Client-Agency Relationship: More than just Trust
The big news that everyone has been talking about is the amazing Oldspice campaign done by Wieden+Kennedy. I am not going to go into detail about the campaign, if you are not familiar do a Google search and you can get caught up. Specifically what interested me was the interviews done after the campaign with members of the Oldspice team.
A number of team members talked about that since they had to turnaround these response videos so quickly, they were not able to get sign-off by the client P&G for the content of each video. They had established some guidelines ahead of time and the client “trusted” the W+K Oldspice team.
I agree that trust between an agency and their client is absolutely critical. It is something that takes time and the right people and chemistry on both sides of the fence. I think there is something else that is just as crucial for a campaign and a relationship to be successful.
On the agency and client side, a point of contact is needed that is senior enough to provide the necessary feedback and sign off, PLUS have the confidence and may I say guts to take responsibility for the campaign. I would be willing to bet that there is a VP/Marketing Director/Creative Director on the P&G and W+K sides who are now basking in the glory of their successful Oldspice campaign. But if the campaign went bad or underperformed, these same people would of been placed under a microscope by their superiors. Very simply put, good or bad, the buck stopped with them.
My impression is in today’s economy everyone is scared about losing their job resulting in a lack of real accountability. It feels like on both sides of the client/agency fence, we are doing just enough to cover our own butts and we are unwilling to take a chance and put it on the line. I am glad to see that there are teams out there on the agency and client sides that are not afraid and serve as examples for the rest of us. I am ready, willing and able to put my butt on the line. If there is a potential client out that is willing to do the same, let’s talk.
My congrats to the W+K and P&G teams for a job very well done.
G-U-T-S GUTS, GUTS, GUTS!!!!
Yes taking ownership and having the guts to pull the trigger is what’s great about Old Spice campaign. In fact I think the team on both sides of the relationship get more inspired and motivated to create great work! I agree it takes Guts to say let’s do it and stick with the decision and result be it good or bad. Respect and trust are built when the team sees someone charging uphill versus being in charge!
Great analysis of the relationship, Cord!
Brian McDonald´s last [type] ..Can Your Marketing Manager Do This
This is incredible on behalf of Old Spice. I gain so much respect for companies that create creative advertising campaigns, because you know that there’s great leadership behind the company to take a risk like that instead of doing the same mundane types of commercials.
This reminds me of the Aflac campaign when they introduced the Aflac Duck. Aflac got behind the idea of their advertising agency and let them run wild with creativity, now Aflac is a global brand with huge pop culture presence. The owner of Aflac insisted that their agency be creative and think outside the box of typical insurance ads it boy did it pay off.
Michael Priceless´s last [type] ..Provoking Conversations to Create Brand Loyalty