The Agency Model – It’s Time For Disruption

A few weeks ago I sat down with a friend to discuss the pros and cons of leaving her high-profile job at a giant telecom. First, she wanted to understand how the transition from being a corporate executive to moving into the role of an entrepreneur had been working for me. I told her, that although it’s a very different beast, the transition has been 100% positive. But I also said that it might not be the same for everyone.  It’s a constant evolution. I’ve gone from turning down potential clients – in order to stick to high-level strategy and avoid the staffing requirements that come with managing execution – to realizing that I was turning down the bank. I then began to explain my new direction of starting a boutique digital agency to handle both strategy and execution.

Her next question was an earnest and good one: Don’t you think it’s a very noisy space to enter? To be frank, I have an extremely high-tolerance for risk, and noise never concerns me.  All of my professional endeavors have been in ultra-competitive spaces. The real question to answer when entering a crowded market is whether you can offer something unique and valuable. And the answer to that question in this case is -- absolutely.

As someone who has vetted, hired, and fired digital marketing and technology agencies, I didn’t need to do a Google search (518,000,000 results for the query: ‘Digital Agency’) to answer that yes, the space is NOISY.

But from my experience, I also know there is a fundamental problem with the current agency landscape.  It’s the same problem that many companies that are trying to evolve into social businesses face – their values are off. Let me explain some of the top issues I’ve encountered:

1.     Bigger Is Not Better. The truth is: at some point, the best talent eventually leaves to lead their own agencies. The other truth is: the best talent wasn’t actually spending much time on your account anyway. Of course, if your company’s account is large enough, you might get the best talent for the pitch meeting but then it’s most likely to be pushed off to junior staff. There’s a reason why the big guys constantly acquire the best boutique agencies – that’s where you find the talent pool. Every client/project should receive at least one group strategy/creative session with all senior staff weighing-in with their experience, expertise, and insight.

2.     Underplay of Social. Like the brands they serve, many agencies are still tacking social onto the side of their strategy and planning. They acquire a social team and then claim core competency. Not so fast. If Social isn’t the *starting point for all online and offline effort – including social branding and social audience profiling -- it’s not taking advantage of the full opportunity of social. Everything needs to go through the social layer. Every touchpoint has an opportunity to create deeper engagement with customers. Social data and the creation of social experiences should take the lead -- not the other way around. I rarely see campaigns that are well targeted, well integrated or create engagement more than one comment deep. Every company, product and campaign needs a social architecture -- the platform and content comes later.

3.     Smoke and Mirrors. Many agencies will misguide a company in order to get more business, and companies are often guilty of doing the same with customers. When I had to vet an agency partner, the first question I’d ask was: Do you believe community management is better as an internal function or outsourced? The correct answer is: if the company is willing to put in the resources, it is always better managed internally. Period. No question. There is a large amount of internal knowledge and customer relationships gained when the role in house that doesn’t happen when outsourced.

I can’t tell you how many companies have told me they recommend this work be done externally – because they sell that service. Bullshit. It’s an agency’s job to tell the client the truth, even if they don’t get that piece of the business. This creates a giant opportunity for honest, straightforward, generous agencies to garner the respect and business of many clients going to agencies just about the buck. The same holds true for startups competing against companies that aren’t treating their customers right.

4.     Greed. I only remember one agency where I didn’t get a new account manager every 3 months. This begs the question, why isn’t there any consistency? Agency folks have shared with me this: Mid-level people aren’t promoted in order to bill clients less. This combined with the “You’re-lucky-to-work-here” mentality causes mid-level people to change jobs frequently. Julie Crabill recently explained how her PR agency always plans to bill less one month out of each year in order to make time for her employees to spend time training and bonding together. Nicole Jordan of Radix Collective has created a strong network of freelancers and other boutique agencies where her company builds out plans based on the rates independents want/deserve to be paid vs. the standard nickeling-and-diming approach used so often just to get the client. Talent is the most important piece of the puzzle – and many companies still don’t treat people like they value their time and effort. Creating an agency that values people first is the key.

5.     Bullying.  Don’t get me wrong. There are some very, very good agencies out there. But there are others that do great work and are awful to actually work with. I once witnessed an agency that would literally sneak into the boardroom early and line up on one side of the table with the goal of creating an intimidating atmosphere. No, I won’t name names here. The head of the agency would proceed to point out weaknesses and steamroll the conversation with a “Your company sucks and needs us” sales strategy. Meanwhile, the six other “team” members would quietly nod in agreement. It’s a powerful tactic but it’s bullying. And dark.

I would rather work with a positive, collaborative, visionary, and community-oriented group of people any day. As a potential partner, a client, or a customer, I want both agencies and brands to be honest with me. Tell me what you really recommend – as if you were in my shoes.

The agency’s job is to show the company areas of opportunity and help them get there. And wouldn’t it be great if it was a pleasant, fun, and supportive experience at the same time? If you work with an agency that operates this way, I would love to hear about them in the comments. They exist and a list of these agencies would benefit us all.

6.     Agency Experience Only. This is probably the biggest issue functionally. Agencies most often only want to hire people with agency experience. This means they rarely have staff with experience pushing through initiatives within an organization. This is a big miss. When I was Vice President of Social Media at Live Nation, I can’t tell you how many times an agency pitched an idea that involved integration with the website, the mobile app, the payment system and/or the direct mail platform. Who knows how many hours were spent brainstorming this amazing “idea” without a clue at how much time it would take for buy-in with this many departments and technologies. Let me tell you – no less than eight months.

If that agency had someone with corporate experience, they would know this and angle for a much more bite-sized piece and then, work to expand.

These six core issues make the agency space ripe for disruption. Agencies that focus on their employees and harness their best talent across their accounts, lead with social, tell their clients what they need to hear (even if it’s not what they want to hear), and think outside the proverbial agency box are primed to take the lead – and deliver better results with a smaller price tag. Thoughts?

By Gretchen Fox, Social Architect at grtchnfx

Corporate FTE? No, Thank You.

The very first thing I did as I drove out of the parking garage after getting fired from my position as the Vice President of Social Media at Live Nation was -- exhale. And I mean, the longest, deepest exhale of my life. It was so deep, it struck me. And in that moment, I realized this experience was a very, very good thing for me.

I was getting a clean slate, a chance to hit the reset button. I didn't owe anyone my time, ideas, or lifeblood. It was all mine again. 

After a brief stint partying my face-off in Miami-stylee (as one does in these situations), I came home and began a four-day digital detox and cleanse -- no phone, no internet, no TV, no alcohol, strict diet, etc. It was my intention to discover exactly what I wanted to do with my life next. I focused on meditation, listening to the universe, walking and appreciating beauty and grace, and writing volumes. I also painted. It was the second night of intense quiet, when I painted a bolt of lightening. And out of that bolt of lightening, sprang a  bird. A beautiful bird. A blue bird. And that bird flew confidently away from a city skyline and towards a giant heart. And, so then, I knew, looking at that painting -- there would be no corporate full time employment for me. I would use this lightening-bolt of a catalyst to fly into new territory -- and only work with companies with a heart. Let me explain.

It doesn't make sense for me to plug into an infrastructure designed 100 years ago. The silos and power struggles as a way of doing business is a broken and outdated model. Most importantly, I don't believe the full vision of social can be reached within it.

The full vision (described in this post)  requires an entirely different business architecture -- one that either requires a complete reconfiguration of a traditional business or one built from scratch in the case of a startup. Both are only possible as a top-down initiative. Without exception.

The architecture of a social organization requires social to be at the heart of the organization -- not tacked onto the side like a sad little tail pinned onto a donkey at a four-year-old's birthday party.

Because of social  media, every company has a voice. Which means, it has a mouth. Which means, it is expected to talk. And when it does talk, it is expected to do so with honesty and compassion -- or it is distrusted and resented. It is, therefore, expected to have a heart. Having a heart means authentically valuing and caring for your customers, employees, and partners. And displaying that value and concern through every single action, every communication -- every experience with the company.

Any company that has not figured this out, will at some point. Up until that point, it is not possible to reach the full opportunity of social. And I have no inclination to work within a system where I know I can't help the company reach the full opportunity of social before I even start. Half-ass is not in my DNA.

Don't get me wrong -- I am more than happy to audit, consult, and do project work for these companies. I just refuse to get mired in the political battles of the world of silos -- this effort does not create real change, IMHO. 

Cut to:

Startups are being launched in LA every 40 hours right now. And so many entrepreneurs get it. I mean really! Recently, I had a CEO draw me a diagram of the org chart he is designing with a hub-and-spoke model and he carefully wrote "social" in the middle circle -- Yes! Thank You.

And then I have a 20something CEO of a startup client who understands social is so important to his business that he rolls his eyes so hard I think they're going to bounce off onto the floor whenever I say anything about social being important. I can tell he is thinking, "I know, I know, just tell me how to do it." Beautiful!!

So, no ... I won't come tuck under your digital marketing "guy" in your big corporation so I can make a bunch of PowerPoint decks to convince him he needs to be doing more social. No more convincing. I'm over it. It's been too many years and if you don't get it by now, I'm not your woman. I only want to work with people who are ready to transform their business into the living, breathing, talking, participatory community member it can be. The type of business that wants to be head-and-shoulders above the competition -- in every way -- not just financially. A well-rounded company. A company that looks to create value constantly and is eager to explore the richness the social experience can provide.

I love lighting up the creative, inventive, and driven minds of people who already have their values in place. Those who are primed to take the orb and run. These are my dream clients and I've decided these are the only ones I'll be accepting.

So, unless your major corporation has the CEO call me him or herself to explain he/she understands social is the future of the entire business -- the answer is No. Thank you. I'm ready to make magic.

By Gretchen Fox, Social Architect at grtchnfx

Live Nation - Looking Back.

Me, the weekend before starting my job at Live Nation.​ (Photo credit: Arlo Rosner)

It’s been four months since I was let go from my role as Vice President of Social Media at Live Nation.

I have to say being fired is definitely a life changing event. The thoughts and feeling that arose were so complex, I knew it was important for me to pull apart the entangled threads and follow them each to the end. I wanted to be able to put every single thought and feeling into perspective and take full advantage of the opportunity for both professional and personal growth.

After following each thread to the very end, I now know why a VC friend congratulated me on the "accomplishment" of being fired. You see, I was given a gift. The bombshell allowed me the life changing opportunity to discover a new depth to my strength and a deep understanding of my own resilience. I have learned that I don't need to rely on anyone else for my income or stability. That I don't have to be afraid of speaking my mind, standing on a ledge, or striking out on my own. That it was me and always me (and only me) who had my back all along. And that my friends, is freedom -- the kind nobody can take from you or alter. For this, I will forever be grateful.

Beyond this giant discovery, as I unraveled the different threads, I realized I am actually grateful for many things. Here are the top 10, in order of importance:

10. Success! Building an in-house social agency to serve all National tours from strategy to promotions to advertising was no easy task. I took the department from two to nine -- mentoring smart, creative and talented young people into becoming a team that could scale to handle thousands of concerts, support over a hundred marketers across North America, and service the different divisions of the organization from customer service to marketing to sponsorship/ad sales. And let me tell you, we moved mountains. I want to take a moment to say Thank You! to those who have worked with me and for me -- you have touched me with your incredible minds, creative spirits and giving hearts. I am grateful for all of the amazing moments we had together -- especially when high-fives and tequila celebrations were involved ;)

9. Final Approval. Owning the job of controlling all social communications for a brand is an enormous responsibility. Some brands have up to 10 approvers for each social post including executives from branding, marketing, corporate communications, PR and legal departments. I feel a lot of pride in the fact that I was trusted to be the single and final authority in all social communications for both Live Nation and Ticketmaster brands. I believe all brands need to have a single person they can trust in this role since it is such an easy place to falter, and having too many approvers slows response times down at a time when real-time response is critical -- and becoming more critical every day.

8. Key Collaborators. While turning social into a business at Live Nation, many, many teams were necessary to build APIs, integrate technologies, and respond to fans 365 days a year. I am most grateful for the "Social Care" team we developed led by Scott Powell,  Scott Donowho, Eric Showalter, Terry Lilly and Barrett Justice. You guys are a dream team and you deserve to get an award for your dedication and successful integration of social into Customer Service. It is a very tough job to help frustrated, and sometimes angry, people with their problems day in and day out. This team does it with pride, grace -- and smiles.

7. Artist Teams. I mentioned a couple of standout band managers who effectively manage their bands like brands in a previous blog post but there are so many more strong and successful people I had the privilege of working with along the way. People like Michele Bernstein at WME who is tough as nails and sharp as a tack, and all the folks over at grnd(ctrl) who made collaboration not just possible but a pleasure. You guys really do rock and I look forward to working together in the future.

6. Sex Appeal. Working in the entertainment industry opens doors, and even more so when the the company is the biggest of its kind. Working at the company, allowed me to easily initiate and build relationships with giant players across social platforms, publishers, vendors, and management companies that would have been much more difficult as an independent consultant. The people I met during this time have become some of my closest friend, allies and resources. These relationships have been such a huge value to both me and my clients -- so Thank You!

5. Resources. I have been privileged throughout my career to have worked with many companies who have been early to invest in social. Having enough resources to be able to build systems and tools to scale social the way I always knew it could and should be done was a dream come true. I was able to invest in technology to everything from developing simple tools that allowed for 100 plus marketers to build quick, turnaround promotions to launching cutting edge apps and building a robust unified digital dashboard. The experience and knowledge of how to get this done from INSIDE a large corporation has put me in a very unique position to consult the biggest brands in the world on Social Business. For example, I know social must graduate beyond the purview of the marketing department to reach the full vision of Social Business. (Read my Forbes article on the subject here). For this insight, I will forever be thankful.

4. Volume, volume, volume. One thing Live Nation has in spades is volume. While this creates a very big challenge for execution, it is an incubator for developing expertise. Volume means more opportunity to try, test, fail, learn and try again. As a proponent of the fail fast methodology, I now recommend high-volume execution as a means to hone in on perfection. It really is *the formula for success.

3. History. Many people don’t know the history of the company, but I always found it fascinating. Live Nation is a business created from many, many successful local businesses. This means there are many strong leaders in places like Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York, Canada, and New England, just to name a few. When I began developing an agenda for a  weekly call with the local teams of people who have been brought up by the concert greats like Bill Graham, Ron Delsner, Rick Franks, and one of my all time favorites, Don Law, the insights were invaluable. Talk about music history. Those wanting to get into the music business -- forget college, get a little time in with any of these guys and you will learn the lessons of a lifetime.

2. Variety. The parent company Live Nation Entertainment has a little bit of everything -- ticketing, promoters, venues, VIP packages, merchandise, sponsorship and artist management. While building social across the business, I was able to understand how each of these businesses work independently and together. I was able to both learn and teach how to apply social to a vast array of different use cases from how to integrate a sponsor into a product launch to how to build a social team for a b2b business like Ticketmaster. It is rare to be able to work with such a large variety of businesses inside one company, and for that experience to have come during such a lucrative time for the development of Social Business -- it was an opportunity of one in a million.

1. Data. The volume of fans that go to concerts creates a ton of data. As any smart digital professional would do, I measured everything. Being able to measure and gain insights against so many efforts, across so many platforms, with so many people is the way to develop best practices. And since understanding the correlation between data and social levers, is the number one way I have been so successful in my career to date, this is the number one thing for which I am grateful.

In the end, I have identified a clear path to execute the full vision of a social business within a large organization -- a path that every company must go down and every startup must carve out. 

I also discovered we are all still at the very beginning of the possibilities.

There is opportunity to create dynamic, social experiences that bridge online and offline events, content that invites ongoing exploration, and engagements that light people up both mentally and emotionally.  This is the next stage of engage and I can't wait for the ride. And now, I am confident I am up for whatever it may bring ;)

By Gretchen Fox, Social Architect at grtchnfx