Like the Wizard of Oz, some agencies do not want to reveal the people behind the curtain when pitching for new business. If you are conducting an agency review, think smart to find the best agency and account team to market your business or organization.
“We had a very impressive 60 minute presentation delivered almost entirely by a communicator with more than 15 years of experience,” said a VP of Marketing at a financial services company. “Our executives immediately connected with her strategic advice and industry knowledge. You can’t imagine our surprise when she ended by saying we would get 10 per cent of her time and 90 per cent of the time of an account co-ordinator who hadn’t said a word in the meeting.”
It is unwise for an agency to only introduce their senior leaders if the long-term plan is to assign more junior communicators after they win the business. This approach proves disastrous if the client experiences ‘love at first sight’ with the agency’s top guns at a pitch meeting. If the agency intends to have more junior to intermediate consultants be active on the account, those same communicators should be active in the presentation.
Clients reviewing agencies need to be open-minded during the systematic review process. Don’t confuse age with wisdom. New communicators provide great value to an account team, particularly in creative event planning, media relations and social media initiatives. Account teams should have a mix of talent, but it is a fair assumption that the account leader should be an intermediate to senior level consultant. It is rarely necessary to have an account team full of senior leaders – an exception would be a crisis situation.
If an agency solely relies on the same A-Team to convert pitches into revenue, the success won’t last long if the client never sees the pitch team again. Agencies should develop ‘perfect pitching teams’ by casting a wider net within their organization. This will free up senior consultants to continue the hunt but not spread themselves too thin on the accounts they help win.
Tips to Minimize Bait and Switch:
- Develop RFPs that require proposed account team biographies, their tenure with the agency and the per cent of the time that would be dedicated to your account
- Clearly request that only consultants that would be assigned to your account be at the agency credentials presentation
- Ask the account team about other accounts that they lead. Who is the account champion? Would you benefit from any synergies in their agency client list? Is their experience relevant to your business or industry?
- Based on your budget, would you be in the top 5, 10 or 20+ of their client accounts? You may be at the low end of the totem pole, but at least you won’t be surprised and you can ask how they will ensure you and your business remain top of mind.
For the record, I loved working at an agency and I believe that our industry has far more honest, strategic and results-oriented shops than those guilty of bait and switch. With so many impressive agencies to choose from, make sure you uncover the account team with the right chemistry and skill set that will be with you for the long-run.
Sheila Corriveau is a Partner in AgencyLink Inc. (www.agencylink.ca). The marketing consultancy conducts agency searches, consults and delivers workshops to improve client-agency relationships and performance. She can be reached at sheila@agencylink.ca.
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