to get distracted by the glitter, but remember: A one-off stunt is a sprint; your brand needs a marathon runner. Don’t let a clever ad distract you from the fact that they haven’t mentioned your actual business goals once.
Reality check: How does this cool toy actually integrate with our boring-but-necessary long-term requirements?
3. Theatre Overload
We love enthusiasm as much as anyone else, but there is a fine line between passionate partner and three-ring circus. If the agency spends more time on the choreography of their entrance than on their data strategy, be careful. You’re hiring a team, not a troupe of interpretive dancers.
Reality check: When the smoke machine stops and the confetti is swept away, what is the core offering that actually differentiates them?
4. It’s All About Me
This is the ‘Lead Role Casting’ trap. Either one charismatic ego-tripper dominates the entire 60 minutes, or less senior staff (the people who will actually be doing the work) are sitting in the corner like Victorian children – seen but not heard.
If your team are like ghosts in the room and don’t don’t hear from the people you’ll be talking to every day, you aren’t seeing the agency; you’re seeing a monologue.
Reality check: Can we meet the rest of the team for a coffee – without the Lead Actor present?
5. The Missing Connection
Chemistry is the secret sauce. You can have the smartest strategy in the world, but if your team leaves the room feeling like they just sat through a particularly cold dental cleaning, it’s not going to work. If there’s no spark, no amount of ROI will make those 9:00 AM meetings bearable.
Reality check: Why does this feel like a bad blind date, and what is specifically missing from the emotional connection here?
6. The Budget Magician
This agency promises the moon, the stars, and a Super Bowl spot on a shoestring budget. They’ve looked at your modest ;ocal radio budget and somehow produced a plan that includes a world tour and an A-list celebrity endorsement. It feels like magic … because that’s what it is – illusion. You’ll sign the deal, and three months later, the ‘unexpected costs’ will start appearing like rabbits out of a hat.
Reality check: This looks incredible, but can you walk us through the math? Which parts of this plan are based on best-case scenarios and which parts are actually guaranteed?
The Bottom Line
All these warning signs are your ‘check engine’ lights of the marketing world. And course any successful search depends on a solid process – not just your gut instinct.
For a comprehensive guide on how to prepare for your agency search process as well as things to look for (and avoid), call your friendly agency search consultant or check out the guide we wrote for the Association of Canadian Advertisers on Searching For A Marketing Communications Agency Partner: – A Guidebook for Marketers on Agency Searches.
Let’s be honest: the relationship between a brand and its agency is a lot like a long-term marriage. In the beginning, there were fancy dinners, blue-sky thinking, and a boat load of enthusiasm. But what about lately? Are things unfolding like you imagined, or are you acting like you’re roommates arguing over who left the AI-generated trash in the hallway?
If you’re wondering whether your agency is still “the one” or if you’re just paying a very expensive monthly subscription for mediocrity, it’s time for a serious vibe check. Here are a few questions to think about:
1. The “Surprise and Delight” Barometer
When was the last time your agency actually surprised you?
The Dream: They bring you a brilliant consumer insight that makes you say, “Damn, they’re smart.”
The Reality: They bring you a “trending” TikTok idea that was cool three weeks ago and features a dancing cat.
The Test: If you didn’t hear from them for a full week, would you notice? Or would you just enjoy the blissful silence and the extra room in your calendar? If the answer is “I’d finally get some work done,” your retainer might just be an expensive keep the lights on fee.
2. Holding Company Musical Chairs
The ad world is currently one giant game of ‘Hungry Hungry Hippos’ and with all the reshuffling, you could be forgiven for thinking your agency has been more focused on their new office floor plan than your 2026 goals.
So check the room. Is your senior leadership still there, or has the holding company shake-up replaced your seasoned veteran with an enthusiastic but more junior team?
3. The Robot in the Room (AI)
Sure, we’re all using AI, but is your agency using it to help you or just to invoice you faster?
Have they guided you through their AI workflow, or are they hoping you don’t notice the sixth finger on the hand of the model in your latest social ad? (Trust me – it’s happened…)
And… if you don’t have contractual language around AI guardrails and ownership, you’re basically living in the Wild West. Without a sheriff.
4. The “Play Nice” Factor
Are your agencies working together in a beautiful symphony, or is it more of a turf war where the PR team is currently staging a coup against your media agency?
If you’re spending more time mediating playground fights than reviewing creative, your integrated solution is actually a fragmented headache.
5. Recommendation or Restraining Order?
Here is the ultimate litmus test: If a fellow marketer asked for a recommendation, would you give them your agency’s number, or would you pull them aside and whisper, “Run for your life”?
The “It’s Not Me, It’s You” Solution
If these questions made you sweat, you don’t necessarily need a full-blown agency search which – if not done properly – is the corporate equivalent of moving houses during a hurricane.
Instead, try a “Request for Transformation.” It’s a formal way of saying: “I love you, but you need to start trying again.”It’s a chance to update your Scope of Work, set new AI boundaries, and remind them that you’re paying for a growth engine, not a night light.
Is it time to redefine the relationship? If so, we can help you draft a Request for Transformation framework to get your current agency back on track (or help you figure out if it’s truly time to swipe left).
So you’re ready to go find a new agency…? Really? Are you sure about that? Because the reality is you will likely make any process almost impossible to complete without having a clear picture of what you’re searching for and how you’re going to find it.
So here are a dozen questions to think about before you start. And if you think this is hard work – trust me – it’s way harder not answering them:
Why are we doing this?
Do you know why you’re looking for a new agency? What’s changed in your requirements that’s causing you to contemplate a new agency, and why can’t your current agency fulfill your needs? If those initial questions are even remotely difficult, you’re falling at the first fence and need to get your reasoning clear. Because without understanding why, you can’t begin to define the kind of agency your organization needs.
Have you done your homework on yourself?
The better equipped you are in understanding your own organization, the more likely you are to find the right agency partner. If your current agency relationship has run into difficulties, it’s essential to understand what role your team and organization played in navigating those difficulties. By being honest with yourself, you’re able to identify internal challenges and roadblocks, and proactively deal with them before looking for a new agency and potentially duplicating those problems before you start.
Are you prepared for disruption?
No matter how well prepared you are, marketers should be aware that any search process is going to be disruptive. Marketers should consider what current initiatives are being worked on and whether to expedite or delay those initiatives, pending the appointment of a new agency. Even once appointed, expect delays resulting from handover from one agency to another and the inevitable learning curve that comes with any new agency.
Have you defined your scope of work?
This is often one of the hardest exercises for marketers to pull together – either because they’ve not defined their scope recently, or it’s such a moving target that committing pen to paper is difficult. But when it comes to finding a new agency, it’s a challenge that has to be addressed before you start. Why? First, because you want to define the services you want your new agency to be able to deliver. And second because eventually you’re going to want a cost against that scope of work.
What’s a realistic timetable given our internal calendars?
We often get called in to manage a pitch with the mandate that ‘we need to get this done as soon as possible…’ We propose a timetable and the client says ‘so and so is away, we have a conference that week and, and, and’. Add in logistics and preparation time for agencies, and the timetable moves out. So before you start, create a realistic workback schedule and share big picture timing with your chosen agencies to ensure they can accommodate key dates.
Do you have a budget?
Eek! Even if you’re not asking for some sort of spec work that would need to be properly paid for, you’ll need to set aside a budget for travel (yours and your selected agencies) and legal work. If you’re asking for any spec work you need to budget more than a nominal feel. As a general rule of thumb, that means the actual fair market cost for the work, less profit – shared equally between you and your prospective agencies. For more on best practices around spec work and appropriate payment, please ask.
Do you have the ok to proceed?
Many organizations have corporate governance and / or specific procurement requirements around sourcing services greater than a certain amount, so it’s worth checking to ensure you’re clear before you start. Marketers should also be familiar with their incumbent agency contracts, notice and termination requirements – before initiating a search for a new agency.
Have you told your incumbent?
Allowing your incumbent agency to find out you’re searching for a new agency from someone other than you is a complete no-no. Your incumbent agency should be the first agency you share the news that you’re going to market with, together with your anticipated timing and formalities around termination in accordance with the terms of your contract.
Do you have a search process?
Today, there are many search processes from which to choose beyond the traditional RFI / RFP. Whatever you decide, it’s essential to have a defined process to share with your chosen agencies so they can understand what they’re getting into. In the event they see the process and choose not to participate, it’s better to know that sooner rather than later.
Who’s your search team?
Any marketer searching for a new agency needs to appoint a search team who can be available and will attend all agency meetings. Your chosen resources have to make a commitment to make time for all agency meetings and have the time to assess and discuss each agency during evaluation. While your team can comprise diverse resources across the organization, it’s important that whoever you appoint are fully empowered to make the best decision for your organization
What are your evaluation criteria?
You and your search team need to define and align on your search criteria, together with your scoring mechanism, before beginning. This is needed to align teams around specific evaluation methodologies and to provide guidance to agencies around how they’ll be evaluated and what’s critical to success. For more on creating the perfect scorecard read this.
What are the politics?
Yes really. It’s important for marketers to be aware of the politics of their own organizations and be proactive about dealing with them. If, for example, there’s pressure or bias to see or favour a particular agency or eliminate a particular agency early on, then those issues have to be dealt with and all biases eliminated before you start. Simply put, if you don’t have a level playing field, you’re not ready for an agency search.
Pulling the trigger on an agency search isn’t something any marketer should take lightly. Careful preparation is essential to any search process and if any of this has made you sweat a little, perhaps we can help.
While agency searches may not be everyone’s favourite thing to have to deal with, they’re exercises that have to be carefully prepared and managed.
As you map your search process there may be additional questions worth considering to help create a more robust search approach, leading to a more rewarding outcome and stronger agency partnership. For example, you’ll need to consider:
- Why are you (really) calling a review?
- Who should be involved in the process?
- Do you need a Search Consultant?
- How much will it all cost?
- How long will it all take?
- Are there restrictions within incumbent agency contracts?
- What kind of pitch process is best?
- How should communication be handled inside and outside the organization?
Ultimately, the decision to call an agency search is yours – so you need to be sure it’s the right decision and that you have a clear understanding as to why your incumbent agency relationship isn’t working, as well as a clear vision for the kind of agency best suited to your needs moving forward.
Getting this groundwork wrong could not only land you in hot water, it could also potentially be something of a career limiting move. Here’s why:
Your brand is on the line
Generally speaking, marketers don’t change agencies that often. Unless it’s a government or corporate governance requirement, it’s typically either an indication there’s been a material change in resources, scope or requirements and / or something’s not working with an incumbent agency.
Calling another agency search hot on the heels of the last one, won’t look good on your organization, the brands you represent – or you – because it’s an indication your internal challenges are overshadowing what agencies are bringing the table.
Results miss
No matter how well prepared your search process might be, the reality is agency searches can be disruptive to projects, teams, long-term planning activities – and results.
If your team is focused on evaluating new agencies and then settling in a new one until the agency finds its natural rhythm for your business, chances are results are going to be that much more challenging to achieve.
Get the process or choice wrong, and the chances of a marketing or sales results miss are going to increase.
It’ll cost you. (A lot).
Whether or not you choose to ask (and pay) for spec work in your search process, key internal resources are going to have to be pulled from live projects into your search initiative. And when they’re not focused on active projects, that’s an inevitable distraction from doing what they were hired to do.
Should the search process go wrong or – God forbid – have to be repeated, that’s going to eat into valuable time and costs that could otherwise be deployed elsewhere.
Your personal reputation
Whether you realize it or not, an agency search is also an opportunity to for others to evaluate you. Agencies are sizing you and your team up as a potential client. Your executive team will be expecting great things from the new agency and looking to you to make the right decision. And your own team will be looking to ensure they have the right agency in place to help them execute what needs to get done.
If the process or new agency falls short of expectations, all eyes are going to be on you and the choices you made along the way, and future decisions around significant marketing choices may be called into question.
The decision to undertake any agency review shouldn’t be under estimated. Well-chosen agencies can form the basis of a relationship that could last decades and will have a lasting impact on the development of marketing strategies, the growth and success of your business and the development of your brand.
Cutting corners, not planning properly and ultimately getting your search wrong, could not only cost you but also damage your reputation. Taking the time to get it right by planning each step will pay dividends in the long-run and reflect well on you, your team and your company.
How can we help ensure your next search is a success?
If you’ve ever bought a house, chances are that before you made the commitment to purchase, you envisioned actually living there. In doing so, you could see the potential the house had to meet your lifestyle for the next five or ten years – perhaps longer.
It’s unlikely you interviewed previous owners on their experience with the house, because their requirements and lifestyle were likely irrelevant to your purchasing decision.
You likely narrowed your criteria by making sure the house was the right size and in the right location and had various attributes that differentiated it from others. But once those criteria were met, you envisioned the potential the house had for your own needs.
So when searching for a new agency, it’s strange that most marketers (and corresponding search processes) tend to focus on agencies’ past performance, rather than their future vision.
In other words, are previous strategies or creative ideas for other businesses (likely unrelated to yours), really the best measure of an agency’s future performance on your business?
You’ve likely selected the agencies you’re looking at based on their size, capabilities location and lack of conflicting business. But instead of looking deep into the past to see if the agency is right for you, why not look into their future as a better measure of their ability grow your business in the future?
Here are ten future focused questions worth considering:
What’s the agency’s future vision for your business?
Even if the agency doesn’t have all the pieces to be able to answer this in entirety, it’ll help understand both how the agency thinks and get a sense of how they view your business in the future and how they can meet those needs.
What’s the agency’s view of their business?
The view of their business is an equally important measure of the future. By understanding where they see the advertising, digital and / or media businesses are heading, you can start to build up an understanding of they’ll be thinking about adding real value to your business
Who and how are they hiring?
Understanding what positions the agency is planning to hire for also provides a good window into which areas the agency is planning to grow. Digging deeper and looking at what qualities they really value, will also help define the kind of agency it will be – versus the kind of agency it’s been in the past.
How does the agency experiment?
Responsible experimentation is an important ingredient in any company’s ability to grow. Hands-on learning, experimenting with solutions, approaches or technologies, are good measures of their ability to evolve as the business continues to evolve.
What’s the staffing model?
Flexible staffing models are a leading indicator of a baked-in readiness for inevitable change. Flexible staffing models also signal an ability to adapt to market conditions and your requirements as they evolve.
What’s the agency working on?
Instead of asking what the agency has worked on in the past – try asking what they’re working on now. This isn’t about asking for trade secrets – it’s about asking other client’s real-time enthusiasm or confidence in the agency’s ability to solve problems for tomorrow and how the agency is planning to evolve for the future.
How will they solve your problems?
Again, this isn’t looking at past problems for other clients, it’s about you and your business. Defining how they propose to solve your problems will give you an idea of how they’ll go about tackling and solving future issues.
Who are the real agency thought leaders?
Aside from case studies and news releases, an agency’s social footprint is a good measure of where the real thought leadership is coming from. Look at blog or Twitter feeds and ask where current thought leadership is coming from and how that fits with the future of the agency and your business.
Who’s at the table?
Who’s doing the talking or, if it’s a written credentials assessment, what’s the focus? Is the big picture traditional media or is it an evolving multi-channel, multi-screen experience? These answers will give you a view of what the agency views as most important and how they propose to focus on your business.
What’s the vibe?
Perhaps the most important evaluation metric is your take on the agency’s chemistry or vibe. How are groups set up and positioned for idea exchange and collaboration? These are the teams a that’ll work on your business if you choose them.
So, what’s a better approach in searching for a new agency? Looking in the rear view mirror at what an agency has done in the past? Or taking a peek into the future to unlock future problems and deliver future results?
Image by freepik
Whether or not you’re currently contemplating a pitch, chances are it’s something you’ll have to deal with at some point in corporate life.
While it’s true, some pitches can be complex and the process can be time consuming or disruptive, they don’t have to be. There are some simple steps you can take to set your pitch process up for success and perhaps even enjoy the process along the way.
Whether or not you’re contemplating an agency search consultant to help, here are some dos and don’ts to help get your pitch process off to a great start and keep things on track while you select the agency that’s right for you:
THINGS TO DO
Come to a strong point of view on why you’re looking for a new agency
Sounds easy but unless you’ve got some outside help, the real answers can be tough to uncover. Ask yourself why you’re looking for an agency now. How does your incumbent agency really feel about you as a client? Do they have insight into how your organization works that would help in searching for a new agency?
Drill down into what you’re looking for and why
One of the things we hear most often is “creative! – they’ve got to be creative”. Fair enough. But is your incumbent creative? And if so what aspects of the relationship aren’t working? Quality control? Budget planning? Delivery? Or is the incumbent not creative because there’s a briefing or other input issue? Finding out the why’s now will help deliver a stronger solution at the end of the process.
Be prepared to ask and answer some tough questions
Parting ways with your incumbent agency can be a bit like a divorce. Set aside the harsh comments and take a really good look at your own organization, process and teams and ask what you could have done and will do better in future. Again, this is difficult without outside, objective help from an Agency Search Consultant, but asking tough questions can reveal a lot about your organization, how you work and the kind of agency that’s really suited to your needs.
Be flexible
You think you’re after something in particular when in reality the qualities you’re most looking for may appear unexpectedly. The search process, if done correctly, should provide a spectrum of agency approaches and capabilities which help frame up what’s really right for your business.
Empower a small, dedicated team
It’s very difficult to steer an agency search by committee, so creating a small empowered team to help manage your pitch process will help deliver the best result. And yes, you may have corporate in there, the marketing group wants key representation, IT want to make sure you’re not hiring the techno-illiterate, finance want to look at the numbers and several other groups have found time to come up with their own opinion.
But I implore you to whittle those numbers down and create a focused and empowered team to drive this process on your company’s behalf.
Make sure your (real) team meets their (real) team
OK, it’s true – sometimes the agency brings their ‘A’ team to party and the pitch team isn’t always the team that’s going to work on your business. And if we’re honest here, sometimes the same can be said of clients. Senior executives are part of the pitch process and those in the trenches sometimes never get to meet the agency until handover day. So at some point in the process make sure you have a live working team meeting.
And then…
THINGS TO AVOID
Forget you need a budget
The reality is, the pitch process is going to cost you something and it’s obviously good business practice to make sure you’ve accrued enough to see you through the process. Are you going to compensate agencies for strategic or spec work? How many agencies times how much? Is there travel involved? Do you want to capture soft costs against time spent? The other benefit of this exercise is it can help keep everyone focused on keeping the process on track.
Have all the presentations at your office
Sounds silly but it’s true. To get a true measure of agency chemistry, where your future team operates and how their agency is physically set-up can be insightful. Are offices open and set up for collaboration? Do you get a good sense of teamwork? Does everyone seem happy or are they running around like headless chickens – and how would they integrate your business into their day-to-day?
Throw everything you can think of into a project brief
A project brief should a window into how your proposed agencies tackle problems, think, work and demonstrate their ability to come up with solutions within a defined period of time. Expecting agencies to solve a massive strategic challenge in one pitch meeting is unrealistic.
Get distracted by shiny objects
I’ve never been a big fan of stunts, short-term one-off technical maybe’s, or highly finished creative simply because it distracts from the core question: Is this agency right for our company for the mid to long-term? There can be any number of criteria you’re looking to evaluate so make sure those criteria are held front and centre – even in the face of shiny objects.
Make the process inconsistent
Once you’ve started your search – you have to be consistent and ensure there’s a level playing field for all participants. This applies to process, answering questions, evaluation criteria and consistency of participation among your core team – either in or out from start to finish. Again, this is something an Agency Search Consultant can help you with.
Overthink the process
Yes – switching agencies can be disruptive. It can be time consuming and it can prompt tough questions within your own organization about your own marketing approach. But in the end, remember the reason you’re in a pitch process is to create a stronger marketing offering and to help create a stronger business for your company.
If you’ve done your homework and hold fast to some of these basic principles during the process you can rest assured you did good.
So do good. And focus on finding the right agency that’s right for you. If you’d like to know more, call us or ask the Association of Canadian Advertisers for their best practice guide on Searching For A Marketing Communications Agency Partner authored by us.
Image by rawpixel.com on Freepik.
With laptops open and a lively discussion underway recently, a client asked me where to look on an agency website for the information she was looking for.
In this instance, the client was looking for a long-list of agencies to put before her Agency Selection Committee and with multiple choices in-hand, said client was trawling through an array of irrelevant content in an effort to find the detail she needed to provide context and verification for her choices. In one example, the agency home page was so confusing, the client asked how the agency could even be a realistic consideration if their own site was virtually unintelligible. Wrapped up in some sort of paintbox game, there were no clear links to content, navigation was unintuitive, lots of focus on describing how smart they were and no obvious connection to the content that a potential client might be looking for. So the lesson here is if a client (or perhaps a search consultant – even investors) has landed on your website, chances are they’re looking for something. And it’s not how to play game of hide and seek with who you are. Rather, they’re looking for very high level overview of your agency – not a barrage of television commercials or websites that demonstrate your creativity. Yes, that may come later, but typically, first blush, vital statistics will encompass:A list of major clients
Why? At this stage a long-list selection is likely around clients that may be a conflict and perhaps a search for relevant industry expertise. It’s not about a drilling into creative (yet) in place of a list – it’s just not helpful. In fact it’s distracting.Offices
Why? Typically clients or search consultants just need to know if you can service their needs in whatever market they’re searching for.Size
Why? It gives an instant sense of scale as to whether the agency is too small (or perhaps to big) for a client’s needs. Criteria around size comes up more often than one might suspect. Some clients have minimum revenue criteria, others cannot represent more than a certain percentage of an agency’s billing, while others want to make sure they’ll be a big fish in a smaller pond. Size matters!Areas of expertise
Why? A search is typically prompted by a specific need. In many cases that today that need is often around digital. So spelling out your broad areas of expertise will only help.Contact
Well, hopefully this needs no explanation. But you’d be surprised how many agencies make even that difficult. A specific name, Email and a phone number is typically what’s needed at this stage. I’m not saying this is all a client, agency search consultant or potential investor might be looking for – of course not. But in doing an initial pass (particularly if no agency search consultant is involved, and the prospective client is unfamiliar with the market), then your agency needs to make clients, offices, size, expertise and yes – who to talk to – easy to find. Really. It’s that simple. Please. And thank you.Image by freepik
Whether you’re a client looking for marketing services, or an agency pitching your wares, the question of who’s really calling the shots can be a pivotal one.
On the one hand, the organizational perspective might be that marketing teams are evaluated on and are seeking things like improved performance, chemistry harmony between teams and agencies, creative brilliance and / or strategic smarts. On the other, client procurement teams are likely going to be evaluated on things like cost based efficiencies, savings, synergies and risk mitigation.
And with those perspectives, it’s hardly any wonder marketing and procurement teams can find themselves at odds with each other, leaving potential agency partners a little bewildered as to who’s really calling the shots.
We’re increasingly asked to work with procurement when undertaking an agency search – either to work on the search itself, or to work with them through the negotiation or contract development process. And while relationships between marketing and procurement vary between organizations, there are some consistent themes that are worth addressing.
In our experience, the primary issue many organizations still have difficulty coming to terms with is that marketing needs to be viewed as an investment – not a cost. In other words, it’s not something that needs to be “minimized” – it’s an investment that needs to be “maximized”.
So how should each side approach agency selection or contract negotiation in order to meet the goals of minimizing risk and costs, while ensuring maximum performance through best in class capabilities?
Here are ten approaches worth considering when marketing and procurement teams need to work seamlessly to achieve the best value (rather than just best price) for their organizations:
Same Team
First of all, marketing and procurement aren’t on different “sides” – there shouldn’t be sides at all. Both sets of players are on the same team – so eradicate the idea of “sides” from the get-go.
Start Early
Many will have read about the idea of starting the procurement exercise early – but how many actually define a working relationship between marketing and procurement before it becomes necessary? And how many actually involve procurement in the entire search process when they know procurement will take the lead on the negotiation?
Define Roles
Because marketing and procurement look at search and selection, and negotiation through different lenses – define and agree specific tasks for each group, leveraging respective strengths and skill-sets.
Get The Brief On Paper
Brief as you would an agency. Procurement work on multiple contracts for different stakeholders – just as agencies work on multiple clients. So define your objectives, propose your strategy, define go and no-go items, propose negotiation points and spell out your desired end state in a written brief.
Acknowledge Why You’re Here
If your agency search or contract negotiation is anything other than a corporate governance requirement, clearly define why you’re negotiating now. In all likelihood, lowest price isn’t the only or primary reason you’re here – so spell out why you’ve called an agency search or want your MSA or contract renegotiated.
Define Value
Lowest price rarely equates to greatest value, so define and agree what constitutes “value” to create an MSA or contract that delivers greatest value for the organization.
Don’t Chuck It Over The Fence
We’ve seen many agency search processes conclude with a winning agency, and the marketing team then hand-off the process to procurement to negotiate and finalize a contract. Procurement then have little or no context to negotiate “value” and marketing teams are quickly frustrated that the process takes longer than they’d like and / or key details aren’t covered.
Define Key Points
Every aspect of an MSA or contract is negotiable, so defining where you’re flexible and where you’re not up-front will help your organization create a true, value based MSA or contract.
Look At The Sum of The Parts
(Not just some of the parts.) As I’ve said before, every aspect of an MSA or contract is negotiable. Greatest value from a contract will be derived from looking at the agreement holistically, rather than piecemeal.
Be Like a Pilot
Because planes have dual controls, pilots identify who has control so they’re not pulling in opposite directions before they take-off. Ultimately someone has to lead the negotiation process and whoever’s responsible can save everyone involved time, effort and uncertainty by defining parameters and expectations in the key objectives and outcomes of the negotiation.
One of the biggest mistakes made by marketing and procurement teams is leveraging the marketer’s brand to lower prices to unsustainable levels. Low rates that are too good to be true usually are, and the agency will ultimately have to cut corners to keep and maintain your business in the long-term.
Proactive planning between marketing and procurement teams to define expectations, objectives, true value metrics and negotiation points upfront adds value and will almost certainly help you avoid undertaking a new negotiation – or even agency search – sooner than you’d like.
Image by jcomp on Freepik.
As marketing management consultants, we’ve seen many agency relationships delivering on functional skill sets, but failing on their soft skills – overriding their functional capabilities.
Make no mistake, soft skills pack a punch with marketers when agencies are being evaluated. Wikipedia define soft skills as follows:“Soft skills complement hard skills which are the occupational requirements of a job and many other activities. They are related to feelings, emotions, insights and (some would say) an ‘inner knowing’: i.e. they provide an important complement to ‘hard skills’ and IQ.”
When defining agency requirements, it’s relatively straightforward to establish a framework of requirements – whether that’s around business expertise, specific capabilities or perhaps technical knowledge. But soft skills aren’t so easy to define and quantify because they require marketers to really understand themselves, and what attributes enhance their own unique business environments. While soft skills are different for all marketers, here are eight of the most common attributes that we’ve seen make the difference – even when agencies seem to have the functional capabilities but the chemistry doesn’t seem quite right: