Marobella's Branding SoapBox

Guest Blogger - Christopher Rowlison on "A Call to Crispin’s Clients"

Last week while travelling back from a client meeting I received a news alert from Ad Age explaining Crispin Porter & Bogusky’s resignation of the Miller Brewing account. As I read the message it was steeped in arrogance and brash bravado as if Crispin was the client, and Miller Brewing was the agency, and that Miller Brewing needed to learn a lesson. What makes this story worse is that according to Ad Age Jeff Hicks, President of Crispin called the CMO of Miller Brewing, Randy Ransom to resign the account and discuss their position, where Randy inquired if there was anything they could do to salvage the situation; Mr. Hicks replied he already issued a press release. My apologies to Mr. Ransom, I’m certain he believed he was dealing with a professional partner with integrity and character in Crispin instead he was shown the ego of a child that didn’t get there way so they took their toys and went home. The Miller Brewing Company responded like any successful, long standing valued brand, they chose not to comment, or to lower themselves to the standards of Crispin. When you spend millions and millions of dollars with a marketing partner to further your business, who believes it’s o.k. to treat someone with such low regard, especially a client? Yes, Mr. Hicks a client. You know the ones that pay the bills! Crispin long ago forgot this basic principle let alone believes they are here to build partnerships and create value for the brand that hired them. I believe an agency’s role is to add value to the brand that hired them and to make our clients the stars, not the agency. The tactic used by Mr. Hicks by releasing a press release was an attempt by the agency to appear smart and strategic, and garner buzz, instead it showed self-importance, lack of honesty, and not a collaborator someone should value.

I call on all of Crispin’s clients to examine the treatment this agency paid a respected brand and ask how long before you get a phone call from Mr. Hicks firing you and explaining you’ll find your brand highlighted as a news alert on Ad Age.

(Submitted by Christopher Rowlison, christopherr@wirestone.com, of Wirestone and Managing Director responsible for our accounts and client relationships, my thanks to Paul for allowing me to speak my mind on his blog)

Harvard-Trained

I was watching MSNBC the other night and on came a short-form infomercial for a "wonder-cream" that claimed that it could remove years of wrinkles almost immediately. It claimed that it was better and safer than Botox. Now, of course, this wouldn't be the first time that an informercial made some remarkable claims about what it could do for the purchaser. However, one thing that caught my eye was one of the doctors being interviewed for her testimonial on the performance of the product had under her name a caption that read "Harvard-trained". Does this mean she went to Harvard? Does it mean she worked out with a trainer in the Harvard Athletic facilities? Does it mean she graduated from Med School there? I couldn't stop thinking about this twisted truth and how the advertiser was able to mislead people by not lying, but using the brand of Harvard to their advantage when all she probably did was take one or two classes at the Harvard Extension (night) School.

Maybe I could put on my resume, "Harvard-Influenced". Think that would sell some people on Brand Marobella? I doubt it.

An Open Letter To Our Client-Side Friends

Many of us on the agency-side of the advertising/marketing business choose to be here. We have dedicated our careers to helping and propelling our client-side marketing directors, managers and CMO's to new levels of success. Simply, we exist to make you look good. We work long hours, we sweat blood, we agonize on the quality of our ideas, we live in constant fear of losing your business, we hang onto every word you say and most importantly, we seek your approval.

We desire to be your partners, your confidants, your consiglieres, your advisors and your friends. But much of the time we are treated like servants, like peasants, like second-class citizens or the dreaded 'V' word - vendors. Why? Many of us have the same degrees, advanced degrees and global brand experience as you. Many of us have been on the client-side, understand the pressures you are under and want nothing more to be by your side as you move up the ladder. We know the average tenure of a CMO hovers around 23 months and we know that you are under constant pressure to get instant results, when in your heart you know that brand issues take longer to solve. We know that you lay awake at night and think about how you are going to be your brand nemesis with your smaller budget. We are laying in bed thinking the same thing.

Marketing agencies are your friends. We exist for one reason and that is to make you and your organization more money. Sure, our fees can be high at times - but I think we all believe that good work ain't cheap. Wouldn't you take the same angle with a customer of your product? Sure, there is always someone cheaper, but I believe you get what you pay for and something always has to give. It is no different in our business than in manufacturing.

Now, surely not all client-side marketers are this way. There are many that do understand the value of an agency partnership and do know how to get the best from their agencies. These are the marketers that rocket to the top - the ones that stand on the shoulders of giants - their agency partners.

So, my client-side friends- we want your respect, your admiration, your partnership. Most of us work hard to try and earn that everyday. The next time you threaten your agency with a review or nickel and dime them for a great idea they presented to you - think about the fact that these people are your partners, not a necessary evil. They are your friends, not your adversaries.

Thanks for your time.

Let's Make Dialogue.

Can brands really have a "dialogue" with people? Or, is that what we like to call the nice pillow talk when someone votes to talk to the brands and opens their wallets? I mean, how much dialogue can you have with a brand and are we just talking to ourselves as an industry thinking that we can have people talk and think about our brands when most of them are low involvement and people think about them for one millisecond a day. Maybe they are taking the cap off the bourbon bottle after a long day or thinking about the beef jerky they want to buy in a White Hen pantry - but do they want to have a relationship?

Coming from a brand guy that has made a career out of facilitating this dialogue, I am starting to wonder if I am more of a matchmaker than a mediator. Get someone interested in a brand, have them fall in love with the brand and hope that they stay interested long enough for the brand to get some. Hopefully, if we keep them interested they won't cheat on the brand and go somewhere else.

Well, back to making dialogue.

The SoapBox on Yahoo!

The SoapBox was linked in a Yahoo Business article about how Staples is beating Office Depot. Interesting because I have noticed that a great deal of traffic to the SoapBox has been for people searching for this campaign. It obviously has struck a chord but not in a good way . How Staples Got The Upper Hand.