If I were a client today #5 – The End.
This is Bowser. Bowser belongs to Nintendo.
So this is the last post in the series “if I were a client today” and wanted to get online stuff right. Basically, over the course of the last couple of posts I’ve indicated that if I were a client today I would be so disappointed by the way agencies work that I would negate them all together. That I would build an internal team of internet specialists and outsource visual execution and design not to an agency but to a design company.
I would pull the whole thing into the organisation where real passion, love and fascination for the brand and products can be found. I would negate all of the agency lip service, the jibber-jabber, and the pathetic attempts to use digital to try and get their hands on the above-the-line budget – and I’d do it myself.
Yes, that’s what I’d do if I was a client today – and I’d be wrong.
It all sounds like it makes perfect sense, and for a client it probably is very tempting to go down this route. If the industry that was traditionally responsible for helping you do this sort of thing is so confused, so “old-fashioned” and so full of itself that it resorts to professional spin in the financial times to sell it’s own wears then you’d be forgiven for having a bash yourself.
The thing is, it doesn’t really work. You can own certain parts of the process and yes, you can develop a cracking strategy full of insight and cleverness but you’ll never, ever manage to keep it all fresh. You’ll never have the time to do it all properly and you’ll always be a slave to the organisational-chart, six sigma, legal and procurement policies of the company that you work for.
You need a little outside on the inside.
So, if I really were a client today I’d be looking for an agency that felt like it was on the inside and I’d probably fight for a joint venture with that agency. I’d transfer some of my own people and skills into the joint venture and expect the agency to do the same. If the advertising industry is incapable of creating what I need as a client then I need to help the industry (or an agency) create what I need. Of course, it’s totally bespoke – it belongs to me and to my brand and products, but that’s what I need and that’s what the advertising industry has been selling for years – but it’s selling a lie.
If I were a client today I would have to accept that bemoaning the state of the advertising industry and its poor performance on digital doesn’t actually help my brand. Standing in front of my agency saying “why aren’t we doing stuff like this?” is neither helpful nor is it responsible. My responsibility is to my brand, the company I work for and the people who buy my stuff and if I need an agency and the advertising industry then maybe, just maybe it’s in my own interests to help them out.
If I were a client today I would start rebuilding the advertising industry.
If you think that others might been interested in this would you be so kind as to Stumble it?
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John
Teamwork - now there’s a thought.
Nov 13th, 2007
Marcus Brown
Do you think it’s a bit, I don’t know, radical John?
Nov 13th, 2007
Patrick Breitenbach
Nice series.
But I think you have a king-size wisdom in this field, as a imaginary client. Most clients fit to those agencies which you described.
But for sure, someone has to do the kick-off!
Thanks for that!
Nov 13th, 2007
Seb
Isn’t that what advertising agencies try to do for years. Only the other and therefore maybe wrong way around…
Nov 13th, 2007
Marcus Brown
Patrick, remember I used to be a client. The premise is (and most of the feedback I’ve received as confirmed this) that nothing has changed since my time on the other side of the fence.
Nov 13th, 2007
Marcus Brown
Seb - I don’t know. You tell me. The fact of the matter is - and I really believe this is that the advertising industry is not capable of changing itself.
Nov 13th, 2007
Seb
Exactly. The advertising industry always tries to change everything around it. The advertising is boring. Whose fault? The client’s for sure because they don’t let us do what we wanted. So let’s try to change all clients so they let us do stuff that wins us some Cannes Lions.
That’s a big mess, A lot of agencies aren’t trying to do work that is loved by the people (sadly referred to as target group) and simply is good. What counts is the possibility to win awards so that the agency bosses can sip some champagne at the Côte d’Azur and show off with their ranking in all that creative tables.
What if all directors would start to only do films that have the possibility of winning the Academy Awards or at Cannes (the real festival)? Or hairstyler only would do cuts that could win them something. Would you go to see that movie? would you get your haircut there?
Nov 13th, 2007
Seb
Obviously that doesn’t occur with all agencies. Thank god.
But don’t get me wrong. With most, with the big and greedy ones.
Nov 13th, 2007
Rob Mortimer
Interesting point Patrick, Nintendo are a company with a strong sense of self-identity and purpose; and I imagine they are much better positioned to do this than most companies.
Maybe those other ad agencies just match what the other brands expect an ad agency to demonstrate.
Nov 13th, 2007
lauren
great series marcus…
Nov 13th, 2007
katiechatfield
yay Marcus!
Nov 14th, 2007
Rob @ Cynic
You’re right Marcus - the client SHOULD reinvent the communication industry especially as many of the ad agencies seem content in actually mimicing their clients organisations rather than offer them access to new and fresh thinking.
The sad part is I doubt it will happen on a major scale [at least not yet] because conformity and mediocrity are the currency commerce as is the desire to only invest in the ‘quantifiable’ even if the results are demonstrating they should get out.
A brilliant set of posts … keep going.
Nov 14th, 2007
NP
Very, very good.
Teamwork? That’ll be the day
Nov 16th, 2007
Charles Frith
And a great comment Rob. Way too much mediocrity in advertising.
Nov 17th, 2007
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