What’s the biggest danger that causes an agency to fail and what’s the key characteristic of a successful agency?
epda Germany Representative Christian Prill has interviewed 5 designers and/or agency owners and here is Stuart Gilmour, Director & Brand Strategist at Stand, Glaswegian design agency, with his answers for you:
What is the biggest danger that causes an agency to fail?
The biggest danger that can result in agency failure – particularly amongst smaller independent agencies, is centered around creative output that is not founded on deep, insightful market and consumer understanding – who our target markets are, what their needs are and what they need to hear. Everything that drives brand relevance and brand effectiveness.
Creative output not based on solid market insight cannot deliver results. Ideas must be based on a clarity of understanding that drives real differentiation and insight that informs the way that brands engage and how and where they do it.
 What is the most important characteristic of a successful agency?
The most important aspects that define a successful agency are three things. The first is a clearly defined agency brand platform. Like any successful brand a successful agency must have absolute clarity of purpose based around a clear set of values, a distinctive brand proposition and clear key messaging. The second is the right people in the key roles that have deep understanding and buy-in to the what the agency represents and how it behaves. And lastly a clearly defined communication strategy that allows the agency to sit at the center of the conversation as the experts.
The entire article was published in the German magazine creativ verpacken earlier this year.
