The reintegration of media and creative isn't new, but there's a growing demand for full service agencies, argued Loyal founders Paul Fenton and Joshua Hunt.
Loyal launched in December last year and combines the creative experience of Fenton with the digital experience of Hunt.
Fenton was previously the co-founder of YOLO, which has closed as a result of the foundation of Loyal, where as Hunt has held roles at Drifter, Soap and Saatchi & Saatchi.
The duo formed Loyal as the conversation around the division of creative and media continues to swell with clients questioning who benefits from the divide.
“There is going to be a renewal of everything going back into an agency hub and that whole world is getting reanalysed about what is the right model,” Hunt said.
The agency's work on digital wealth advisor InvestSMART was a proof point to what Loyal can deliver, Hunt explained. Loyal developed InvestSMART's new brand identity, logo, TV, outdoor and website design; a process that can take multiple agencies to deliver.
The TV work for InvestSMART
Despite confidence in their integrated model, the duo understand clients can be drawn to big agencies for the peace of mind it provides.
“It’s a bit of a furphy that smaller and medium sized agencies can’t take on bigger pieces of business,” Fenton said.
Hunt added the size of an agency isn’t always a reliable indicator of the work it produces.
“A lot of clients will play it safe and sometimes will go with an agency for the name, such as a Saatchi, a DDB or a Leo Burnett,” Hunt said.
“Half the problem with that is sometimes you’re not interrogating the people working on your business – and advertising is a people business.
“You can be with the biggest names in advertising in the country, but who they put on your account can make the world of difference, and I promise you 100% of their staff are not all as amazing as that name suggests.”
Feeling ‘bullet proof’ as an independent
Loyal joins the dwindling pool of independents in adland and while they’re not limiting their ambitions for the small agency, both seem to want to cling to independence for as long as possible.
“If you spoke to any of the people in independents, the last thing they want to do is walk back through the doors of a multinational,” Fenton said.
“That just fills me with dread.
“We love the autonomy and hunger and being able to bring in businesses we want as opposed to being told ‘here’s a piece of business you have to work on’.”
Hunt added the acquisition of independents, such as The Monkeys by Accenture Interactive, showcases the power of independents.
“It’s a good time to be an independent. There’s so many of them being acquired, we actually have a massive opportunity in the market,” Hunt said.
"The things we enjoy about being an independent is what people in agencies that have been bought similarly miss."
What it means to be ‘Loyal’
Having opened and closed agencies before setting up Loyal, Hunt and Fenton said they’ve learnt to be more disciplined with hiring decisions and to not be complacent with clients.
However, the lesson that’s stuck the most with the pair is that loyalty can take you far in this industry.
This loyalty extends to loyalty with their staff, with reducing churn important internally as well as with clients.
“The best ads in the market don’t happen overnight. Everyone thought Old Spice came out of nowhere but they actually built that over years,” Hunt said.
“The best ads are brave and you need a lot of trust to do brave ads. The agencies that change the market have enough trust with their clients to let them know what is needed to shift the needle and take a leap of faith.”
Hunt said developing this trust comes through working with clients closely throughout the entire project and being consistent with the delivery of work.
“A number one complaint we get from clients that have worked with the big agencies is that they see the big guns at the start and then they fade out,” Hunt said.
“But you get billed those rates and they’re not even sure where they’re coming from.”
The pair claim big agencies can forget to act in the best interest of their client, becoming focused on reaching targets or staffing quotas.
“It always annoyed me that half the bill on a lot of things was just being managed,” Hunt said.
“A lot of clients in the industry are over being managed. They’re paying us for creative.”
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