For the Corporate Executive: How to be a Great Client in Ten Easy Steps

1. Create a spirit of partnership: Equality versus superiority.
   1. Superiority/subordination is manifested by:
      • Lack of respect
      • Intimidation
      • Threat of dismissal
      • Mediocre/safe advertising
   2. Equality produces:
      • Honesty
      • Risk taking
      • Great results
      • Ability to admit failure
      • Mutual respect of intelligence and expertise
2. Do not be imitators: Be wary of change for change sake.
   1. Be skeptical of trends; defy and question what is hot now.
   2. Tune into the consumer.
   3. Understand the changes.
   4. Develop a smart position and stick with it.
3. Make sure your agency is making a fair profit.
   1. No business operates at a loss.
   2. If you are fair with them; they are fair with you.
4. Immerse your agency in your product, people and culture.
   1. Explore weaknesses, secrets, failures: they will probe for the strengths.
   2. Concrete (positive) facts make great claims in advertising.
   3. Good advertising is a by-product of understanding.
   4. Virtually all companies are proud of their personality.
5. Encourage experimentation and be prepared to pay for failure.
   1. Risk aversion produces off-target and mediocre advertising.
   2. Great clients want great advertising (ads that stand out).
   3. Back up this desire with open minds.
6. Treat the agency people well.
   1. People work harder for their friends than business acquaintances.
   2. An “attaboy” nets you a bigger, better, effort.
7. Agree on a clearly defined objective for your advertising.
   1. Do due-diligence with thorough, up-front research and analysis.
   2. Scrutinize advertising strategies, not the executions.
   3. Make creative direction precise, unambiguous.
8. Keep approvals simple and disapprovals kind.
   1. Do not have the approval process go through layers upon layers of the organization.
      • Do not debate every copy/art nuance.
      • One layer is best.
   2. On disagreements:
      • Be honest.
      • Be specific.
      • Be kind.
9. Give the agency responsibility for the advertising and give them the authority to be responsible.
   1. Your responsibility is to be involved in the process:
      • Share responsibility at the beginning.
      • Do not deny the approval empowering the agency to realize the vision.
   2. Work together toward achieving certain goals.
10. Give the agency a formal evaluation every year.
    1. Good clients reflect on whether advertising is better or worse for the year.
    2. Draw up the evaluation in partnership with the agency.
    3. Review the evaluation with agency management.

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