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 Agencies shift into hyperdrive for clients
Speed has become such a competitive advantage that TFA/Leo Burnett Technology Group, Chicago, went to the trouble of giving high-velocity b-to-b marketing a name: "hyper-marketing." These days, agencies are responding to client campaign needs faster because they can. It’s no secret that computers allow ads to be created more quickly than ever. But agencies are also responding faster because they have to. Today’s marketers must keep pace with the Internet’s standard of instantaneous communication. As a result, many agencies have altered their cultures and streamlined their processes with greater speed in mind. "I think it’s a reflection of a really fundamental belief that speed can be a corporate asset," said Bill White, Internet group president for Andover, Massachusettes-based CMGi, which operates and invests in Web-based companies. "Never has that been more true than in the Internet economy." Speed standard CMGi selected TFA/Leo Burnett’s Boston office as its agency last July in part because of the speed factor. ?"They’re action-oriented people," Mr. White said of TFA/ Leo Burnett. "And that, as much as anything, had to do with our initial decision." ?Sean Bisceglia, the agency’s CEO, said TFA/Leo Burnett shortens learning curves by hiring only people with expertise in technology for positions such as account executives and art directors. ?There are no rush charges for hypermarketing. It is simply the way TFA/Leo Burnett does business. ?"Anybody can do stuff fast." Mr. Bisceglia said, "but we’re doing it quickly with a sound message honed by research and planning." ?TFA/Leo Burnett’s first major project for CMGi was a renaming and rebranding of the company, with investors as a key audience. The agency completed the project, which included research, a new logo and tagline, and direct mail, in slightly more than two months. ?CMGi was established in 1986 as a list management company called CMG Information Systems. The company immersed itself in the Internet in 1989, operating and investing in Web-related companies. As Internet stocks took off, the company wanted a new name to underscore its Web focus. ?CMGi, which already was the company’s NASDAQ stock ticker symbol, became its new name. TFA/ Leo Burnett created a tagline that emphasized the Web connection: "Creating net value." It used direct mail to reach key targets. ?In the campaign’s wake, CMGi’s stock split 2-for-1, and Web site hits nearly tripled, Mr. White said. ?"People get that we’re an Internet company," he said. Driven by technology Technology, of course, drives this preoccupation with speed. Personal computers have revolutionized creative departments everywhere, making art boards obsolete. ?"Now you can damn near put an ad out in a day," said Tom Hicks, senior VP-print production at Bader, Rutter & Associates, Brookfield, WI. ?Technology affects more than production; it speeds communication, too. Goldberg Moser O’Neill Advertising, San Francisco, says it is creating agency-client Intranets for just that purpose. ?And, led by the Internet, technology speeds research. In addition to making libraries worth of data just a mouse click away, the Internet can also provide almost instantaneous feedback on ad performance, said David Lewis, the former VP-marketing of Netopia, Alameda, California (Mr. Lewis resigned earlier this year to become and independent marketing consultant). ?In testing a campaign offering Web sites to small businesses, Netopia rotated several different banners on hundreds of Web sites managed by Flycast, a Web advertising network based in San Francisco. Mr. Lewis says that in 24 hours the feedback determined which banners and Web sites were most effective. ?"You can’t do that anywhere with print media," he said. ?Netopia even tested prices for its Web site service. Analysis quickly showed that a price point of $19.95 attracted as many customers as $14.95. ?"We decided not to leave $5 on the table," Mr. Lewis said. Changes at agencies To keep pace with the ever-increasing speed of marketing, agencies are changing their cultures and revamping their processes. ?Tom Simons, president of Partners & Simons, Boston, said his agency, which opened 10 years ago, was built for speed. The agency promotes itself with an ad that asks, "Remember when overnight was fast?" ?At his agency, there are no "junior-level people," Mr. Simons said. "Everybody who touches the job has a vital role." ?To become more nimble and responsive to client demands, CRE Marcom, Indianapolis, eliminated most of its departments and restructured itself into what amounts to several small agencies within the larger agency. ?"The creative department used to say it needed at least three weeks to develop strong concepts," said Jeff Donnell, CRE Marcom’s VP-account management. "The job of the account manager was to fight for that time. But the client won’t wait anymore. If you need three weeks, the clients will find somebody who can do it in three days." ?Similarly, Richard Segal, managing partner at Hensley Segal Rentschler, Cincinnati, said his agency changed its culture when it noticed a bottleneck in the creative department. ?"The creative discipline in the advertising business is modeled more after a 14th-century artisan than it is after a 21st-century software developer," Mr. Segal said. "They work from a frame of reference of a craftsman, where they say, ‘It’s not done until I say it’s done.’" ?That is no longer the case at Hensley Segal, he said. Now, the agency’s culture dictates that deadlines will be met-no matter how many late nights it will take to meet them. ?"We call them ‘death march projects,’" Mr. Segal said. "Basically, what we’re saying is that we’re committing to obviously unreasonable time frames, but nonetheless, failure is not an option." ?Some say the focus on speed in marketing is nothing new. It’s no revolution, just evolution. ?"It’s always been hectic," said John Reider, principal at San Francisco-based SenaReider, Netopia’s agency. "We still don’t have enough time. There’s never been enough time." ?Nonetheless, it seems a foregone conclusion that the pace of business will become even faster. As long as being first to market with a new wrinkle generates profits, agencies will need to help marketers communicate their messages with greater speed. ?"It’s a lot like the gold rush," Mr. Lewis mused. "The people who got the gold were the people who got their first." |
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