Conversations on Managing Media (eBook)

CONVERSATION ONE

Chloe Hooper and Darren chat about the good, the bad and the ugly of media agency pitches

When we had this conversation, Chloe Hooper1 was the National New Business and Marketing Director at media agency PHD. In March 2020, at the start of the global pandemic, she was promoted to Head of Growth and Marketing for the APAC (Asia-Pacific) region. I was first drawn to wanting to talk with Chloe after reading her article in AdNews titled ‘RIP to the Pitch Process?’2, in which she challenged some of the conventional pitch practices in the marketplace. She agreed to appear on the podcast and we found ourselves having a wide-ranging and engaging conversation based on her deeply considered agency perspective on best-practice pitching, worst-practice pitching, and how pitching can be improved to deliver better outcomes for marketers and advertisers.

The conversation

Darren:

Welcome to Managing Marketing. Today I’m chatting with Chloe Hooper, who’s the National New Business and Marketing Director of PHD. Welcome Chloe.

Chloe:

Hello, how are you?

Darren:

I’m very well. The reason you are sitting here is because of that opinion piece you wrote in AdNews. I don’t think you quite said you were bitching about pitching, but you certainly had some very clear thoughts on pitching.

Chloe:

Yeah, I’ve been doing this for a few years now and I’ve experienced a lot of different pitches, some good, some bad, and I just felt the need to put my opinion out there and say what I currently think the state of play is.

Darren:

Look, I think that is really refreshing. And I would encourage it because often as pitch consultants, we hear that agencies will give feedback but they don’t want to be quoted on it and things like that. But pitching is a two-party process. You need to understand the impact it is having on agencies as well as the impact on marketers.

Chloe:

Yeah, I think there has been a massive call from all agencies actually, maybe not publicly and as you say putting your name to it, but I do think there is massive fatigue within the whole agency realm. There’s a call to change the way that pitches are currently being run, and so we might be the one who puts their name to it, but I do think it’s a global thing.

Darren:

And do we have to have a disclaimer now that this is Chloe Hooper’s personal opinion?

Chloe:

Absolutely. I think we should definitely put that out there. It is one of those things that everyone has a different opinion on how things should be run and what works and what doesn’t. I’ve had a few conversations leading up to this podcast with different people and that’s apparent even there within PHD. Everyone’s got their, ‘This is how I’d like it to be done’, and that’s why there’s no universal answer at the moment. I do think it is something that needs investigating, on what is best practice.

New business development is more than pitching

Darren:

You know, from our perspective, the best new business win is one the agency doesn’t have to pitch for. Would you agree with that?

Chloe:

I certainly do agree with that. I think that pitching takes up a lot of resources. It’s like an extreme sport. You’ve got to be in it to win it. Winning new business without a pitch is an ideal scenario, though it’s maybe not the fairest way of doing things. I think that it’s really important to ensure that if you are pitching for something, you are prospecting for something you actually do want to go after.

And that’s how you sometimes can win without the pitch process, and also if you are the incumbent. If you are the incumbent agency, it is always nice to have the opportunity to not go to pitch and maybe just resolve issues internally.

Darren:

I think that’s probably a fair observation, because we find that incumbents are always in a very difficult position in that they’re trying to address any perceived problems. And at the same time they’re trying to compete against the ‘shiny new’ that’s being offered by the new agencies that have none of the heritage or baggage that’s come from working with that client.

Chloe:

You probably know this from your experience, but if you’re the incumbent, you’ve got an opportunity to show off all your shiny new toys. But also you are in a position where it’s kind of like, well, ‘Why wasn’t this being done before?’, so it’s kind of creating that balance.

Darren:

It’s a double-edged sword, isn’t it.

Chloe:

Yeah.

Darren:

It’s so difficult. That’s one of the reasons we try and level the playing field, because it is hard for the incumbent. Also where a client draws an incumbent into a pitch when they have no intention of appointing them again. It’s just such a waste, don’t you think?

Chloe:

I do agree, but speaking from previous experience, during my career, we have been in positions like that where we are not the ones to get this, and you can turn it around like refreshed teams and refreshed ways of working. I think as the incumbent you do want the opportunity to have another go. So if there is a situation where you have no chance, you obviously don’t want to be involved, but as the incumbent you do want the opportunity to prove yourself the same way the rest of the market is.

The good and the bad of pitching

Darren:

Now I’m not sure if this is fair, but let’s start with the positives. What makes a good pitch from your perspective? You’re talking from quite a few years of experience both in Australia and the UK. And also, I would imagine, a large number of pitches.

Chloe:

Yeah, I’ve certainly done my fair share of pitches. I’m speaking from my UK experience, and Australia, which as I said earlier, has got quite a different approach to pitching. It depends on what country you are in, just from the cultural point of view. I think what works well in Australian pitches is everyone’s got the mentality of: ‘How can we do our best without sweating the small stuff?’

I think a really strong pitch is actually when the client knows exactly what they are looking for. I think sometimes we go into a new business process and the client’s unsure of what they are really looking for and they’re kind of going to market thinking, ‘Oh, hopefully we’ll see what we like when we get there’.

I think the best pitches are when the client is really sure. They can articulate that really well and the agency’s got them available to ask the questions and work as a partner with them throughout the process. So I think the best-run pitches are definitely when everyone’s aligned in what success looks like from the outset. I think having a pitch consultant involved in that is crucial, so yeah, that would be a best-case scenario.

Darren:

Often, we’ve had situations and we know of times when marketers are really going to pitch because they’re not sure what they want. They just want to know what else is out there. It’s almost like the old thing with the remote on TV: ‘Yes, this program’s good, but what else is on TV?’ It really can be a huge waste of everyone’s time, can’t it.

Chloe:

Yes, certainly it can be, but I think if the client is invested in what they’re doing, then it’s worthwhile. If they’re just doing it because there are internal pressures and they’ve not got any intention of moving, then it’s not worth it. They’re just out there looking for new ideas and to give their current agency a kick up the bum to say, ‘Come on, you could be up for a pitch here’.

Darren:

Which is weird isn’t it, because we read and hear so much about ‘It’s all about the relationship’, but this is a relationship where if you don’t lift your game, I’m going to dump you and get someone else. Imagine running your personal relationships like that.

Chloe:

I’m just thinking of my personal relationships, if I’m currently doing that.

Darren:

Oh, you’re tough.

Chloe:

I know, my poor partner. I’m trying to think of the best way of framing this because I want to be as polite as possible. I think it is important to invest the time into going into pitching, or asking if you’re not committed to pursuing that further and to creating new relationships with potentially new people.

It might be you love the agency, their way of thinking, but the team you’ve currently got working on that piece of business isn’t right for you, and you do need to give them a kick up the bum to reshape that. It puts a lot of pressure on resource limitations of the agency.

Darren:

In some ways, media can be even more onerous as a pitch because there is so much detail potentially in that process: media strategy, media buying in digital, programmatic, search – so many different elements that can be explored just in media. And as we know, media agencies are doing more than just media.

So...