There’s always a fresh challenge in an agency.
Often a request or amend for something you know won’t work or will actually make the work less-effective.
The deadline’s tight. Pressure’s on.
It’s easy to say ‘let’s just do it, keep the client happy’.
So you do.
Great, that’s gone away now.
Well, you might have papered over the issue for today but you’re likely creating a bigger problem further down the line.
I’ve been on accounts where this has happened. The client dictating strategies, executions or amends. Time passes, the results come in, it’s time for the end of year review and the feedback is… drum roll please... ‘your campaign didn’t work, we’re holding a pitch’.
What’s remembered is the failure, not the how’s or why’s it happened.
Making each of those little decisions that didn’t seem much in the moment something more. Tackle them at the time and you’ve less chance of a pitch happening in 12 months.
If you’re genuinely coming at it from the point of view of making sure the work works in the best way possible there shouldn’t be an argument or any friction created.
It’s not ‘you’re wrong and we’re right’ or ‘it’ll make the work sh*t’.
It’s ‘Let’s talk about this because I want this to work as well as it possibly can…’ followed by good reasons and alternative solutions.
Of course, sometimes you will just have to do it.
But there’s more chance in the wash-up that the client will remember that you really care, that the reason you’re pushing is to make everything the absolute best and most effective it can be.
Which, fingers crossed, should mean there’s less chance of the ‘p’ word being mentioned.
