Commentary
The Slippery Slope Of Vetting Vendors
- by Kendall Allen , December 13, 2010
In most cases, these providers are crucial to your work -- so you've a vested interest in helping out. While this may seem like a rare opportunity to shape the direction and outcome of your client engagement, playing this intermediary role is rife with potential issues. Unless you're advising on your core expertise as an agency or services firm, such facilitation can become a time-suck and a harrowing aspect of your client relationship.
I have seen some unfortunate things recently that remind me of just how slippery this slope can be. However, you may be tempted to agree to provide this support, whether or not it is your bailiwick. So here are some protective measures to keep in mind:
1. Know your client's existing relationships, predispositions, baggage and biases going in. In addition to past work with specific vendors or within a given space, there may be board, business or other personal relationships impacting their outlook that they may or may not pro-actively mention. You've got to ask. Similarly, if you have your own existing board and personal relationships going in, say so. These may be tradable alliances; they may be baggage to bear. But the loyalty and alliances picture should be clear.
2. Be straight about the level of market intelligence about the target area you are vetting - and buttress yourself as needed. Even if you have every other aspect of the client engagement covered but are light on the requested intelligence, you may want to bring in a trusted ally to support you on the vetting.
3. Have a strategy, timetable and roles defined for this phase. Loosey-goosey does not work. Because you have mapped out strategic direction and a plan for the marketing and media execution itself, it's essential to make sure all are on the same page about where vendor choices fit in and how and when they need to be nailed down. An amorphous or erratic review can take things off-track quickly.
4. Before you begin, make sure the team is committed to professional integration. This begins with understanding all roles within the client company and/or at your agency of firm - who will play what part. Keep this in mind especially if you are working with fast-running entrepreneurs and start-up company clients, who may be hesitant to take the time for proper, immersive training. Assuming that their staff -- not just yours -- will be hands-on at some level, you've got to make sure the training and professional on-boarding happen.
5. Make sure same said busy client knows upfront what will be required of their teams -- technical, creative, hosting, marketing, PR, whatever - to support integration. There may be all kinds of assets and information to be ported over. The onus is on them to make their team available, even if you facilitate. For your part, do not blindside them with these time and data requirements.
6. Checking some additional boxes, be sure to do right by your client in all these areas: sector research and vigorous comparison; review of relevant case history; checking of references; quarterly quality review.
7. Look not only at known market leaders but emerging independents, who may be able to offer additional benefits and cost efficiencies.
8. Finally, be sure your engagement and scope of work realistically covers all of the above, leaving an option to amend.
I'm sounding off on this today given recent conversations and exposures to vendor vetting quagmire. Integration with third parties is not for the faint at heart -- and jumping on it without taking great care can cause nearly immeasurable damage to your execution and every single business relationship in the picture
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This is an important topic, Kendall, and there is another consideration. If you are working with your client and your trusted vendor, it will be a lot easier to keep to the specified program and have all involved in the loop. It's a win-win for all three to have as much knowledge and coordination as possible.
As Ken Rutlowski always says, " Experts are expensive; amateurs are a fortune". Experts follow your format; amateurs will trip up/be tripped up. Those who listen to your advise will find it invaluable.
Very interesting take on the challenges of marketing integration from an agency point of view. As we rapidly move towards a world where Compound Marketing (see my blog at http://compoundmarketinggroup.com) is the norm, not the exception, I strongly believe that successful agencies must take your advice - and be glad they are able to be on the driving end of that integration. Hopefully agencies shouldn't perceive this as a quagmire, but as an incredible opportunity.
Kendall, I like your #7. As you know, many kinds of PR/promotion service businesses have been challenged with the need to work different ways, and most of those ways include a leveraging new online skills - e.g. websites, analytics, strategic social media, inbound marketing etc....I'm glad you threw in the point about emerging independents because while they may not have long track records in some of these areas, they DO have track records in strategy and messaging, so they adapt to new ways of working. They also often partner with vendors with strong backgrounds they may be lacking. That is a combination that works well. Any vendor with excellent results over a long period can change partners and dance with new techniques. That's just what we're doing. Even with fledgling status in some areas, we can spot the charlatans behind every corner. In the old says, folks would say,"I know a printer." Now they say, "I know a website guy." There's a world of sorting out to do and it's very important if the client is new to it (and just too busy with core business) to know what questions to ask. Thanks for the piece.