Knowledge Centre

Making a difference

The sad thing today is that we all seem to rapidly be reaching charity fatigue. It is nearly impossible to turn on the TV or walk down the street without being asked to make a monthly donation to one worthy cause or the next. The result seems to be similar to the free London papers - we become, at best, disinterested.

We have tried to do our small bit to help by launching our Little Scamps promotion. The idea is that we will donate a sum of money every time we are asked to pitch for a new client.

It is, if you like, secondary giving. Prospective clients know that simply by lettng an agency pitch for business they will be helping a charity organisation that really needs the money.

The extra benefit of this approach is that it can gain exposure for charities that haven't got the resources to market themselves heavily. We are working with Little Havens Children's Hospice.

The Hospice gets a miserly amount from the government and has to rely on donations to make up the vast bulk of its £1.6 million annual running costs. As with a good deal of charities, this can mean an overreliance on people that have direct experience of the work of the charity.

And, there is only so often you can go back to the well (apologies for a rather nasty analogy).

We don't truly believe that we'll be swamped with people wanting us to pitch for their business simply because we're trying to help Little Havens. But, if we are able to increase awareness of the Hospice and its activities - even by the smallest measure - it will have been worth it.

In the end, no matter how you get involved, anything you do can make a difference.

Do you get what you pay for?

In July this year, a very useful document appeared. It was a joint industry report on how to judge creative work. Backed by extensive research, it aims to give companies a 'best practice guide' to assessing the ideas of their agencies.

A copy can be downloaded here

It does provide some really interesting insights but I'd liked it to have spent more time studying the analytical and measurement services offered by the likes of Thomson Intermedia. However, on re-reading it today, it did begin to make me think about how agencies charge and whether it represents value for money for either party.

The time honoured tradition has been for the agency to make a time-based fee for the ideas presented. Those braver have tried to institute an 'idea fee' where it's the idea itself that is charged for. Both methods have their positives and negatives. Both have their own difficulties.

Time-based charging is easily quantifiable. As the industry report points out, the right idea can take an instant to appear. Unfortunately, that instant could be in the shower or at 3am in the morning. So, the cost is bigger than idea itself, it has to encompass the experience and understanding of the team; it has to encompass the quality of research and the clarity of the brief; it has to encompass the ingenuity and insight of the creatives.

Then, of course, taking the idea from proposition to execution is an interative process where the idea gets stronger as everyone involved - and that includes the client company - are allowed to provide constructive input. So, accounting for the time the agency spends seems a simple solution.

Two problems. First, many client companies are reticent to pay for the time to provide creative solutions. They are more interested in the execution. Secondly, the agency is paid the same regardless the success of the campaign.

That's where the 'idea fee' comes in. Its proponents say that this fee allows the agency to share in the reward of successful creative ideas - although I'm not sure I've heard of anyone refunding some of the fee for poor campaign results - and this can make clients nervous.

In addition, some fairly poor initial ideas have become very powerful, effective campaigns once they've gone through an iterative development and execution process. So, how much can any agency say that the purity of their original idea was the prime motive force to success?

Perhaps the answer lies somewhere in between, where the agency lowers their initial time-based charging in return for a success fee on the strength of its work's performance. A simple Service Level Agreement with agreed incentives could be put in place.

In the joint report, it states that judging creative ideas is 'both rational and emotional'. Maybe we could add 'empirical' as well so that everyone benefits.

It’s that bluey white I really like…

Soap powders. When it comes to branding, it turns out you can learn a lot from them. No you can, really. At least, in terms of learning how organisations turn to very similar catch-alls when forming their marketing messages to you.

How often do you hear people tell you that brand is the most important thing. It’s what the big boys do – and they can’t be wrong. Yes, what did we marketing people ever do before we wrapped our services around the brand?

Well, I kind of remember talking about how to hone your message for your audience. I remember talking about what vehicles you should be using to deliver your message.

Don’t get me wrong. Never underestimate branding. A powerful and consistent brand will help differentiate you and enhance your organisational health. It’s just not the be all and end all. Not all the business and marketing issues you face can be effectively addressed with reference to the brand. Nor should they!

So, what on earth has this to do with soap powders? It was a little tangential way to show how received truths come around. In my rather hazy memory, it was Daz that came up with ‘bluey white’ as a point of differentiation. Suddenly, every washing powder was bluey white. The same is true about branding.

Next week, next month or next year, Daz or Ariel or a supermarket own brand will invent a new USP and all the rest will fall in line. Next week, next month or next year, WPP or another of the big networks will discover the next elixir of marketing and soon everyone will be selling it.

I was brought up on the marketing mix. The mix of activities and strategies that will give you the most effective marketing outcomes. And, I don’t think anything has changed since. You have to look at the entirety of your business operations and decide where to invest your time, energy and money for the best results.

That could very well be building your brand. Just remember, it might not.

Writer's blog

This is a test to see where to start.

How about here: www.thegarret.co.uk