Interesting conversations with some of the guys this week about large agencies and what the shift in the market could do to them.
So lets start with the market shifts. Digital is core to everything we do now but the effective execution of digital communications is still a challenge. The thought process and identification of problems is still traditional and made all the more complex due to this approach. Approaching to digital campaign briefs in a traditional manner produces ineffective strategies and poor execution leading of course to reduced engagement and delivery on the core business objectives.
The approach is still based on the client knowing what problem they face, delivery is still through a linear process with many touch points slowing down any outputs and creating massive wastage. I also find that key questions aren’t askedor considered at the start – almost a lack of planning consideration and not as a means to find a consumer insight but to make sure you get the job done. This could be a by-product of the retainer to project based transition and lack of adequate training.
Changing the processes and working from this traditional model is difficult. You have a status quo, a movement towards change will frighten some and be far to slow for others. There is conflict between those that know we need to change and those that think they have the grasp of the scale of change taking place. The worry agency heads have is if the people that own the relationships with the client aren’t aware of the change or able to speak fluently about it then they look uninformed and are ill equipped to deliver the best results. Thus a change of staff from low level productivity to high is required but is that step too far?
Fear is a key challenge with digital – the fear of screwing it up, the fear of it not being right, fear of change resulting in a bad campaign and the loss of a client. But as with most fear it is irrelevant and is the cause of inertia, inertia that in advertising will see traditional agencies start to lose out to a innovative ways of thinking and working by smaller agencies. The sooner everyone gets that we do not have full control of the message the sooner we will be more focused on putting things out there that aren’t perfect or actually considering the full possibility of engagement with the campaign.
A small step in the direction has to be collaboration. Working with clients pro-actively and regularly, getting different teams in the agency together, involving the delivery team at the start and everyone working on the strategy not just the planners. The key problem large agencies have is generalisation – instead of focusing on the core 20% of their business and delivering amazing work they try and do a range of things and ultimately each area becomes diluted and less focused.
This is however great news for nimble smaller agencies that are implementing these types of working practices. Its also great for the larger agencies that have made step changes in process, staff, focus and innovation.
So where do I think it will all end up. Smaller agencies will specialize in a few niche areas, get bigger to a point of maximum output and if smart will then tap into the local community on larger projects and outsource for with a respectable margin. Clients will start to see this as an evolution of the open source development model that is now ubiquitous and trusted. Larger agencies will get smaller, leverage the integrated story more but again do their core business extremely well and leverage their access to key content creators and partners such as Google and Facebook. They will also have to collaborate with the community more and amen to that.
Some interesting articles on this subject below:
http://madebymany.com/blog/my-talk-on-future-advertising-models-at-the-apa
http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/151/mayhem-on-madison-avenue.html
http://www.businessweek.com/innovate/content/jul2010/id20100712_542186.htm
