Delicate Dialectics: What a client wants from a communications partner
May 26, 2003 | 12:00am
If you’re working for an ad agency, a PR consultancy or any communications service company, do you often imagine what your clients say to each other when they’re alone? If you have a hidden camera or tape recorder trained on them, you will probably hear these comments, "They never spend the time to learn about my business." Or "Where did all of the senior people go? They were all here during the bid presentation." Or "They always try to make me part with my communications money by selling me things I didn’t ask for." Or "You really can’t find great agencies, just great people. And they all say they have the network and the clout."
Talking to friends and colleagues in the agency business, and judging from my own experiences, a general list of common mistakes committed by agencies can be cited. There is the belief that the client contact represents the entire company. There are clients who can lead you to believe when they say, "If I approve it, that means it’s a go," only to find out later that you have to set up another meeting to present to somebody higher.
The lack of attempt to understand the internal politics of the organization is an issue. Agency people should have the ability to understand the relationship, or the lack of it, of people that work with them. Otherwise they can get caught in the intricate web of intrigue, factionalism, backstabbing and faultfinding.
The inability to walk the talk is a problem area. A lot of times, agencies boast about client service, but never show the proof via action.
Calls from senior management that are most often directly related to gaining business are a source of irritation. There should be time for some chika or social talk to inject some lightheartedness and spice to an otherwise hard-selling, straight-away professional exchange that can for sure lead to boredom. There are instances, too, that senior management rarely calls, but if they do, they can’t remember much about client priorities or even discuss with clarity what is happening to the account.
A bone of contention is junior members of the staff becoming the "thinkers" for seasoned clients. To a lot of senior clients this can be very insulting unless they themselves express that they’re comfortable dealing with juniors (which is as rare as rain on a hot summer day).
How the agency handles its client’s budget is critical. If it over-bills clients by a large amount for a project without advance notice, or is not authorized by a pre-agreed cost estimate, its competence in fiscal management can be questioned. In this area, little things can become big: invoices that are sent separate from monthly reports, invoices that don’t reflect agreed-upon-spending, haggling over how many people should go to which event due to cost constraints.
Client-agency relationships can be volatile. One must learn to read signals that can tell whether everything is going well, or things are getting shaky. Again experience tells us that certain client actuations can mean danger: client interaction becomes more infrequent; the client contact cannot make decisions on the spot; invoices get more scrutiny than usual; client asks for more of a certain person’s time; and, the agency has no idea if people beyond the interface like its work.
The challenge of every partnership from the point of view of the agency is how to make clients brag about its services behind the scenes. This can be done, as seasoned practitioners will tell you, by learning more about aspects of clients’ business than they know themselves. Take the initiative to know non-traditional marketing communication approaches like advocacy, relationship marketing, Internet-advertising and other customer relationship applications. And as you learn, ensure that senior people in the agency also learn the business and stay in touch on relevant topics. Here are other musts to make partnership promises work:
Master the art of selling. You can make it work to your advantage by first assessing your ability to listen, to handle objections, to make pitches, and to understand how long-term growth can be built. Developing the sales skills are critical. How many advertising and PR people for example have ever been in sales? Remember, effective selling is not a short-term new business bid. It is a lifetime goal.
Be obsessed with learning. Clients don’t expect agencies to know more than them on an issue or product, but that does not mean that you should not get actively involved in a process that will allow you to learn extensively about your clients’ products and services. Clients may even add you to their inner circle if you deserve to be there. And by that time doors will be opened because you have demonstrated your value-added features.
Knowledge beats "flash" almost every time. Be wary about flashy wins. They can be fleeting. You must show that you are infatuated with the client’s business. And in here, there is no substitute for a thorough knowledge of the industry and the category where it belongs, including competitors.
Give importance to the entire presentation game. You must always think through it. Realize that most clients have this question in their heads: "Will I be more comfortable with an agency I like who knows my business or an agency I don’t know who shows 37 Power Point slides and five storyboards?" Where are you in this continuum?
Decide to make processes flawless. Don’t allow mistakes, but if they cannot be avoided, don’t wait for another day to make them right. In most cases, clients "feel it" when you go halfway.
There is a simple formula for success in a client-agency partnership. Action plus differentiation could lead to uniqueness; uniqueness powered by impeccable delivery of services could result to client satisfaction; client satisfaction could bring major revenue increase and business growth.
E-mail: bongo@vasia.com or bongo@campaignsandgrey.net for comments and/or questions.
Talking to friends and colleagues in the agency business, and judging from my own experiences, a general list of common mistakes committed by agencies can be cited. There is the belief that the client contact represents the entire company. There are clients who can lead you to believe when they say, "If I approve it, that means it’s a go," only to find out later that you have to set up another meeting to present to somebody higher.
The lack of attempt to understand the internal politics of the organization is an issue. Agency people should have the ability to understand the relationship, or the lack of it, of people that work with them. Otherwise they can get caught in the intricate web of intrigue, factionalism, backstabbing and faultfinding.
The inability to walk the talk is a problem area. A lot of times, agencies boast about client service, but never show the proof via action.
Calls from senior management that are most often directly related to gaining business are a source of irritation. There should be time for some chika or social talk to inject some lightheartedness and spice to an otherwise hard-selling, straight-away professional exchange that can for sure lead to boredom. There are instances, too, that senior management rarely calls, but if they do, they can’t remember much about client priorities or even discuss with clarity what is happening to the account.
A bone of contention is junior members of the staff becoming the "thinkers" for seasoned clients. To a lot of senior clients this can be very insulting unless they themselves express that they’re comfortable dealing with juniors (which is as rare as rain on a hot summer day).
How the agency handles its client’s budget is critical. If it over-bills clients by a large amount for a project without advance notice, or is not authorized by a pre-agreed cost estimate, its competence in fiscal management can be questioned. In this area, little things can become big: invoices that are sent separate from monthly reports, invoices that don’t reflect agreed-upon-spending, haggling over how many people should go to which event due to cost constraints.
The challenge of every partnership from the point of view of the agency is how to make clients brag about its services behind the scenes. This can be done, as seasoned practitioners will tell you, by learning more about aspects of clients’ business than they know themselves. Take the initiative to know non-traditional marketing communication approaches like advocacy, relationship marketing, Internet-advertising and other customer relationship applications. And as you learn, ensure that senior people in the agency also learn the business and stay in touch on relevant topics. Here are other musts to make partnership promises work:
Master the art of selling. You can make it work to your advantage by first assessing your ability to listen, to handle objections, to make pitches, and to understand how long-term growth can be built. Developing the sales skills are critical. How many advertising and PR people for example have ever been in sales? Remember, effective selling is not a short-term new business bid. It is a lifetime goal.
Be obsessed with learning. Clients don’t expect agencies to know more than them on an issue or product, but that does not mean that you should not get actively involved in a process that will allow you to learn extensively about your clients’ products and services. Clients may even add you to their inner circle if you deserve to be there. And by that time doors will be opened because you have demonstrated your value-added features.
Knowledge beats "flash" almost every time. Be wary about flashy wins. They can be fleeting. You must show that you are infatuated with the client’s business. And in here, there is no substitute for a thorough knowledge of the industry and the category where it belongs, including competitors.
Give importance to the entire presentation game. You must always think through it. Realize that most clients have this question in their heads: "Will I be more comfortable with an agency I like who knows my business or an agency I don’t know who shows 37 Power Point slides and five storyboards?" Where are you in this continuum?
Decide to make processes flawless. Don’t allow mistakes, but if they cannot be avoided, don’t wait for another day to make them right. In most cases, clients "feel it" when you go halfway.
There is a simple formula for success in a client-agency partnership. Action plus differentiation could lead to uniqueness; uniqueness powered by impeccable delivery of services could result to client satisfaction; client satisfaction could bring major revenue increase and business growth.
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