Ever wonder how an advertiser client and their agency might work more effectively? Here's a few thoughts - some principals, some practices.

1. “If only my agency knew what I know!” “If only my client knew what I know!”
Building a tear-free, mutually rewarding relationship.
It’s hard to build trust between a client and agency! Success measurement in production oriented
relationships is easier that in “soft” relationships such as advertising, right? Wrong!
Learn ways in which build a collaborative and mutually rewarding client / agency relationship.
• Understand and build on individual and mutual goals
• Recognize that every relationship is a unique culture and system – recognize the business and culture
that drives both companies - spend time upfront figuring out how cultures can work together
• Avoid honeymoon relationships that later revert to using narrowly focused client / agency agreements
as a stick to induce performance
• Use solution-oriented questions from both sides to build trust and success
• Make sense of what the client / agency wants
• Set out to build solutions that work for both parties
• Drive up quality, reduce costs and increase productivity
• Leverage the knowledge, competencies and successes that both parties have
• Build open communication, collaboration, candor and constant feedback
• Behave like an alliance rather than a seller-buyer relationship
• Clients who learn enough about the agency and ask the right questions can ensure a successful
relationship
• Align the payment structure to encourage both parties to change the way they do business and
become more effective
• Clients: become clear in defining their requirements early in the briefing, not at the third round of
‘corrections’. Help the agency to be able to assume responsibility for results
• Agency: be accountable for results, have the authority to make decisions that can impact those results
• Maintain long term relationships – short term relationships carry the additional cost of time learning
the business and developing ways for the partners to work together
• When the requirements of the services provided change, both the client and agency can develop a
change process to follow in order to accommodate that change
• Reward all key people in the delivery chain, not just the management team
www.alankay.ca The Glasgow Group