Renewing our agency-client vows

From the moment our eyes locked during the pitch, we knew we were made for one another. And as we agreed to sort out the contract stuff over email, the way the strip lighting glared on a plastic plant in the corner was just…magical. How we wished that long hot summer meeting would never end. Perhaps it’s now time for renewing our agency-client vows.

We were good together, for a while. So where did it all go wrong?

In the world of marketing and advertising, the relationship between agencies and clients can feel like a marriage.

There’s love, frustration, compromise, and the occasional passive-aggressive email. But like any relationship, you must put the work in, or it fails.

This doesn’t mean the industry has soured or anything dramatic. It just means that agencies and clients alike need to remember some home truths. About how to run a successful creative marriage.

Let’s adorn ourselves in soft, white cotton robes and revisit those sacred vows on the warm, sandy coloured carpet of an executive office.

Do you, client, promise to write a proper creative brief?

 Not just a stream of consciousness monologue about your brand. Not a PowerPoint deck that looks like it was beamed in from some cold, alien planet.

For focused, on brand creative work we need a clear brief. The kind that doesn’t leave anything to telepathy or ‘vibes’ or anything nebulous. We need one that’s confident and has substance enough to fuel the fire of our imaginations. Why? Because that’s what you need and it’s what you pay us for.

Do you, agency, promise to work to the brief?

Lookie lookie at our shiny, edgy, just SO hot right now idea! Oh, wait… it’s off-brief. Oops.

Any self-respecting agency never works only to please itself. It’s not about trendiness or chasing awards, unless it coincides with an on-brief idea. That serves your needs as a client. If you ask us for a white square, a white square you shall get – not a glitter filled dodecahedron. Likewise, if you want us to veer off the road into wild tundra, we will. 

Do you, client, promise to give actionable feedback?

‘Can we make this less fizzy please?’.

 ‘Seems a bit flat, can we zhuzh it up?’

 ‘I’m just not sure this is big picture aligned’

It’s 6:00 pm on a Friday and the tracked changes and comments flood in. Different people want different, inactionable things. Abstractions, jargon bloat, nonsense, confusion. Tiredness. If, as an agency, we need to make too many guesses as to what you’re thinking – it’s the work (and ultimately your brand) that suffers.

The more specific your feedback, the better we can refine the work. We vow to listen, adapt, and tweak—but let’s keep ambiguity to a minimum.

Do you, agency, promise to be genuinely creative?

No charlatans here. We offer real, thoughtful, and inspired ideas—not just the latest buzzwords or tick box messaging. We promise to go deep and surface with some treasure. No blowing smoke (or vape), just good old creativity. 

Do you, client, promise to not stifle creativity?

Trust us. You hired us for our creativity, so let’s make sure it has breathing room. We get it— your brand is your baby. But sometimes, you just have to let go and trust the landing will be soft. We’re in this together, and when you let us run with an idea, great things can happen.

Do you, agency, promise to not be a hipster cult?

 Exposed brick, pizza for breakfast yay, table football, craft IPAs, retro glasses, having a position with the title ‘Head of Rebel Services’ (filled by a pug in a floral shirt). All encapsulated by a sign on the wall, framed by lightbulbs, that reads: ‘BOLDBRAVE’.   

None of this makes a creative agency. Contrived irreverence and eccentricity. A whole lot of pretentiousness, not a lot of purpose.

No, what makes an agency is the ability to understand your brand, your audience, your mission and translate that into messaging that compels people into action.

And in the end, the relationship between a client and agency is like any other; it thrives on mutual respect, clear communication, and a shared commitment to quality.

So, let’s start renewing our agency-client vows with a smile and a wink, and do it the way it should be done. The way it always was.

To find out how Craft will commit wholeheartedly to your brand’s success,  get in touch.