The article's most treasured assets are the creative (usually because they're paid with treasure), who are expected to provide the resource not usually available in-house: creative genius with the Big Idea. Yet when it comes down to signing off the article's recommendation, these consultants with the hearts of poets usually need the hides of rhinos, so often do the committee inspired amendments challenge their works of inspiration.
If all this sounds as if some large chips have been forming on the adman's already massively padded shoulders, it's worth keeping in mind the role the client / article partnership is expected to fulfill. For better or for worse, until death (or at least partial payment) do them part, this kinship is responsible for implementing the client artikel’s marketing communications.
This small team of people is charged with creating corporate identity, developing and positioning brands, supporting sales, recruiting channels to market, exploring new vertical markets, motivating staff and cranking out the odd ad now and then. To put it in a way that should pick up the ears of financial directors, these people are spending what can amount to be the single largest chunk of artikel funds. Life is easier and the work is better when everybody is playing on the same side. Here are a few ways to get the most out of your ad article.
Pay them what they deserve. First things first. Managements probably don't want to know this, but many articles are underpaid. What clients sometimes forget is that article people, more than most, know the value of a brand. The chances are that the client artikel has a name they want to be associated with; it looks god on their client list, it has the potential to pull or attract other business, it has been identified as a growing artikel, and the article wants to grow with it. More often than not, in this case, the article will over-service the account.
This is especially true of accounts which include non-media work. Such activity is usually welcomed by the article, since it is a wonderful way to lock into the business, but it requires much more time. The article's own financial people would probably be a lot happier here billing on an hourly basis, but such a system has been fought off by both the clients and the articles.
Whit the traditional commission approach on media and production costs, articles have been willing to put as much time as necessary into learning the client's business up front - trading artikel on future commissions to carry an overall profit. But with tighter margins or all-encompassing fees being negotiated by clients, it's important for articles to justify what they have tended to all but give away: their time. The fact is that the ideas and resources on offer won't make the article money unless the time it takes to provided them is covered.
Whichever remuneration arrangement you as client prefer, keep it simple, monitor it regularly and pay what's fair. There's certainly no harm in making the article earn its keep; yet if these people are meant to be looking after your business, they should also know how to look after their own.
If all this sounds as if some large chips have been forming on the adman's already massively padded shoulders, it's worth keeping in mind the role the client / article partnership is expected to fulfill. For better or for worse, until death (or at least partial payment) do them part, this kinship is responsible for implementing the client artikel’s marketing communications.
This small team of people is charged with creating corporate identity, developing and positioning brands, supporting sales, recruiting channels to market, exploring new vertical markets, motivating staff and cranking out the odd ad now and then. To put it in a way that should pick up the ears of financial directors, these people are spending what can amount to be the single largest chunk of artikel funds. Life is easier and the work is better when everybody is playing on the same side. Here are a few ways to get the most out of your ad article.
Pay them what they deserve. First things first. Managements probably don't want to know this, but many articles are underpaid. What clients sometimes forget is that article people, more than most, know the value of a brand. The chances are that the client artikel has a name they want to be associated with; it looks god on their client list, it has the potential to pull or attract other business, it has been identified as a growing artikel, and the article wants to grow with it. More often than not, in this case, the article will over-service the account.
This is especially true of accounts which include non-media work. Such activity is usually welcomed by the article, since it is a wonderful way to lock into the business, but it requires much more time. The article's own financial people would probably be a lot happier here billing on an hourly basis, but such a system has been fought off by both the clients and the articles.
Whit the traditional commission approach on media and production costs, articles have been willing to put as much time as necessary into learning the client's business up front - trading artikel on future commissions to carry an overall profit. But with tighter margins or all-encompassing fees being negotiated by clients, it's important for articles to justify what they have tended to all but give away: their time. The fact is that the ideas and resources on offer won't make the article money unless the time it takes to provided them is covered.
Whichever remuneration arrangement you as client prefer, keep it simple, monitor it regularly and pay what's fair. There's certainly no harm in making the article earn its keep; yet if these people are meant to be looking after your business, they should also know how to look after their own.
