Client and agency trade bodies have joined forces to help improve client/agency briefings across all channels, which according to one of the authors could see potential savings of “tens of millions of pounds”.
“Briefing an Agency” explains not just the principles of good briefing practice, but also offers practical tips on how to get improved results.
The authors of the guide (MAA, PRCA and IPA led by advertiser body ISBA) hope that client use of the guide and the advice it contains will lead to improved results, faster, and at lower cost for all sides in the process.
ISBA’s director of consultancy and best practice Debbie Morrison (pictured) said: “Clients and agencies acknowledge that current briefing practices leave much to be desired. We have based this guide on research we conducted among 140 of the UK’s largest advertisers and agencies, drawing on the experience of the leading marketing practitioners they employ – so Briefing an Agency really is a best practice guide in the truest sense.
“One of the stand-out learnings from our research was around the emergence of integrated and digital communications platforms as some of the leading expenditure categories. Although advertisers have adapted briefing processes to reflect this, one of the most asked questions is still ‘how do I brief for integrated campaigns?’
“At its heart, this guide is about helping clients work out what they want and communicating that in the way agencies need, in a way that gets the right result for all.
“We were delighted to work on development of this guide with John Howkins of The Nub Consultancy – John is an expert on briefing agencies and provides in-house workshops for many ISBA members on improving their briefing techniques – this work provided us with added insight into the knowledge required to deliver world class briefs.”
MAA managing director Scott Knox said: “Campaign success, although heavily reliant on the agency’s answer to the brief, is equally dependent on how well a client communicates its objectives and desired results. As more and more briefs require an integrated solution, our guide on how to improve agency briefings should not only lead to better practice across the board, but will lead to more creative and more effective campaign ideas.”
IPA director general Hamish Pringle added: “It’s hard to overstate the importance of this joint industry project. I’m convinced that tens of millions of pounds could be saved, and more earned, if only many more client briefs to agencies were significantly better – and this guide shows how they can be.”
