The love and hate relationship between agencies and clients

Harry and Sally, Hamlet and Ophelia, Elizabeth and Darcy, just some classic infamously famous love-hate relationships we’ve heard of over the years. Another classic that is unmentioned amongst these charming romances is the one shared between Agencies and Clients. They can’t live without each other and sometimes can’t even with.

With all of the above, while they’re all Happily Ever Afters, there is some consequential collateral damage that takes place along the way. Sometimes where love is lost, hearts are broken, and in this case, sometimes people are tools but most times brands fall prey. Well, it is a happily ever after, by the end of it all, however, it is often perhaps more hate than love.

So, what can we do to bring down the hate and build more love? Here’s a how-to to add your agency and client relationship to the list that features the likes of Romeo and Juliet as well as Laila Majnu instead. A simple acronym to remember this by would be AEIOU (our vowels, or wow-els in this case).

1. Appreciate

Appreciation goes a long way if you want to build a relationship to last the ages. And just like love, appreciation is a two-way street. It’s all about giving and taking every instance either party does something positive or memorable. This could be as simple as saying “this is great” when something gets delivered on time, or when expectations are adequately met and so on. But when expectations are exceeded, then one should appreciate the effort even more so. Such acts of appreciation then give the other party much more incentive to keep doing well because they know that it’s being noticed and perhaps even spoken about.

2. Experiment

Just like any long-lasting love affair, that spark can potentially dwindle over time. Ask anyone how they keep that spark alive and they’ll tell you to experiment to keep things exciting and engaging. Truer words could not have been spoken for the agency-client relationship too. Agencies especially are often bursting at the seams when it comes to creativity and is just waiting for opportunities to flex some creative liberty. While yes, clients know their brands best and some things may be deemed to be off-limits, letting an agency swing for the fences with an experimental idea can potentially help the brand to make waves and get people talking. Not to mention how important this is for the relationship given such a gesture of trust in the capability of the agency and vice versa.

3. Integrate

Any romantic relationship that’s stood the test of time has involved partners that stuck together through it all, be it planning the future, making big decisions or even taking the relationship to the next level. Imagine a similar dynamic between an agency and a client and you have two partners in crime that are well integrated and have each other’s backs no matter what. Coming down to business itself, that means consulting one another every step of the way to ensure everyone’s on the same page rather than working in silos which can often lead to disasters involving wasted time and resources. Integration is, therefore, another important factor that can build a stronger bond along the way.

4. Optimise

Optimisation might perhaps sound out of place considering what we’ve covered so far but is still an essential ingredient when it comes to outweighing the love over the hate in an agency-client relationship. That would mean optimising costs to what should be offered rather than cutting corners which often tend to lower the quality of output. Optimising efforts in order to do more in less time for both parties to give each other better value and to grow professionally as well. And even optimising feedback where adequate time is taken to collate every relevant thought from all relevant stakeholders in a constructive manner which is finally shared together rather than piecemeal.

5. Understand

Finally, yes, understanding the other party is the most important thing one can do in such relationships as this will naturally facilitate all the other elements mentioned above. In fact, the lack of understanding is something most noticeable and can be the reason why many relationships, professional or otherwise, tend to fail. Just placing yourself in the shoes of the other party is all it takes to appreciate their effort and in turn level with them when it comes to setting expectations and beyond. Doing so will also help avoid situations that put the relationship at stake and will also help foster a bond built on trust and mutual respect.

There you have it. A 5-course meal to help you turn those love-hate relationships into more love relationships. A sure shot way to make a Once Upon a Time into a Happily Ever After.

About the author:

Neha Mewawalla, Co- Founder, Wife