Agencies Should Be Measured On SUCCESS not just VALUE

I walked away from the AANA (Australian Association of National Advertisers) ‘Hothouse’ on client-agency relationships full of enthusiasm. It was a great gig with 100 or so known faces in the industry.

The topic of the day was VALUE:

Q1 – Is the agency model obsolete?

Q2 – How should clients assess agency value?

Q3 – What are the factors for a successful/ productive client-agency relationship?

The names on the panel were senior agency and, more numerous, senior marketers. The gig was introduced by the formidable (and universally respected) Joe Talcott. The minor sponsor was Aprais – they paid for our lunch. Thank you Richard and Malcolm. And Darren Woolley was the major sponsor, which allowed him to chair the panel. (Darren, sometimes from TrinityP3, is now, apparently, from Evalu8ing. Evalu8ing makes Darren the rival tool to Aprais. Only Aprais is more than a tool, but we’ll come to that. (Oops, I just called Darren a tool. Sorry, Daz!)

Therein lies the problem. The gig was sponsored by agency relationship tools (the well-known and well-loved Aprais and the unknown, cheaper and apparently more accessible, Evalu8ing). These tools are all about VALUE. But…

VALUE is only a subset of SUCCESS.

Phew, got that off my chest.

Determined to be different? Commbank creatives have all the fun

Just saw this on mumbrella “Commonwealth Bank has released the next in its new series of stylised black and white ads.”

Pretty ad. But such a pity that the advertising has nothing to do with the actual product. Well, maybe they have a mandate to call you. But when they do are they really helpful? For example, I’m in the process of leaving CommBank because they may be determined to be different. But they lack the ability to hire as charming and helpful people as I have found, consistently, at Westpac. Funny thing is that CommBank haven’t even noticed that my salary doesn’t come in, that the credit card doesn’t get used, that as soon as I’m settled into Westpac I’m shuttling out of Commbank for good (or if they have they don’t care! Hmm is that disconcerting?)

My comment at the bottom of the mumbrella article was about the (lack of) irony…

Jean-Pierre Jeunet gets to film the ads for an Australian bank in a location that looks like a gated community outside LA. That’s pretty determined to be different.

That sounds like the kind of after dinner game to play with the kids:

So, pick a famous film director,

Stephen Conroy gets the UN gig – WHY?

I fail to understand why Senator Stephen Conroy got the UN gig. Senator Conroy is the Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy and Deputy Leader of the Government in the Senate in Australia. That’s a long job title. But it’s okay he has a big business card.

We're going to the UN, mmmkay?

Conroy claims to be there for (middle?) Australia. The people’s champion. Giving broadband to everyone. Just very slow broadband because he thinks that by restricting content he can stop all the nasty content on the web reaching Australia… “Mmm’kay,” as South Park’s Mr Garrison would say. (Does anyone else see the comparison, or is that just me?)

Yes, he’s slowing down broadband in Australia to speeds even the luddites will deplore. He’s opening channels for the government to censor anything they don’t consider right, polite or favorable.

The evolution of storytelling (the bard’s on twitter)

These four pictures demonstrate the evolution of storytelling:

The original 1564-1616

#datadriveseverything – but not at Qantas

In an earlier post I outlined the three steps to success in communications: Content, Targeting, Distribution. One conclusion was that in the world of targeting and beyond, #datadriveseverything. It seems that targeting is something that Qantas needs to spend more time analysing:

Over at the mumbrella news & opinion website, Tim Burrowes flags that Qantas is spamming it’s database with scary stories (my words not his. For his words click here.)

Qantas PR team lacks data management skills

My comment:

This looks like a good example of a company that is only just starting to understand the opportunity provided data-driven communications.

Open communications, great. Poor use of database though.

How Seth Godin thinks (how to launch a new product)

If only we all could think like Seth Godin

Seth Godin is the business consultant, author and chirpy chap who invented the term “Permission Marketing”. He’s also is a brilliant observer and commentator.

Regarding Apple’s launch of the iPad he calls the product a “permission asset”:

Over 25 years, Apple has earned the privilege of delivering anticipated, personal and relevant messages to their tribe.

The Future of Communications – in three easy steps

I was listening to the stories being told at the Nokia Forum for developers recently.

If content is king, distribution is...

When Kenny Mathers stood up and announced “if content is king, distribution is king kong.” This quote he attributed to Mark Ollila, another Nokia guru. Of course, their reason for flogging this line is that if the developers create the content, Nokia says it can deliver the right distribution.

A wonderful aphorism. Worth repeating again and again.

If Content is King, Distribution is King Kong

However, this takes for granted a

Rules for New Media: Usefulness, Ubiquity, Usability

Stand up, Youse, and be counted

This blog posting is about how to create successful interactivity. The answer lies in The Three Us.

Interactivity is not just about the web. But that’s a good place to start. We are all aware that the web is one of the most powerful media available. Marketers know that to create websites that work for consumers is not simply a creative process – it requires an understanding of the brand, how consumers use websites as well as how they search for information online. Indeed there are many tenets of successful new media marketing.

But right now, let’s discuss Usefulness, Ubiquity, Usability. These three “Us” (pronounced ‘youse’, of course) are key to all marketing communications in this exciting, evolving world. So, as depicted here, our country needs U. Or rather, our country needs the three Us.

Ad agency breaking news. Four points to remember.

FAQ YOUR SHAVING ROUTINE

There has to be a right way to launch a “breaking campaign”, right?

Well, today, the guys I

The internet is deadly

The internet killed an ad agency: I was pinged to see this short film by Saatchi and Saatchi Canada. They have predicted the demise of the traditional ad agency. Apparently digital is getting more important.

Am glad they noticed. Still, it amused me for most of the two and a half minutes.

But this really grabbed my attention: Tom Scott tells a story of internet-enabled-connectivity leading to a mega-swarm, the likes of which FourSquare would not want to predict.

The internet killed a human. (Hypothetically.)

Both tell the same story for businesses: Choose life. Choose to wake up to the possibilities that life now holds. But we should choose carefully.