It is human nature to avoid conflict or a difficult discussion while managing a business partner. That said, corporate marketers should always be direct when communicating with their agencies. Some people worry that full disclosure about an issue will damage the overall account. It is more damaging to both the agency and the client, if issues are not addressed and the next call is to say the relationship is over.
The traditional client approach to a relationship review was a one-way evaluation of an agency. A regular 360 provides more valuable insights and two-way evaluations improve productivity, eliminate misunderstandings and stop issues from festering.
Lowe Roche hosted a breakfast meeting at the Spoke Club in Toronto on December 4 so industry professionals could hear from the world-renowned Alan Middleton, executive director of York University’s Schulich Executive Education Centre, and author of Come Together: A guidebook for enhancing the value of the client-agency relationship in the marketing communications industry.
Middleton shared his 20-point Code of Client-Agency Conduct about process and people and how optimize the value of the relationship. I especially liked #19: regularly re-launch the client-agency relationship to “keep the thrill”. He reinforced the importance of eliminating blame and rather focused on the need to develop a greater understanding and ongoing communications to improve relationships.
While chemistry and communications are always vital to any relationship, money is also a point where all too often agency relationships can break down. Agency consultants need to remember that corporations today face tremendous pressure to be accountable for value of budgets earmarked for agencies.
Clients must always remember that when you ask an agency to do something, there are no freebies. An agency business model is based on agency staff tracking and billing their time to make a profit. Some of our clients believe that agency consultants are expensive. Yes, a $150 or $200 hourly rate sounds like a lot, but you have to remember that agencies are well equipped with the right resources, stakeholder relationships and public relations talent because that is the core of their business. Having said that, a strong financial relationship with an agency is achieved when there are no surprises.
To be an effective client, it is important to understand what motivates an agency – and it isn’t just money. Since agencies are a service business and their real assets are people and brains, agency leaders are driven by a process:
- Taking care of their people: providing them a stimulating place to work, great accounts, and rewarding them
- Motivating staff to work hard and smart for their clients
- As a result of this emphasis, the client sees good work and is more likely to increase agency budgets and give them more work if the results are sufficient
- In turn, agency leaders are growing their business, able to make a better profit and invest more in people skills
Repeat this cycle enough times with a growing client roster, and the agency grows. As a client, your business will prosper with impressive communications and creative to reach your stakeholders to drive your business and revenue. From a personal perspective, if you engage in a transparent, respectful and honest client-agency relationship, your work day is far more enjoyable.
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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