REPORT

Just 9 percent of senior marketers believe traditional ad agencies are doing a good job of evolving and extending their service capabilities in the digital age, in contrast to 22 percent who view their agencies as struggling to transition their business models and service offerings. Another 51 percent of the 250-plus senior marketers surveyed in the CMO Council study see their agencies as playing catch-up with regards to new technology, or acquiring but not integrating digital marketing capabilities.

The CMO Council’s in-depth analysis of how its global members are optimizing marketing partner performance and value in a digital world was conducted during the second half of 2011 with partner Ace Metrix, a leader in applying technology solutions and analytics to measure and improve advertising effectiveness. Included in the report are best-practice discussions with more than 20 leading brand advertisers. Among them were Colgate-Palmolive, Coca-Cola, Kia Motors, Safeway, The Hershey Company, Dunkin’ Donuts, Crayola, Allstate, Wyndham Worldwide, Ricoh, Ocean Spray, PepsiCo, L’Oreal, Best Buy, Weight Watchers, Welch’s, The North Face, Farmers Insurance, Sports Authority, and Renault.

The research on the state of client/agency relationships also includes a 37-point audit that also provides revealing information about:

• What’s influencing the use of agency resources across the marketing mix
• Where agencies are contributing the most value
• Impact on agency relations relative to digital and social marketing
• Measurements of advertising and media effectiveness
• Use and consideration of new and different service providers worldwide
• Plans to consolidate agency rosters and modify compensation plans
• Strategies for improving client/agency relationships and performance
• Factors contributing to agency change and review
• Key stakeholders involved in agency selection and benchmarking
• Criteria and sources for agency consideration
• Critical areas of agency review and evaluation
• New factors and complexities in the marketing procurement process
• Embracing marketing effectiveness platforms, solutions, or hosted services
• Best practice adoption and use of ad creative scorecards, models, and tools