The problem many companies experience is that their focus lies heavily on profits first and people second. This way of thinking is a sure-fire way to ruin a business. Jason Ehrlich, a skilled advertising professional who has experience with transforming his agency and who continues to create successful campaigns, has shown the true key to an effective advertising agency. His solution for this problem is simple: account planning. Jason learned this through strategy books and his previous startup in 1992, called Steelhead, before reinventing his new successful agency, Yonder, with his partner and creative director Jacob McNeil.
Yonder takes the position that rapport and understanding needs to be built with the client in order to create good advertising. Jason stated that the startup of Yonder and the integration of account planning “instantaneously began to build trust with the client and expose them to customers.” Cultivating a relationship between the agency and the client prevents the client from wasting money and time on ideas that could, or rather should, be turned down. In turn, the agency would save time and refrain from creating ineffective campaign ideas. Account planning should be mandatory because understanding customers allows the agency and the client to cooperate better and benefit each other.
For advertising agencies looking to be efficacious, the answer is taking the time to understand the people involved with the brand. Research how consumers look at the brand, how the brand exists in retail, and the brand’s interaction with its competitors. Following the steps of Yonder, an agency should videotape their meetings and make clips to show their clients. Knowing the brand and knowing the people will construct a stronger creative, a deeper relationship, and superior advertising.
