Don't overreach to grab that contract

Published on Thursday 27 September 2007 01:03

MAYBE I've been watching too much reality TV, but I'm sure that clients are becoming more like Alan Sugar or Simon Cowell in their approach to the agency pitch.

They really put the agencies through it: unrealistic time frames, restricted information, poker faces and stony silences. It seems to have escaped their notice that the process doesn't have to be so hostile. It is in their interest to encourage the best possible performance from the agency, not to make it a trial by ordeal. By the way, they are agencies, not apprentices, and you can't fire them till you've hired them.

Now, I don't want you to think I'm only on the agency side. Perfectly reasonable clients can be driven to distraction by poor "contestants" who do far too much talking and too little listening in their desperation to win the business.

However, the lot of a Scottish agency is not an easy one. Scottish agencies have more than 7,000 employees. That's a lot of mouths to feed. An oversupplied market does unfortunately encourage some clients to behave badly towards agencies, particularly during the pitch process. Perhaps more agencies should learn to say "no" when asked to produce speculative creative work at unrealistic notice along with a long list of other agencies - but it's a problem when staff salaries have to be paid.

Competition has seen more agencies move towards an "integrated" offering. This has led to a good deal of client confusion as distinction between "below the line" and "above the line" becomes more blurred. The problem is further compounded by the growth of digital communication, which agencies of all disciplines are claiming as a speciality. In the words of one marketing director - "gone are the days when if you wanted an ad you would go to an ad agency, if you wanted a company report you'd go to a design agency. Now you can get all of this and a car wash and a haircut. They may not be the best or the cheapest in town but you can get them all in one place!"

Research shows there is overwhelming competition from London-based agencies at the top end of the market - 30 Scottish-based clients spend approximately 500 million, of which only 25 per cent is spent with Scottish agencies. A matter of some concern to the Scottish Government, one would think. Is the quality gap between Scottish and London agencies as large as these figures suggest? Not in my experience, but there is a gap nevertheless.

The client choice should be based purely on merit and if an intermediary, such as a pitch consultant, is involved, then the advice should be completely impartial. It may not be common knowledge, but a number of Scottish clients use intermediaries who are paid a fee by the agencies they are recommending, and they are all based in London. In these circumstances it would make the appointment of a Scottish or regional agency highly unlikely.

My advice to Scottish agencies, for what it's worth, is to be honest about your individual capabilities. Only claim to be integrated if you really mean it. In my view the future will not lie in competing with the larger communication conglomerates but by being outstanding in specific disciplines and learning to collaborate successfully with other agencies who offer complementary skills.

I remember years ago at Glasgow Airport there was a well positioned poster site greeting passengers returning from London. It read: "Why go to London for your advertising when there's a perfectly good one right here?" Sadly the agency, Rex Stewart, is no longer in business. Perhaps the proposition needed to be a little stronger.

• Andy Crummey is a partner at The Observatory International, an agency management and selection consultancy which opens its Edinburgh office on 1 October www.observatoryltd.com