Improve Brand Decisions

Replace Working/Non-Working Ratios with Deploy & Develop Allocations Is the working to non-working balancing act obsolete and flawed? Without a doubt, this ratio — and its impact on effective spend management — is a controversial topic among C-suite executives and agency leaders. The ratio often makes headlines in investor calls when major cuts in non-working […]

Riding a Bicycle Backwards

Marketers have been conditioned to accept some ideas that eventually threw us off balance. Ultimately, these false ideas get in the way of effective partnerships. As a former competitive cyclist, I understand the value of balance, especially at high speed and within a large group of riders. Balance, as with riding a bicycle, is something […]

Unlearning common misconceptions about agencies

Featured on Marketing Dive: Marketers have been conditioned to accept some ideas that eventually threw us off balance. Ultimately, these false ideas get in the way of effective partnerships. — Read the published Marketing Dive article — The following is a guest post by Bruno Gralpois, co-founder and principal of Agency Mania Solutions. Opinions are the […]

Partnership in 2021 – An Inconvenient Truth

Raising awareness of the increased tension in client/agency relationships amid COVID – The case for why 2021 will be the year of renewed partnerships: — Read the published article on 4A’s — The 2006 Oscar-winning documentary “An Inconvenient Truth” featuring former United States Vice President Al Gore reenergized the environmental movement after making a dire […]

Five Inconvenient Truths About Client-Agency Partnerships in 2021 and How to Fix Them

Featured on WARC: This article examines the increased tension in client–agency relationships amid the COVID-induced recession, and how to make 2021 an opportunity to renew and refresh these partnerships. — Read the published article on WARC — Read the quick summary: The agency industry has been shaken by the pandemic, with the associated budget cuts […]

Predictions for a New (Partnership) World Order

Featured on ANA Marketing Maestros: Additional disruption?  Greater turmoil?  Further transformation?  What radical changes should advertisers expect in a post-COVID world? — Read the published article on ANA Maestros — Apparently, you cannot be late if you arrive early. This lapalissade, inspired by the French nobleman Jacques de La Palice (1470 – 1525) known for […]

Predictions for a New (Partnership) World Order

Additional disruption?  Greater turmoil?  Further transformation?  What radical changes should advertisers expect in a post-COVID world? — Read the published article on ANA Maestros — Apparently, you cannot be late if you arrive early. This lapalissade, inspired by the French nobleman Jacques de La Palice (1470 – 1525) known for his truisms, captures our insatiable […]

Save Your Agency-Client Relationships from Drowning in the Pandemic Sea

Featured on 4A’s and ANA: How clients and agencies can avoid the heightened risk of relationships failing during the stormy pandemic crisis: — Read the published article on 4A’s — — Read the published article on ANA — The recent health crisis tested every business, every individual, and every relationship in some way. We will […]

Save Your Agency-Client Relationships from Drowning in the Pandemic Sea

How clients and agencies can avoid the heightened risk of relationships failing during the stormy pandemic crisis: — Read the published article on 4A’s — — Read the published article on ANA — The recent health crisis tested every business, every individual, and every relationship in some way. We will look back and, without a […]

Cost Benchmarking

Request a white paper on how to get the most value from cost benchmarking: Cost benchmarking has received much attention in recent years as brand advertisers look more carefully at their expenses, seek greater transparency from agency partners on cost assumptions, and, in the end, strive to drive better and more effective use of their […]

Cutting Agency Fees is Not the Answer to Your Marketing Budget Challenges

Featured on ANA Marketing Maestros — Read the published ANA article — The threat of corporate restructuring, zero-based budgeting, and other cost-cutting initiatives can keep CMOs up at night. With the constant pressure to reduce marketing budgets, cutting agency fees is without a doubt very tempting. However, asking agencies to cut their fees without careful […]

How CMOs Measure the Success of Client-Agency Relationships (ROI)

Featured on MarTech Advisors — Read the published MarTech Advisor’s article — Marketing budgets are increasingly tight and CMOs struggle to effectively measure ROI and justify investments. In today’s harsh economic climate, C-level executives are asking questions about the accountability of every dollar spent. Even industry heavyweights such as Facebook, Google, and Amazon, are introducing […]