Know your enemy

If you asked your clients to describe your agency in two words, what would they say?(You’re probably hoping they’d say words like ‘smart’ ‘valuable’ or ‘partner’…)

Now, if you asked your clients to describe your agency in two words, comparative to the other agencies they work with, what do you think they’d say? (… and you need to be honest here… about all the partners they work with… how do you, honestly, stand apart?)

And this is something I think agencies forget.

They spend a lot of time positioning themselves with their clients, but less time positioning themselves relative with other agencies, and being honest about it. (Which is crazy really when you think a big part of our job is positioning products and services relative to others…)

Here at iris I think we build our strongest client partnerships when everyone is clear what our role is to our clients, relative to other agencies. And when I say everyone, I mean internally but also sharing that positioning with our clients too. And being honest with them about the value we think we can add - that is different to other agencies they work with, or better. And conversely, being honest about when their other agency partners are better placed to work with them.

This has become more difficult in recent times as more and more agencies claim to be able to do more and more things. And as new forms of communications have evolved. (The classic example is being sat in an all-agency meeting about online video content… The creative agency say they can do online content, the social agency say they can do it cheaper, the media agency say they can buy a partnership and get content as part of the deal, and the PR company say it needs to be influencer-led… If you’re a client, which way do you go?)

So here’s a simple thing to do that can be profoundly powerful if deployed correctly and consistently.

Sit down as the working team on an account - and include account handlers, planners, creatives, production and finance… anyone the client interacts with.

Map out the agencies your client has interactions with.

Interrogate those agencies positionings (not the one they share on their website, but by looking at the work they have shared with their client/ the way they speak in meetings/ the people they deploy on the account… basically look at it through the clients eyes…)

Then this is the key bit.

Pick your enemy agency/ agencies.

Pick a reason why they’re your enemy… but not through your eyes, through your clients eyes.

For example, picking an enemy because they get more billings is self-serving.

But picking an enemy because the agency isn’t interested in solving the clients business problems (and is only interested in creating communications work to make themselves famous) is valid - because clients want their business problems solving.

Then form a vision, of two words, that you all agree on, to attack that agency positioning. (Remember it’s valid to attack it, because it’s self serving, and not for the client benefit).

(‘Attack’ is a very powerful word - and I’m not saying you sit in a meeting and provoke confrontation at every opportunity - I’m saying you use their client positioning as a reference to offer something more valuable)

And when you’ve formed that vision make sure that everyone on your team knows it, understands it, and most importantly of all - lives it.

Lives it in every single meeting.

And be honest with your clients about it. Share with them your role on helping their business grow, relative to other agencies.

Because, as much as we like to think we’re all differentiated, we’re not as much as we think we are.

But being honest, open and consistent with your clients - and telling them why you exist in their working lives - can be a very powerful thing.