Excessive or unnecessary pitching can add stress and cost to marketing procurement. But with the right framework in place, pitching can be a more productive experience.
Across the marketing industry there are a lot of unnecessary pitches taking place, and these pitches are becoming more frequent, more complex and more costly. This is the claim of a new campaign, the Pitch Positive Pledge, launched jointly by advertising industry bodies the IPA and ISBA. “It’s not the pitch process that’s broken,” explains Andrew Lowden, ISBA’s director of agency services. “It’s behaviours that need to change.”
According to the pledge, pitching has become the default approach of business, even for smaller projects, leading not only to wasted time and effort for both agency and advertiser, but wellbeing challenges such as burnout and talent retention issues linked to its intense nature. Increased working from home due to the pandemic has driven a change in expectations of the space work should take up in people’s lives, says Lowden.
“Twenty years ago, there was a culture of bringing pizza and beers in, working nine to five and then staying late to run a pitch,” he says. “That’s changed. Now, agencies are facing a talent drain and are having to change. And they need the advertisers to change with them.” In Lowden’s view, the link to wellbeing and wasted resources makes creating a more positive pitch process an ESG issue.
To improve pitches, the group is asking advertisers to consider three things: be positive a pitch is required; run a positive pitch; provide a positive resolution. The first involves what Lowden refers to as being “intentional” about why a pitch is required, carefully scoping out requirements with internal stakeholders and producing a clear project plan and brief.
The second means developing a short and focused RFI, reviewing times to prioritise wellbeing and being clear and consistent about expectations throughout the process. The advertisers commit to acting with integrity and considering the implications of what it asks of agencies during the pitch. On the third and final point, they should commit to completing the contractual agreement within four weeks of appointing the winning agency, communicate the outcome to all involved parties (rather than it being announced via industry press) and give constructive feedback to unsuccessful agencies.
Coordinate for the best chance of success
The role of marketing procurement in running a more positive pitch is clear, says Lowden. “Procurement is the interface between the client and suppliers. They have a pivotal role to play in supporting and delivering the Pitch Positive Pledge. Whenever marketing procurement is involved, chances are they will be controlling the project plan and know who the stakeholders are. To make it intentional, procurement needs to be reaching out, doing the coordination, thinking ahead and asking the questions at the outset, such as whether a pitch is actually required.”
Adam Durston-Hillyer, director of GNFR procurement at Specsavers, supports the pledge. “It was a fairly easy thing to get behind as there is no downside,” he says. “If you are seeking to run a successful pitch, and you understand why it will work for you and what the critical parts of a successful pitch are, then you should do these things anyway. I’ve worked in marketing procurement for years and have participated in successful and unsuccessful pitches, pitches with good discipline and with bad discipline.”
However, Durston-Hillyer doesn’t agree with the need to reduce the number of pitches, if the process is well managed, because for advertisers the process can be an efficient and effective way to keep on top of market knowledge. “It is still the most time-effective way of meeting a lot of agencies and getting the best talent in front of you so you can make a sensible decision that’s right for your business,” he points out. He acknowledges that advertisers can be disrespectful of agencies’ time when running pitches – something that can give you a bad reputation in the market and even lead to agencies refusing to pitch for your work.
Clarity, communication and creativity
In deciding whether a pitch is necessary in the first place, Durston-Hillyer advises being crystal clear on the problem you are trying to solve, which may involve some challenging reflections. “If you’re going into a pitch with a problem, be really clear about whether it’s a problem with the agency or a problem with yourself,” he says. “An agency will not solve internal problems. You’re not solving your underlying issues. Be clear on what a pitch will tell you and what it won’t tell you.” Marketing procurement consultant Tina Fegent adds that procurement is getting more involved in discussions over the necessity of pitches; challenging and debating whether there’s an option to deliver work internally (those ‘make vs buy’ conversations).
When it comes to planning and running a pitch, transparency and openness are critical, according to Fegent: “Share as much as you can: the processes, the timelines, the scope, the budget, the scoring. I don’t understand why procurement keeps a lot of this hidden.” Durston-Hillyer agrees, advocating for honesty and clarity in the brief. “It’s in our interest to have the agencies perform as well as they can, otherwise the pitch is a waste of time,” he says. “Give them as much information as possible in a digestible form.” Enabling the agencies to do their best work also means making sure the relevant internal stakeholders are available to answer questions quickly as needed.
Fegent would also like to see more creativity and flexibility throughout the process, appropriate to the requirements and budget. “There are many different ways to do this,” she says. “It doesn’t have to be a three-month drawn out RFI-RFP process. Let the process fit the brief. If the requirement is for a £150,000 contract, say, could a workshop with three selected suppliers work better?”
A good result includes the tough feedback
Once the pitch process is complete, Durston-Hillyer is firm on the importance of feedback. “How can agencies improve if you don’t give them honest and constructive feedback of the reasons why they failed? It has to be clear and delivered in a relatively unemotional way. I’ve never had an agency react badly to the reasons for them not winning a pitch when we have been clear, honest and constructive; it’s always been welcomed.” He adds that doing the pre-work makes giving feedback easier because the success factors have already been set out and agreed.
As ever, the relationship between procurement and its marketing stakeholders makes all the difference in running a positive pitch. For Fegent, the two most important things are regular, open communication and knowledge, with marketing procurement professionals investing time into keeping up to date with their category, knowing it inside out.
“The role of procurement is to provide a structured process that enables the agencies to present themselves in the best way possible, to make the decision as easy as possible, and to ensure that the stakeholder makes the decision with the best and most complete amount of information possible,” adds Durston-Hillyer. “We’re not making the decision, but the structured process will help [the marketing team] make the best decision for the business.” A well-structured process will also help the agencies deliver their best work, without damaging staff wellbeing – surely a win-win all round.
