I loved the article by Brian Perkins in this weeks’ AdAge (http://adage.com/columns/article?article_id=144405). There has been so much talk around change and while we are finally beginning to see it in action, it has been slow. From our position in the new business world, there are three key places where agencies can show they have changed.
1. Agencies talk about how they are idea neutral but still present themselves in a siloed format; Business cards with different company names, strategists and creative people for each discipline, and difficulty demonstrating the thread of an idea through all channels.
2. Demonstrating that media has a seat at the table. Agencies still put media at the end of their presentations. This does not demonstrate integration. In the best presentations we have seen, agencies have account planners and media planners presenting together or at the very least media planning presents after account planning, but before creative.
3. Analytics: This is a very important criterion for most clients and agencies still have to learn how to communicate their capabilities. First of all, when you are presenting cases and providing results, don’t take credit for everything. If the stock price went up, it wasn’t all because of the communications. Provide some context to your results. Second, when presenting your capabilities, be sure that the intelligence behind the numbers is clear. As Brian said every agency has lots of data and the key to clients is less about whether you own it or use outside suppliers, but more about what you did with it and how it impacted your programs going forward. Also be sure your analytics team talks in a language everyone can understand.
And the last point relative to analytics…the creative team should be aware of and understand the use and implications, not making comments like “not my thing”.
Change will continue to occur and I think agencies and clients alike will always be trying to catch up. Quite frankly it is what makes this business fun.
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