Tulsa Marketing Dude

Below is a link to a blog titled “Why Clients Searching For A New Agency Should Refuse Speculative Creative Work”.  It caught me by total surprise as my spec work usually seals the deal! http://www.littlefield.us/blog/index.php/2009/01/08/why-clients-searching-for-a-new-agency-should-refuse-speculative-creative-work/#comments

Feel free to read the link first or just enjoy my comment.  Never mind!  Read my comment first, that will make you want to read the philosophy of one of the top agencies in the Southwest.

Ok, here it goes!

From a client/business point of view I would want to hear what an agency’s plan will do for me and my business. I would want to see if an agency really understands who/what my business is about and where they recommend it going and how to get there. I disagree with his assertion that this does not serve the clients needs. In fact, it does help the client make a choice that is right for them NOT the agency. No matter what everyone may think, an agency is in the service business and if you are not able to show a prospective client who is interested in what you have to offer other than lip service, you the agency are/is NOT putting your best before the prospective client. Less work for the agency. But hey, if you get it, great. If not, you have to think that you really did not give it your best to nurture and show the prospective client what you have to offer.

The client who demands speculative work is a client who a lot of competent agencies would salivate for. “Show me what you got”. I say “BRING IT ON!”. A beauty contest? What’s wrong with that if you are a talented agency with all the tools to win a client? The comment It doesn’t matter how well you say the wrong thing. not appropriate for what is being discussed. A creative campaign should first be addressing the issue of making sure the message is correct and targeted. Nice quote, but taken way out of context.

It does matter to a degree what the agency thinks. Why would businesses ask for agencies if they don’t care? They do care. What they want is to find out which agency understands them, their company, their business and a vision to grow the company. A harried agency pitch? He’s right. A harried pitch of any kind is not good. This sounds like an agency that does not have the dedication or the poise to create, develope and follow through with an idea on a deadline. It is not a guessing game if you get into the project, feel the needs of the client and understand how to best communicate those needs. Beauty pageant? What’s wrong with that if your agency has a strong design component and the brains to create a strong message? These are things that a client’s customers will see, something an agency should never be afraid of. You also need to back it up with a plan of action and serious brain activity to add substance. You capture clients with a combination of visual, cerebral presentations and believe it or not – your past portfolio if you have one. If you don’t have a portfolio that compares to others and you are not willing to show a client that you are in the same league then you’re not.

How funny! How do you do that if you do not invest the time and energy to put together a plan, graphics, SEO recommendations, etc., etc.. After the client has done their due diligence? Who is serving who here? Clients will and do search for agencies and read of their successes and view their online portfolio to narrow prospective agencies. Once they have made their choices they want to see what the agencies can do for them. Seriously, if an agency is asked that question above, they would be guilty of malpractice if they are serious about getting the business if they did not do their due diligence and do everything in their power to show them what kind of game you have.

If an agency does it’s best to show how game they are, they will establish a relationship with the client. The client will, if they like the agencies work, have bought a relationship with the agency with their wallet, brains and trust. So Mr. Littlefield, how do you buy a relationship with an agency that has a definitive process that produces the evidence of the most relevant message strategy for their customers, can execute that message strategy in a compelling, engaging way, and is a good fit with their organization if that agency is not willing to back it all up with a visual and verbal presentation, a dog and pony show, a beauty pageant? If you have all of the above why not give it to them to feast on. Satisfy their desire. Satisfy their hunger. Make them want more.

Littlefield is in the coveted position to do exactly what he has published here. His agency has a huge track record. A creative portfolio envied by most agencies. They, as a fixture in Oklahoma have paid their dues, created thousands of dog and pony shows that have won them clients. So what if the client changes things around. Your due diligence won the client and as a result the client has a trusted relationship with you. Established agencies can afford to do exactly what Littlefield proposes. It does not apply to upstart agencies who find themselves competing with creative powerhouses who already have top of the mind awareness, thousands of satisfied clients, online portfolios that can compete with any in the nation. Oh the agencies due diligence? As described above is sloppy. If you are going to go after a client and put the time and energy to win them over, why would you not be involved with them enough to include them in the process prior to the spek work? This is a practice that does not really care about the client only the agency. There we go…back to who is serving who?

Before I buy a product or service, I will want to touch it, feel it, taste it. If it’s supposed to be pretty, I want to see it. If it’s going to drive like a race car, I want a test drive. To do anything less is careless.

As you can tell I have a passion for serving clients. I’m hard working and believe in being the best. If you appreciate these attributes, hire me!

Comment by Tom Brown — February 10, 2009 @ 11:25 pm

I was able to break away from a creative spasm long enough to read an article in AdAge.  The title caught my attention because as a Tulsa based Media Buyer, I am always concerned for my clients and what I can do to give them more ROI.  The article discussed what might happen as a result of a slowing economy, retailers fearing less profits, and how Cable may come to the rescue!  “Cable could represent one way to spark the market”.

Might?  May?  Could?

Has! Did! Will!

I was involved in a couple high impact jewelry liquidations for retailers in Bonita Springs, Florida and 4 stores in Las Vegas, Nevada. What happened in those situations confirmed to me a strategy I have used for years, cable has made an impact!  Not only as a media that could come first, bought at a bargain and even expose greedy, profit driven agencies.

The major networks are still demanding higher cost per thousands even though viewers are down.  For whatever reason they continue to do this, I can only speculate.  The retailers I worked with had enjoyed what they thought were “the best prices” on all their media buys.  “Oh no, Tom, we get the best price”.  That’s fine, I love to hear that retailers are happy and can focus on doing what they do best, merchandising and selling.  Unfortunately, many have their heads in the sand about what media deals are available to them.

I challenged both jewelry retailers and submitted Cable media buys to counter others that had been presented to them by their “Agencies”.  In Florida and in Vegas, the cable media buy I submitted, offered the same net cost, twice as many spots and used networks that would most likely reach their target demo – a customer looking for, and can afford expensive Designer Jewelry.  The other agencies were selling what they could to make the retailer feel good about the buy; after all, they have done a great job before, right?

Ok, this is how the 2 cases worked out, and then back to why cable is first.  In Florida, the jewelry retailer was excited, my media consultant and I became local heroes because we were able to come in their market and buy the media at half the cost.  Those dollars were reinvested and sales soared for the remaining 8 weeks of the sale.  Cable was a win; win for my client and his company.

In Vegas, however, there was a different response to our ability to crush his long-standing agency’s media buy.  Disbelief.  Anger.  In disbelief he called his agency and it was serious CYA from there on.  He immediately became an ostrich.  He chose to continue buying overpriced media from his trusted agency even though we had documentation that proved the cable company we were dealing with would have accepted our buy.  Our time and diligence was not rewarded except to have a story to tell.  The sad thing is that if he does not shake the sand from his head, but continues to burrow deeper into the ground, so goes his business.

Be bold!  Demand your portion of the savings in broadcast media!

Truth is that deal making is out there now!  Bargains on cable are there to be had if retailers are willing to demand more from their media buyers.  Retailers who are really concerned about making deals should not let their agency swing in the marketing hammock sipping on a Pinot just because something has worked before or the price was easy to stomach.  Challenge your media buyers to give more, make better buys and sharpen their skills to benefit you, not them.

Seriously, you would have thought after many major media buys for 2009 were cancelled or severely shaved back do to the economy, media buyers would have made a better effort to buy right, for the benefit of the client.

I definitely look to cable first!  Why?  Because most retailers I have worked with are focused and concerned at a local level.  That is where it all happens.  Cable is ready to deal.  Know it and take advantage.

Read Original AdAge Article