This series of articles looks at the world of the account manager.
This time we talk to Josh Wilkinson, Client Service Manager, Madclarity.
How did you end up in account management? Was it by design or a cosmic accident?
Like many, I found myself finishing school and heading to University, unsure of what career I wanted to pursue 'when I grew up' (I'm still working on the growing up part).
My first real exposure to any form of 'client service' was working at an Italian restaurant while studying. Back then, my ‘client’ interactions were more limited to whether they would prefer the ragu with linguini or spaghetti.
Through school and University, I'd always had an interest in the world of marketing and advertising, but I had no idea which area I'd fit into. After doing some research, client service seemed like a great place to start out and give me lots of exposure to different areas.
Balancing clients’ objectives and creative vision can be challenging. How do you deal with that?
Working at a media consultancy, I don't often have to navigate the fine line between a client's objectives and their creative vision.
However, it's not uncommon for us all to find ourselves swept away by a grand creative idea and losing sight of a campaign's real goals. Ideally, creative ideas should be built from the foundation that is a client's business objectives, but this isn't always the case. In these situations, often campaign objectives are placed on the backburner in favour of a creative vision.
Sitting in the account team, it can be challenging to balance the client's desires with those of your agency team. However, objectivity and clear communication are crucial when evaluating whether a creative vision will actually fulfill a client's objectives.
Ultimately, we all have the same goal: to produce outstanding work that propels the brand forward. Sometimes, this may mean abandoning a creative idea in favour of one that can better meet the client's objectives.
What strategies do you employ to clearly convey creative ideas to clients and address client feedback?
I think it really comes down to how the creative idea is communicated, notably whether you’ve managed to weave an effective ‘story’ that successfully answers the client’s brief.
When it comes to feedback, openness and flexibility is key. Often ideas, that may have been ‘a hit’ in the room can start to fall apart when investigated more thoroughly – sometimes because they don’t directly answer a clients’ objectives. This is why the feedback process is so important, not just quickly reading through and dismissing it, but making sure it’s been understood and questioned where necessary.
How to build strong relationships with clients?
I find myself working towards the goal of being considered a 'trusted advisor' by all my clients. However, gaining that trust is a journey, not something that simply develops over a week.
First off, delivering great work will always be a good start to developing a solid relationship.
To do this, you need to have a strong understanding of a client's business, its objectives, and the problems it faces. Beyond this, strong communication is also key, making sure you’re adding value to every interaction can go a long way in building that trust.
Do you have any go-to tips for navigating challenging conversations with clients? And effectively selling an idea.
Listening to a client's concerns and frustrations can help when confronted with these challenging conversations. Ultimately, allowing them to openly air out their concerns without interrupting or being defensive brings lots of clarity to trick conversations and helps uncover some of the underlying issues behind their problems.
They're tricky to navigate, but at the end of the day, having these challenging interactions often leads to the best relationships moving forward.
Are there any emerging trends or challenges in the industry that account management teams should be prepared for?
AI will be a big challenge for our industry and the broader business world over the coming years. It's an excellent tool for idea generation and brainstorming, but it still needs an experienced person's guidance to develop a genuinely constructive and valuable output.
For the media world, AI's ability to swiftly analyse large data sets presents many opportunities, notably enhancing and optimising media campaigns. However, as AI tools are data aggregators, it's essential to remember concerns around data privacy and breaches, something the ad tech industry has been navigating for several years.
From a creative perspective, there's lots of dialogue in the market around how AI can be utilised to create custom creative messages - unique to each user. However, ensuring it's not being used to deceive customers is essential. If anyone saw the disastrous' Willy Wonka' immersive experience, which was plastered all over social media late last month, the organisers of this experience in Scotland had used AI imaging tools to market the event, falsely portraying the scale and immersion of the experience.
What advice would you give your younger self when you first started out in account service?
Starting in any account service role can be hectic, especially when working across multiple clients. During the first couple of months on the job, there are always new people to meet, information to take in, and processes to get your head around.
With all this going on, it can be easy to get overwhelmed, but leaning on the knowledge and experience of those around you can help with the transition.
Have something to say on this? Share your views in the comments section below. Or if you have a news story or tip-off, drop us a line at adnews@yaffa.com.au
Sign up to the AdNews newsletter, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter for breaking stories and campaigns throughout the day.