Regional Companies Gain Little to Nothing by Using Full-Service Agencies

It’s as Logical as Going to Your Optometrist For Brain Surgery!

National Companies rarely use only one agency for all their creative, strategic and media needs. They realized with so many products and needs it’s impossible to secure the best of everything and talent from any one agency.

Some regional companies have recognized this also, but many still utilize one agency for all their needs. They believe it saves money, time and it’s easier to manage if everything is under one roof.

While it’s certainly their prerogative, it makes as much sense as believing you only need one doctor for everything thing that ails you. You wouldn’t get your family doctor to do your oral and heart surgeries, would you? Of course not!

The truth is working with more than one agency does require having a lead agency who will be responsible for coordinating all communications between the Client and all the agencies, so pick the one that communicates best.

The client needs to make sure every agency knows their role and understands that completely transparent lines of communication between all parties involved must always be properly maintained. However, once these open lines of communication and pecking order have been established things will begin to roll smoother, faster and more efficiently than if there is only one agency.

But, where the largest gains will come from is the expertise and efficiencies garnished by having experts handle every facet, instead of a stable of “jack of all trades”. It’s no secret that most agencies gravitate and have their best personnel on the creative side. However, to capture more of the budget or keep client exclusivity many will have a strategy and media buying arm.

Very often these planners and buyers are over worked, under paid and highly inexperienced junior buyers, working in white collar sweat shops, waiting for their chance to jump jobs. In some instances, their buying division is only management oversight and invoicing and all the buying is subbed to other buying agencies, completely undisclosed to the client. This only increases the commission costs because the buying agencies fees are built into the “ad” net costs and the client is none the wiser.

Is this really who or how you want the largest portion of your advertising budget handed or would you rather have seasoned specialists with years of planning and negotiating experience watching your budget, like a stockbroker watches his own portfolio?

Regional companies come in many shapes and sizes. Some are extremely large and profitable with assets and profits in the billions and plenty of staff, while others are smaller working with tighter budgets and smaller staffs. In either event both gain more by working with several agencies.

They gain more expertise, experience and speed because every agency can be working on their portion simultaneously. Multiple agencies can assist each other with intricate details and nuances that only seasoned professionals can foresee, which will head off issues before they develop, and the client suffers.

A regional company that opts to work with several agencies will not only be increasing their staff’s capabilities but their productivity. Agency staffers will also deliver internal staffers with fresh viewpoints not tarnished by internal ideologies.

By using several specialty-agencies a regional client will gain so many advantages that they will be able to play larger and be more competitive with the national guys.