*Following a placement year spent client-side in the marketing department at one of the region’s most successful businesses, Marketing student Nicole Fenton was intrigued to see what #agencylife is really like. So before entering her final year at Worcester University, Nicole joined Superdream for a fortnight’s work experience. Below she shares some of her insights and observations…*
Having spent a fascinating year on placement client-side I jumped at the opportunity to spend two weeks at an agency, seeing first-hand how different the 2 sides of the marketing coin are. Here are 4 areas where I’ve noticed contrasts between client-side preconceptions* and my own experience of a full-service agency:
1: Account Managers
**Client**: Client-side, there’s not always a strong understanding or appreciation of what Account Managers actually do all day. The need for their existence can come into question and sometimes they can be considered as more of an optional extra than a vital component.
**Agency:** However having been at Superdream for 2 weeks, I can definitely see the value in having a great Account Manager and just how vital they are! Seeing the amount of planning and executing they do, I couldn’t imagine campaigns or marketing activity running nearly as smoothly or effectively without this main point of contact for both the Client and the various teams involved in the creative process. As the person that brings the whole project together and oversees it from start to finish, they couldn’t be more important.
2: Media Buying
**Client**: Having been involved in booking media client side, I had never really understood why this would be outsourced to an agency. It seemed simple enough to book advertising space through a few quick emails to tried and tested publications; why would a business pay somebody else to do this?
**Agency**: As the agency can offer media owners higher volumes of work (often from a number of clients), they enjoy more competitive rates that they can then pass on to their clients. However having spent time with the Media team at Superdream I’ve seen that there’s more to media buying than negotiation of price. They extensively research their clients’ target audiences to see what communication route would be most effective, potentially uncovering more unusual or cost-effective options. They then plan for the best time to strike. Instead of just buying ad space in the same publications, they give the client’s aims and objectives careful thought and work with the wider agency team to deliver great results.
3: Agency
**Client**: I assumed that an agency would be this super creative, chilled out, laid-back space where everybody works on Macs and play foosball whenever they wanted, possibly at the expense of a client.
**Agency**: Yes, there is definitely a creative feel to the office environment, but they don’t have a foosball table and aren’t ever just chillaxing – quite the opposite. It doesn’t take a genius to see that the people here truly love their work and feel genuinely passionate for each and every client they have. Their dedication shows through the fact they are always here before 9 and rarely leave before 5:30, often working through their lunch breaks to meet deadlines. This enthusiastic environment and commitment to the client is infectious, but never seems one to coast along in.
4: Value
**Client**: I naively believed that most of marketing could be done in house and didn’t always need to be outsourced to an agency. I genuinely questioned the value of an agency and whether as a client, we were getting bang for our buck.
**Agency**: The past two weeks have been the biggest eye opener. The value of an agency can offer to a client is huge. Not just the creative concepting side but also in the execution: they can help the client get better deals and better results. They can also take away a lot of the hassle that comes with a more in-house approach as agencies have tried and trusted vendors to use. They will also always have the benefit of being one step ahead as they are constantly researching and reading to stay on top of developments and ahead of the trends.
So yes, this past fortnight has given me plenty of food for thought regarding agencies, client side marketing and how they interact. Whilst I’m yet to come to a conclusion as to which side I’d like to sit when I graduate, thanks to this experience I’ve definitely finished the summer with a fresh appreciation for agencies and all they bring to the table.
**these are purely my own viewpoints of my own subjective experience.*