How do you view your advertising agencies? As strategic partners or vendors? Are you committed to a long-term partnerships or situational relationships?
The answers to these questions shape an organization’s view and treatment of its advertising agency network members. In turn, the approach taken contributes greatly to the level of success that each of those relationships achieves.
There is an adage that suggests all advertisers receive good service from their agency partners, but great clients receive extraordinary service and superior results. Having spent time on both the agency and client side, I have seen this maxim play out many times. Advertisers that value the perspective and appreciate the efforts of their agency teams attract better, more highly motivated agency team members.
Agencies that are embraced as valued consultants are more willing to invest in those client relationships. They delve more deeply into understanding key issues impacting an advertiser’s business and go above and beyond when it comes to deploying time and resources to deliver impactful work that can drive a client’s in-market success.
In most organizations, the monies invested in marketing and advertising are material in nature. Advertisers invest these funds with the goal of driving demand for their brands and building strong end-user relationships that result in profitable business growth. Successful marketers understand that strong agency relationships lead to higher returns on their advertising investment. More importantly, they have acted on those beliefs, developing tools and processes that allow them to be more effective in the stewardship of their agency partners.
C-suite exposure, cross-functional interaction, frequent and effective strategic briefings, streamlined approval processes and candid two-way communication are emblematic of the practices that successful advertisers employ when it comes to managing their agency network. It is no surprise that these same traits are reflective of organizations that take a long-term view of their agency relationships and embrace the notion of a “partnership” when it comes to strategic marketing service providers.
As Brad Sugars, business speaker, author and entrepreneur once said: “Business is all about relationships… how well you build them determines how well they build your business.”