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Issue 100, 26/08/08 In this Issue
In Other News TrinityP3 Speaking Dates:
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With the increased number of communications channels, marketers are finding themselves managing an increasing number of specialist service providers. From traditional creative and media agencies, there are now channel planners, digital agencies, WOM, PR, brand and sales activation and more. In this edition of the TrinityP3 e-news, we look at the challenges and issues facing marketers and some of the issues that all marketers need to address. 
Are you managing your service providers or are they managing you? Universally, everyone is saying that they do not have the time and resources to do everything they need to do. In fact “everything” is a luxury, just handling the basics is demanding enough. But while managing marketing communications suppliers may be a low priority for many marketers, effectively managing your specialist marketing suppliers will deliver huge efficiencies in cost and time, making your budget go further and speeding up your time to market. Likewise, neglecting your supplier management could be costing you significantly, without you even knowing. Fees, fees, fees and more fees Some marketers believe that by consolidating many of their services in one “integrated” supplier model, such as with one holding company or one agency group, they will achieve economies of scale. While on paper this may look reasonable, in reality most end up paying more for the management and co-ordination resources, with these additional fees hidden in rate cards and service charges. The alternative is a "best of breed” selection of specialist suppliers, but here the marketers will end up paying duplicate overhead fees for each supplier and effectively take on the management and co-ordination costs within their own budget, requiring additional marketing resources to make this model work. More time managing, less time doing Obviously marketers feel more productive if they are developing and executing their marketing strategies against their organisation's business objectives. But managing the supplier relationships is an essential function to optimise the marketing process. Think of the marketing function like flying an aircraft. The marketer is the pilot who sets the flight path (strategy) and with the creative service providers, they fly the aircraft to the strategy (execution). However, there is also the need for maintenance engineers to ensure the aircraft is flight ready. If the marketer is undertaking maintenance as well, this means they have less time and resources to fly the plane! Getting the balance right Some organisations solve this issue by involving procurement, and others will recruit marketing services or marketing relationship managers. In both cases the resource is integrated into the culture of the organisation but the level of marketing competency and understanding they bring determines the success of the process. More effective is either recruiting a procurement person with marketing experience or finding a marketer with a procurement focus to work within marketing to maintain the relationships with the suppliers and optimise the remuneration. The main limitation of these models is that often they are operating within a knowledge vacuum with little or no access to industry benchmarks or behaviours beyond the existing supplier relationships. Therefore there is little opportunity for achieving the best practice within the category or developing solutions beyond the existing practice. A simple solution to a complex problem You fly the plane and we'll take care of the maintenance. TrinityP3 has subject matter experts across the full range of category activities and each has more than ten years experience in their area of speciality. As an organisation we have experience across all marketing categories including FMCGs, automotive, retail, financial services and the like. We have extensive database information on industry rates, salary benchmarks, rate card rates and resource planning. For an increasing number of clients we are providing them with strategies and knowledge to improve and optimise their supplier management and relationships. To find out more information on how we can assist or manage your specialist marketing suppliers to achieve maximum value and optimal speed to market, check out our website at www.trinityp3.com or call us in Sydney 02 8399 0922, Melbourne 03 9682 6800 or email people@trinityp3.com Managing marketing services effectively 
As an example, a major advertiser recently complained to us that they were eight months into the year and still had not completed the negotiations with their agency for remuneration. Other more important priorities, lack of transparency and clarity around agency resources, costs and the scope of work had made the process time consuming and difficult. We implemented the TrinityP3 Category Management Service, where we: To find out how we can help manage your marketing service suppliers more efficiently and effectively talk to Darren Woolley about our Category Management Service. 
Do you need to upskill your team on television production? Are your productions always rushed? Is your team confused by industry jargon? Are they plagued with confusing estimates? Get all the skills and inside information you need at our GROUP DISCOUNTS AVAILABLE. Download a Booking Form here or contact Amanda for more information on 03 9682 6800. |
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