10 things that have helped me be a better advertising account handler
DESCRIPTION
Short presentation on '10 things that help me in my job in 10 minutes' from the inaugural IPA Account Management Breakfasts in Scotland. Designed for anyone who works in account management to pop along for an hour in the morning, have a chance to chew the fat with cross-agency comrades, and come away with a handful of answers and a dollop of inspiration.TRANSCRIPT
Account Management Breakfast 23 August 2013
Café Renroc
Ten things…
… that have helped me in my job. Not rules. Have worked for me. Not all my own. Many are things I learned from beIer, wiser, smarter people. I hope they are useful to you.
TAKE SMALL STEPS
♯1
Our job is to make projects go smoothly, but oLen it can feel like there’s many complicaNons. The best way to deal with this is to take small steps. Especially when dealing with clients. Ask for one decision at a Nme.
KNOW WHAT KIND OF ACCOUNT HANDLER YOUR ARE
♯2
There are two types of account handler. Those that change their personality to suit the client or those that build a porPolio of clients to suit their personality. Pick the one that suits you best and do that well.
BUILD THE BEST TEAM YOU CAN
♯3
You need to build the best team. You need to be the best coach. When a football team doesn’t perform it’s usually the manager that gets the blame. Account Handlers are the coaches of the adverNsing world.
THINK COMMERCIALLY
♯4
If you’re planner you’ll be measured on the strategies that you develop. If you’re a creaNve you can work to fill a shelf with awards. But if you’re an account handler, sooner or later someone is going ask how much money you’re responsible for.
Do big ideas exist?
DON’T RELY ON BIG IDEAS
♯5
Agencies can be obsessed about the big idea. I think that clients rarely are. It doesn’t always need a big idea to solve a business problem.
KNOW YOUR CLIENTS BUSINESS
♯6
Find out what they want and show it to them.
KNOW YOUR CLIENTS ROUNDING POINT
♯7
Most clients have a budget level that they don’t need any further approval to authorise. Find out that number and develop proposals that match.
YOU CAN FIND INSPIRATION IN EVERYTHING* *AND IF YOU CAN’T LOOK AGAIN
♯8
You can find inspiraNon in everything. But it’s not just about looking. You have to create space for ideas. It’s not a coincidence that Archimedes had his ‘aha’ moment in the bath.
TELL A STORY
♯9
Use a story mountain for briefs, for presentaNons, for phone calls. Start with the opening, build-‐up to the problem, find the resoluNon to take you to the ending.
STOP BUMPING
♯10
Here is Edward Bear, coming downstairs now, bump, bump, bump, on the back of his head, behind Christopher Robin. It is, as far as he knows, the only way of coming downstairs, but someNmes he feels that there really is another way, if only he could stop bumping for a moment and think of it.