Dear Clients: Beware of Getting What You Pay For
An agency principal reported an unusual RFP in last week’s Advertising Age whereby the entire first-round screening was completed online, with no human interaction whatsoever. This may sound like an efficient way to gather preliminary data from agencies, but there were unusual twists to the RFP process in this particular case. First, the participating agencies were required to submit line-by-line fee proposals. And, to qualify for the next round, agencies that had performed prior work for the client were asked to agree to a rate reduction. Even more surprising is the fact that the RFP was for strategic consulting and design services. Qualified agencies were then invited to continue the impersonal, Web-enabled bidding process.
In this case, there was clearly a mismatch between the RFP process and the assignment for consulting services, which as we know are highly dependent not only on the consultant’s expertise but also on the relationship between client and consultant, something that cannot be assessed by computers. I can see why the client would want to get a sense of costs before going too far down the path, but detailed line-by-line breakdowns and mandated discounts speak of a client that does not respect the agency’s time and one that places price over value. In the end, maybe this client will ask for agency services to be delivered via the same online process, with no live human interaction? Now that would really make it easy for the agency to deploy junior staff to do all this “strategic consulting.”
What are reasonable measures clients can take to manage costs? I say go back to the basics.
- Do a few things well, rather than spreading the budget too thin. It also helps to stick to your plan and not be tempted to be reactive.
- Be more efficient in your interactions with your agency.
- Be nice to your agency. Believe me, it pays!