"The client thought it was too risky... They couldn't sell it to the CEO... She just didn't get it... He wasn't brave enough... They settled for for the safe option... They let a bunch of housewives from Slough decide which creative to run..."
If you work in advertising, you'll have heard these comments, or maybe even made them yourself. Faced with the option of buying something fresh/different/original, the client chickens out and reverts to a variation on the tried and tested. Happens all the time.
There is a fundamental tension in the agency-client relationship: the agency is trying to create something that they'll be proud of while the marketeer/client is trying to 'do the right thing' for both their company and for their career. Sometimes it all comes together. Often it doesn't.
I'd like to give a big shout out to John Grant at Brand Tarot for his recent thoughts on resolving the tensions in this area. He discusses how, given that the agency account handler needs to keep the client happy while the creatives want to make something great that will garner accolades, planning can help resolve this tension:
"Done well, planning is mediation. By talking with, getting to know, developing a feeling for (and perhaps a desire to help) all three parties [customers, clients, creatives], planning is the hunt for the highest common denominator, something which will make all three parties happy. And the fact that there are three is key; its much harder to compromise, you do need to make a bit of a leap, a reframe, a reformulation to get all three on board"
I'm in complete agreement (especially regarding the hunt for a 'highest common denominator' -what Jon Steel calls creating "an environment in which great ideas can be conceived, developed and embraced by clients") but would like to add "earn the trust of" to "talking with, getting to know, developing a feeling for".
A good planner should become the client's 'trusted provocateur' -the person they can rely on for a straight answer but also for a fresh perspective. We need to question rather than simply satisfy their brief. We should be able to give them what they need, not just what they want (to paraphrase Mr Jagger via Mr Grant).
Why is the planner is the perfect position to take on this role?
- We're not charged with keeping the client sweet, so we can be more challenging.
- We're not wedded to the pursuit of gold pencils, so we can be more impartial regarding the creative. (Equally, we need to have earned the trust of the creatives -they need to believe that we know what we're talking about, and they need to be able to trust us with their newborn ideas).
- We're informed by the consumer research, but not blindly led by it (this is especially important when it comes to selling in bolder or category-norm-defying routes, when research can often give a false negative, as was the case with 'Heineken refreshes...', the Aeron chair etc).
A very wise man taught me that planning was all about ensuring that the agency creates great work that works. In these terms, it is the planner who is most aligned with the client's goals. But we need to be seen as more than just the 'insight department'. We need to be building our own strong relationships rather than beavering away in an ivory tower and relying on the account team's client-handling skills.
Trust may be an odd word to use given that the annual Gallup poll on honesty and ethics ranks advertising practitioners just above car salesmen, but I do believe in that planners are uniquely placed within the agency to step up and be the 'trusted provocateur'.
UPDATE: I just came across this quote in AdAge from Mike Byrne of Anomaly:
"Really, great clients make great work. That's the end of the story. If you have a true partner, it makes things so much easier."
We need to think about how we can help our client to be great, to be brave, to be that true partner. If we can do that, then we can do great work that works.
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