A Spy in the Agency-Review Process
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Some of the most creative work that an agency does takes place when people get together and start talking about what happened after a big pitch. “They loved us.” “I noticed a lot of buy signs.” “The CMO said ‘good job’ in the bathroom.”
We scrutinize every word and gesture for a sign that we’ve won, or lost. Eventually, you realize that you’ve got no idea what’s actually happening behind those closed conference-room doors once you pack up and drive away. Switching roles, I recently learned exactly how mind-bendingly unpredictable the client decision-making process can be and that it is more irrational than in my wildest imagination.
As a board member for a large nonprofit cultural institution, I was on a committee to select an agency for a strategic initiative. We drafted an RFP, sent it out to half a dozen firms, and selected three with a national presence to come in and share their ideas.
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