Finding and selecting an agency:
How to find the right advertising agency
Which agency is best suited to your needs?
Finding the right agency is a challenging task. The agency market is vast, specialised and constantly evolving. At the same time, choosing the right agency partner often determines the course of several years of collaboration, significant budgets and the success of key marketing and communications initiatives.
FRANCIS DRAKE supports companies in their professional search for and selection of an agency. We guide you through the entire selection process, from defining requirements, through market screening and shortlisting, to chemistry meetings, pitches, contract and remuneration models, as well as onboarding and the final decision.
It is not simply a matter of finding the best agency. It is about finding the agency that best suits your specific tasks, objectives, structures and your company.
Which agency is really the right fit for your business?
Every search for an agency begins with one key question: Which agency is the right fit for our business and our specific task?
The answer depends on many factors. These include tasks and objectives, the skills required, budget, company size, available internal resources, existing agencies and service providers, and the desired form of collaboration.
That is why we do not work with pre-compiled lists of agencies.
First, we work with you to analyse what you actually need. On this basis, we screen the relevant agency market, identify suitable candidates and develop a structured selection process.
This provides a sound basis for decision-making, rather than a selection based on reputation, personal contacts or subjective impressions.
How a professional agency selection process works
An agency selection process does not follow a rigid procedure. The scope and format of the selection depend on the task at hand, the requirements for the new agency and the significance of the decision.
The typical process for selecting an agency looks like this:
An overview of the individual phases: 1. Defining requirements and objectives
The process begins with a joint kick-off meeting or workshop covering the following topics:
- What tasks should the new agency take on?
- What strategic and operational expertise is required?
- Which communication disciplines are relevant?
- What are the requirements regarding the team, processes and collaboration?
- What role do existing agencies and service providers play?
- What budgets and resources are available?
- What requirements must the agency absolutely fulfil?
2. Analyse the agency market and identify suitable agencies
Based on the requirements profile, we screen the relevant agency market. Depending on the remit, large network agencies, owner-managed agencies, specialist providers, smaller agencies or new market entrants may be suitable.
The key factor is the agency’s specific suitability for your project.
Among other things, we assess the agency’s service portfolio, industry experience, strategic and creative expertise, relevant case studies, team structure, location, company size, client base and potential conflicts of interest.
Equally important is the status of your account within the agency. It is not only crucial whether an agency can handle your brief, but also how important your account is to them. We therefore assess how your account fits into the agency’s existing client structure and whether you can expect the necessary attention, seniority and capacity.
3. Creating a longlist and shortlist
The market screening initially results in a selection of suitable agencies.
We assess and compare these candidates against the criteria we have defined together. In this way, the market is gradually narrowed down to a shortlist of agencies that best match your requirements in terms of expertise, organisation and culture.
This provides you with a structured overview of the market and a clear basis for the next stage of selection.
4. Getting to know the agencies in person
Professional expertise alone does not guarantee a successful collaboration.
That is why face-to-face meetings to establish chemistry play an important role. You will get to know the relevant agency teams and gain a direct impression of their working methods, strategic understanding, consultancy expertise and personal collaboration.
We prepare these meetings, structure the discussions and ensure that you can assess the agencies against comparable criteria, which we define together in advance.
5. Determining the appropriate decision-making format
Not every agency selection process requires a traditional pitch.
In some cases, market screening, detailed reviews and chemistry meetings already provide a sufficient basis for a decision.
For more complex tasks, additional selection stages may be useful. These include, for example:
- Competitive presentations or agency pitches
- Strategy or concept workshops
- Challenge projects
- In-depth discussions
- Customised selection formats
6. Evaluating agencies and finalising the decision
We support you in the structured evaluation of the participating agencies and collate the assessments of all decision-makers involved.
In doing so, we take into account professional quality as well as strategic understanding, creativity, the team, processes and personal collaboration.
Following each selection stage, we document the results and decisions. You will receive a transparent basis for your final agency selection.
Which agencies do we search for and evaluate?
FRANCIS DRAKE supports the search for and selection of agencies and communications service providers from almost all relevant disciplines.
These include, amongst others:
- Creative and advertising agencies
- Lead and full-service agencies
- Digital agencies
- Media agencies
- Performance agencies
- Social media agencies
- PR and content agencies
- B2B agencies
- Branding and design agencies
- Employer branding agencies
- Engagement and CRM agencies
- E-commerce agencies
- Shopper marketing and retail agencies
We also support you in selecting the right partners when putting together or reorganising complex agency models and agency pools.
Does selecting an agency always require a pitch?
No. A professional agency selection process does not automatically have to result in a traditional agency pitch.
A pitch is particularly useful when you need to compare the strategic, conceptual or creative capabilities of several agencies against a specific brief.
In other selection processes, a thorough market screening, an assessment of the agencies and face-to-face meetings to gauge chemistry are usually sufficient. Workshops, challenge projects or in-depth discussions can also provide a better basis for decision-making than a traditional competitive pitch.
During the kick-off workshop, we assess what information you need to make a confident decision on which agency to choose. As the process continues, we work with you to determine the most suitable selection format.
Why choose FRANCIS DRAKE for your agency search and selection?
We know both sides of the table.
Our many years’ experience on the agency side help us to realistically assess agencies’ expertise, teams, case studies, structures and working methods. We use our experience as pitch consultants to develop a structured and fair selection process for clients and participating agencies.
In doing so, we advise exclusively on behalf of clients. We receive neither commissions nor referral fees from agencies and have no financial ties to the agencies we review, recommend or evaluate as part of an agency search.
Our recommendation is based solely on which agency best meets your requirements.
The benefits of a professionally guided agency selection process
- You gain a well-founded overview of the agency market relevant to your project.
- You reduce the internal workload involved in research, outreach, organisation and evaluation.
- You compare agencies using consistent and transparent criteria.
- You involve all relevant internal stakeholders in the selection process in a structured manner.
- You minimise the risk of making the wrong decision.
- You lay a solid foundation for a long-term, successful partnership with your new agency.
Experience gained from more than 200 agency selection processes
Since 2013, FRANCIS DRAKE has been supporting companies and public sector clients in the search for and selection of agencies and communications service providers.
Our experience ranges from family-run businesses and medium-sized companies to national and international corporations, as well as public sector clients.
The tasks we assist with include the selection of creative, digital, media, performance, PR, content, B2B, lead generation and full-service agencies, as well as the development and reorganisation of complex agency models.
You can find selected projects and specific insights into our work in our references.
Frequently asked questions about agency search and selection
How does a professional agency selection process work?
A professional agency selection process begins with defining the requirements for the new agency. This is followed by market screening, the selection of suitable candidates, shortlisting, face-to-face chemistry meetings and, if necessary, a pitch, workshop or other decision-making format. The specific process depends on the task, the company and the significance of the agency decision.
How long does the agency selection process take?
The duration depends on the scope and the selected selection procedure. A streamlined agency search involving market screening, shortlisting and chemistry meetings can be carried out significantly faster than a multi-stage process involving a pitch or workshops. FRANCIS DRAKE tailors the process and timetable to your requirements and internal decision-making processes at the start of the project.
How many agencies should be included in a selection process?
The number depends on the process. For an initial market screening, it may be advisable to consider a larger number of agencies. In the later stages of selection, the shortlist should be significantly reduced. The aim is not to compare as many agencies as possible, but to include enough suitable candidates to be able to make an informed decision.
What criteria should be used when selecting an advertising agency?
Key criteria include strategic and technical expertise, the quality of relevant case studies, experience with comparable projects, team quality, processes, capacity, costs and remuneration, as well as personal and cultural fit. The weighting of these criteria should always be based on the company’s specific requirements.
How do you find suitable agencies for a shortlist?
A good shortlist is based on a clear requirements profile and a systematic analysis of the agency market. Name recognition or personal recommendations alone are not sufficient. The decisive factor is which agencies can demonstrate that they possess the expertise, experience, resources and structures required for the specific task.
When does an agency pitch make sense?
An agency pitch is useful when several suitable agencies are to demonstrate their strategic, conceptual or creative capabilities in relation to a specific brief. For many selection decisions, however, chemistry meetings, workshops or other formats are sufficient. The selection process should therefore only be finalised once it is clear what information is actually required to make the decision.
Are you looking for a new agency?
Are you planning to switch agencies, would you like to explore the agency market, or do you need support with an upcoming selection process?
Talk to us about your requirements. We’ll show you how to systematically assess the relevant agency market and select the agency that best suits your project and your company.
FRANCIS DRAKE
FDR Pitchberatung GmbH
Grimm 8
20457 Hamburg
+49 40 210 91 12 70
ahoi@francisdrake-pitchberatung.de
