The Circle of Trust: Creating an Effective Media Client/Agency/Seller Ecosystem

Much like the situation in the movie there were more than two parties involved in this trusted relationship Jack Greg and Jackamp8217s daughter Pam As it goes in Hollywood so it goes in the world of media partnerships Who are the players in my Circle of Trust The Media Client Media Agency and Media Seller My experience tells me that when these three constituencies are partnering effectively together the brand ultimately benefits Conversely where there is dysfunction in the Circle of Trust the brand losesIamp8217ve been a Media Client for most of my career so I can wax philosophical on my own but thought it more useful to bring in two longtime industry partners of mine to represent the rest of the circleRich Smyth and I go back the 3990s Heamp8217s always represented to me a great media sales partner from his time as publisher of the venerable Southern Living magazine He will represent the seller pointofviewWarren Griffiths and I donamp8217t go quite that far back though we partnered closely when I ran GSK Global Media and he led Media Partnerships for Publicis Media Warren is one of the best I have worked with at representing a media agency working on behalf of a client Very objective analytical and unflappable He will represent the Media Agency pointofviewTo begin with all three of us agree this is an issue worth advocating for in the industry and it is a musthave in any great media partnership We all have had experiences both good and bad that inform our collective pointofviewThe foundational aspect we all agree on is that it starts and ends with the Media Client Ultimately the brand representative needs to clearly articulate expectations in how all parties will function in this process The client is accountable for bringing a full and transparent brief to the circle While it sounds simple enough my experience as a client is we are not consistently excellent at delivering on this and there are numerous factors though the predominant obstacles are investing the time and also having the capability to crisply communicate the brief parameters According to Rich Smyth clients make a mistake if they are not quotpunch in the facequot clear in this upfront part of the process If this is not present at the outset you are quotnot getting out of the blocks in the best interest of the brandquot Warren Griffiths agrees stating the client owns the business objective and should be framing that out clearly for the Media Agency and Media SellerWe will come back to the role of the Media Client but letamp8217s take a look at the role of the other two constituents On the Media Agency role Warren is clear and I agree The Media Agency delivers deep subjectmatter consultation leveraging experience with other clients as well as painting an unbiased view of the marketplace overall Not in all instances will the client follow the agencyamp8217s advice quotWe will give consultation but as the agency we need to get on board and work with that partner that the client opts forquot he says Iamp8217m aligned on this as well ultimately the client makes the call However a big part of setting ways of working within the Circle of Trust is to encourage everyone to openly share their POVs in service of the best outcomes quotBe solution orientatedquot Warren advisesWhat about the role of the Media Seller quotThe Media Seller earns a spot in the circle by first listening to and understanding the brief If the seller does not understand the brand goals their place in the circle is compromisedquot says Rich quotI have seen this early but crucial step go wrong so many times The seller can take for granted that all media briefs are alikequot Rich also states that quotthe client and media agency are not looking for offtheshelf programs It is expected the seller provide bespoke and customtailored ideas that best fit the briefquot Now hereamp8217s the challenge many of us on the buy side suspect could occur on the sell side quotIt39s always possible back at seller39s headquarters upper management may be dictating to the sales team that a designated inventory must be pushed to meet internal quarterly goalsquotHere we get into the realities of business and they exist not only with the seller but also the agency and client The client may say they want all the best bespoke inventory but when itamp8217s time to make a decision best price may win the day even if itamp8217s not best content The media agency may have similar internal pressures to move spend into agency dealsThis is where the integrity of the members of the Circle of Trust is vital Warren puts it nicely quotIt comes down to humanness around our empathy honesty and civilityquot to keep the trusted relationships alive and wellRich tells a story of one of his mentors who would say to media agencies and clients quotAfter you do all the calculations and evaluating if you decide we are not offering what your brand needs you should not buy usquot I think that is an extraordinary example of integrity you do not see every day anywhere For me as a client integrity starts with establishing and leading the Circle of Trust as the expected way of working and to abide by those principles throughout the process and apply it consistently across all media sellers who may qualify for my businessIn the final analysis although we are awash in data this business still comes down to people I am happy to say Whatever role you play in the Circle of Trust you will be best served if you are clear on your role Ask a lot of questions if you are not Play your role well Earn the trust of your Circle partners through integrity and transparency In that way you will always win more than loseWhat is the alternative Coming back to my Meet the Parents metaphor Greg Focker found himself outside the Circle of Trust because he did not always act with integrity Once outside the circle he almost didnamp8217t make it back in but Hollywood loves a happy ending and Jack readmitted him back into the Circle of Trust In the real world however you wonamp8217t be so lucky Whether you are a client agency lead or seller if thereamp8217s communication dysfunction in the process the brands will ultimately lose out amp8230 meaning nobody winsMy thanks to Rich Smyth and Warren Griffiths for helping shape the dialogue You guys are always in my Circle of TrustPosted at MediaVillage through the Thought Leadership selfpublishing platformClick the social buttons to share this story with colleagues and friendsThe opinions expressed here are the author39s views and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillageorgMyersBizNet

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The Circle of Trust: Creating an Effective Media Client/Agency/Seller Ecosystem

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Scott Grenz

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