Expert: Peter Gabany - 1/8/2007

Question
Hello Peter,

I am writing you from Caracas-Venezuela, and I just became partner in a medium Advertising Agency. I have a 10 year marketing experience and a MBA, but always as a client, there for I’m new in the business. We have configured a pretty good team, very aware about the importance of the Account Planner figure, but I feel that we haven’t sold well this initiative to our clients; they are not enthusiastic enough yet. For this matter I have a couple of cuestions:

How do you get the client’s involvement and enthusiasm?
How do you get them to share the information needed to do a good job? This is what I have found difficult the most.

Our Clients are mostly local medium-large companies, with formal marketing departments.

Thank you very much,

Hector


Answer
Hector,

This is a good set of questions. Clients require trust to make that pivotal connection with their agency. There is one sure fire way to get their participation and all of them very difficult to administer.

1./ Say no. You can not expect to do anything for a client unless they are forthcoming. If they are not sharing with you all that you need to know to do your job then you are doing a dis-service to them and to the agency.

Simply let them know that you cannot help them without their assistance. They will either go away and find someone else or if they are worth it and your agency is worth it, they will answer all of your questions.

This seems risky and difficult but what are you to do - helping them with 1/2 of the information will only lead to more time (more expense), wrong direction (more expense) and probable loss of client (more expense) and the end of a client / agency relationship.

2./ Value. Demonstrate the value you can be to them with their participation and forthcoming. Make a simple pro and con list demonstrating what you can do for them if they answer your questions.

3./ Let them know that you are NOT a supplier. Your agency is only made up of clients that partner with the agency. Partnering requires trust and an adoption of client goals. If they want you to achieve success in meeting their goals they will have to share with you what all partners require to make the recommendations that will deliver on their goals.

Each one of these requires time and persuasion and a lot of patience. It takes time to better know and understand your clients. Network and take people for lunch.

I hope/trust that this will help. Let us know your agency website address so we can see your work.

Pete