VALUE
REMUNERATION LINKED TO PERFORMANCE
need us, they are respectful and they share information with us. Our team believes we can make a difference to policing and safety in London and the UK. It is a tiny spend overall, but a combination of culture, behaviour and being inclusive add up to more than the sum of their parts. BECOMING A CUSTOMER OF CHOICE For us, it is easy to see when a client is going to be a customer of choice. We know we have a fantastic relationship when the CEO has spent time with us as an agency and they value what we can deliver. You know the relationship does not stop and start in marketing or procurement. But the procurement team can be very important. We like spending time with those we think are more innovative and creative. We like it when there is not always a black and white answer and they want us to solve problems and be creative. That’s where we have the best relationship, rather than rigidly sticking to the textbook. We love finding new ways to do things, not least because reinvention and innovation can set the template for other clients.
The best relationships with our clients, and their procurement teams, occur when there is a genuine mutual respect, an openness to sharing of data and a common focus and goal. A number of our remuneration packages are now linked to the client’s performance, although, clearly, there is an understanding that we cannot affect some of the inputs to the client’s business. However, it is a statement of intent: we nail our colours to the mast and show our commitment. But to help business performance, we need feedback, data and information. The more informed and empowered relationships tend to be the ones where we are treated as partners rather than a supplier. Clients that don’t treat us as a partner will not get the most out of the service we can offer. If it is a more functional relationship, and we are used for only part of the marketing and communications plans, they don’t get the best out of the agency because it is a very prescriptive relationship. Where we don't have the dialogue, or relationships, it does sometimes mean that opportunities are missed when we could have helped further or added more value to services.
CONSIDER COSTS In the worst cases, clients inadvertently add to our costs. That tends to be related to reporting. The client requests reports: numerous reports. We are not sure they even see the light of day. It is something they do because that is what they have always done; because they think it is needed. A lot of the time it's middle-management asking on behalf of senior management who don’t even know the team is asking for them. Producing so many reports prevents our team from doing something much more productive for the client. Having said that, revisiting the scope of the work can help save clients money. It is important to make sure it is what they are looking for. Sometimes you have a client relationship that starts and over a period of time you do not re-evaluate the scope of work frequently enough. Part of cost savings come from really understanding whether you are working to the right scope and the effort is being put in the right direction. VISION AND PARTNERSHIP The clients who share the culture, ambition and strategy get the most out of our services. Where you feel like it is a partnership rather than a supplier relationship, you feel you have more invested in the client. If we spend time in a client’s building and they spend time in ours, it creates a feeling of partnership. You feel like you are an extension of their team – there is a shared vision and goal and you can help them achieve it. Where we don't have the dialogue, or relationships, it does sometimes mean that opportunities aremissed when we could have helped further or addedmore value to services.
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