Is This Agency Right For Me?
This is Part 2 of a 13 part series entitled “Is it time to switch agencies?” Each post will focus on a different question relating to the overall theme. Previously, we addressed the question: “Do I Need Outside Help?” This week, we press forward in our discussion and ask you to consider, “Is this agency right for me?”
If you opt to work with an outside agency, you will be faced with four basic options for the types of teams with which you can do business: one-stop shops, brand agencies, integrated marketing teams, or integrated marketing teams with an embedded branding agency. Each option has its benefits and drawbacks. Your duty is to determine what suits your brand best.
OPTION #1: ONE-STOP SHOPS
One-stop shops are your basic behemoths. Think of them as the Walmarts of the marketing and branding world. You want it? They probably take care of it: PR, publications, naming, promotions, product design, research, and more. The agglomeration of media specialties means the brand is completely managed from beginning to end under one roof, giving clients peace of mind as one steady hand guides the direction of the brand. This allows it maintain a level of consistency across various media and communication outlets.
For all these benefits, the one-stop shop also wields a double-edged sword for clients. Although the client can take a more hands-off approach with their brand in this model, it partially surrenders a level of stewardship as a result of it. Internal stewardship helps brands grow and create brand ambassadors. A community then forms around those ambassadors, fostering the creation of a team that is more committed to the brand than some outside agency will ever be. If you are willing to just give that away in favor of a hands-off approach, then by all means, go with the one-stop shop. Another significant issue: no one-stop shop agency is an expert at everything. You end-up with a wide set of skill sets, but very shallow ones.
OPTION #2: BRANDING AGENCY MODEL
If the one-stop shop is the Walmart of collaborative agencies, then the branding agency model is your basic megamall. Go to a branding agency, and it provides you with not just a clear strategic direction for the brand, but access to a pantheon of best-of-breed specialists for each of your marketing and communication needs. This somewhat decentralized approach still keeps your brand under the guidance of a single hand, albeit a conglomerated one.
Under the brand agency model, a client enjoys more specialization in their branding and marcom strategy. One-stop shops occasionally lack in certain aspects of their services, while being stronger in others; whereas, the branding agency model does not carry that same limitation. For example, a one-stop shop may perform higher quality work in their PR division than web design because they lack the cutting-edge skill and eagerness found in younger, hungrier companies who often carry a clearly defined skillset for a specific application, in a particular market. Furthermore, specialized one-stop shops are generally harder to come by because agencies that offer the breadth of services found in a one-stop shop – ala our Walmart analogy – typically grow to that level of dominance through experience with a variety of markets, not just one.
Here is where the benefits of the brand agency model really shine. What the branding agency model may lack in convenience, it makes up for in network diversification. Rather than rely on a one-stop shop to handle everything on its own, this model allows you to pool the resources from a collective of experts, each with their own specialized field of expertise. Additionally, it allows for the same hands-off approach found in one-stop shop models because a single branding agency takes care of all the grunt work for clients – finding specialists, assigning projects, etc – even though they are not necessarily the ones executing a product for each of those communication points on their own, just managing them. Furthermore, the brand’s consistent presentation across various media outlets remains a benefit of this model as well.
Being so closely related to the one-stop shop model, it should come as no surprise that the brand agency model shares the drawbacks of its fellow solution. The branding agency model still leaves the client with a lack of control regarding stewardship of the brand. Additionally, the use of several outside agencies could potentially become costly, very quickly. It all boils down to a question of quality. What are you willing to do to have the best?
OPTION #3: INTEGRATED MARKETING TEAM
If you happen to be the overprotective type – the kind of business that wants all the benefits of the branding agency model and one-stop shop model, but prefer a keeping a tighter leash on your brand – then the integrated marketing team (IMT) option should grant the extra control you look for in managing your brand. It removes the middleman from the equation, letting the company itself take control over all of the decisions relating to its brand management. In this model, the various divisions of an IMT collaborate with best-of-breed specialists, creating a veritable “superteam”, which is then coached by the company’s design manager.
If your IMT has the proper background knowledge and expertise to manage your company’s brand from start to finish, then this could be the model for you. The benefits include internal stewardship, the unification of messaging across media, and the freedom to work with best-of-breed specialists. If branding, marketing, and other similar areas are not your team’s strong suit, handing that responsibility over to an outside agency via the one-stop shop model or the branding agency model might make more sense.
OPTION #4: EMBEDDED BRANDING AGENCY
Finally there’s the integrated marketing team with an embedded branding agency (EBA) model, or as we like to think of it, the dark horse of marketing and branding options. You know, the one you always disregard and then it turns out to surprise you. The EBA model takes the deficiencies of the IMT model and rectifies them. If your IMT lacks experience in specific areas – such as branding, PR, or packaging – or if it lacks a proper authority figure with the aforementioned expertise, then this model permanently embeds a team with that knowledge at the heart of a company’s marketing operations. The EBA acts as brand builder, watchdog, and overall monitor for the brand.
The same benefits of the IMT model apply to the EBA model – message unification across media, freedom to work with best-of-breed specialists, and internal stewardship. The new advantages include brand consistency assurance through the guidance an agency watchdog and the opportunity for a company to accrue more knowledge surrounding the ins-and-outs of branding via that close relationship. With enough time, the company can then move into an IMT model, where they no longer need to rely on high levels of external help. Additionally, it represents the best solution for companies who consider branding a highly valuable asset, and are – or plan to be – in a fast growth situation.
The drawbacks of the EBA are somewhat difficult to overcome. With an EBA, the hands-off approach to branding generally goes away because a company wants more say over the direction of their brand, rather than listen to the recommendations of an expert. This leaves the door open for a relationship that becomes much more confrontational as the agency and IMT battle over what they each consider to represent the best direction for a brand. It may seem like a minor concern, but discussions can become heated quite quickly under this model. You must be willing to throw egos aside if this model is expected to work as well as its potential offers.
There you have it. Your four main types of branding agency options: one-stop shop, branding agency, integrated marketing team, and integrated marketing team with an embedded branding agency. You have a tough choice ahead. We suggest you consider your options wisely.
