Becky McKinlay, Managing Director at Oystercatchers explores how agencies can best understand different intermediary models to help them make key decisions.
In earlier posts, we discussed the advantages of engaging an intermediary for clients, emphasising the value of choosing one that acts as both a consultancy service and a strategic partner, rather than one which just offers introductions, lead generation, or agency PR services.
However, for agencies, intermediaries come in various shapes, sizes and with different areas of focus. This means for agencies, it may not always be straight-forward for them to navigate which intermediary works best for them and how to fully leverage the benefits they offer.
So this week, we’ll explore the different intermediary models to help agencies make the most informed choice about who to partner up with and when. We’ll also explore key considerations agencies should keep in mind and the benefits advantages the right intermediary can offer.
1) Gaining an Objective Perspective
When agencies work with an intermediary partner, it can give them a risk free external perspective. A safe space, if you like, to test their creds, share their views on the world, debate how to present their case studies, identify if their proposition and the challenges they help clients solve feel relevant and timely to clients’ needs. At Oystercatchers, we can provide our member agencies with dedicated ‘Accelerator Sessions’ to explore these topics. This type of partnership works best when the agency isn’t focused on immediate lead generation or pipeline improvement, allowing them to receive well-rounded, impartial advice from consultants dedicated to solving client challenges.
2) The Value of Strategic Endorsement
Working with an intermediary can help agencies avoid reacting to incomplete briefs or force-fitting their capabilities into a misaligned RFI. Being put forward by an intermediary against specific client requirements is the best third-party endorsement an agency can receive, benefitting both agency and client. The validation is done, there is a clear rationale for their inclusion, and the client feels confident in their fit.
3) Ensuring Genuine Opportunities
Collaborating with an intermediary like Oystercatchers, whose model is predicated on charging clients for advisory services, ensures that incoming briefs represent real opportunities backed by secure budgets. Agencies aren’t chasing speculative projects but engaging with serious clients whose budgets have already been approved.
4) The Hidden Costs of Free Intermediaries
Some intermediaries don’t charge clients for their services, which can seem appealing at first to the client and their procurement team. However, these intermediaries still have a commercial requirement and have to make their money from somewhere, right? Often, this will be from charging agencies twice: first for leads and then through a kickback on any work won. This may not align with client interests and value – and we’ll talk more about that later.
5) The Pitfalls of Low-Quality Leads
A healthy pipeline is crucial for agencies, so paying an intermediary for leads may seem valuable. It may help them fill their pipeline with opportunities, but this will only hold value if if the leads are high-quality opportunities, not poorly qualified prospects. As many lead-generation businesses focus on volume rather than the quality of opportunities, many of these perceived opportunities remain unvetted, leading to a competitive scramble amongst other agencies who have paid for the same opportunities.
6) The Downside of Profit-Sharing Models
As mentioned in Point 4, lead-gen-focused intermediaries often charge agencies a kickback when work is won. After investing unpaid hours in creating a compelling proposal, agencies must then find ‘profit’ from the work to pay the introducer a kickback. The introductory service provided to the agency for ‘free’ will then end up being extremely costly to the client, as these hidden costs are ultimately indirectly passed on to them via the agency. Oystercatchers rejects this model, as it penalises both the winning agencies and their clients.
7) Building a Supportive Community
New business can be tough and isolating. Intermediaries like Oystercatchers provide new business teams with support, a sense of community, and market insights across all levels of seniority. Examples of these include our Oystercatchers Club Evenings, to our X-Series events for those earlier in their new business and marketing careers, which provides informal learning opportunities through our network and training, supporting emerging agency talent with best practice guidance. As informed, critical friends and advisors, when agencies win the business they deserve from clients who want to work with them for all right reasons, we all share the positive feelings.
8) Learning from the Process
Agencies learn from intermediaries. Even when they’re not successful in a process, we ensure feedback is given, and often hear from agencies that they have benefitted from our involvement. Oystercatchers ensures client briefs are clear, evaluation methodologies are robust, and feedback is actionable.
9) Holding Clients Accountable
As a client-paid intermediary, we have a responsibility to hold clients to account. We provide a level playing field, insist on best practices, and suggest improvements in ways of working, before we suggest a pitch. Pitching doesn’t solve every problem, and intermediaries paid for leads often default to pitching, which may not always be the right solution.
10) Fostering Long-Term Relationships
Oystercatchers is built on the premise of long-term relationships. We aren’t a lead generator and never agitate for unnecessary pitching. Our focus is on fewer, bigger, more qualified opportunities, and we stay involved beyond the initial engagement through onboarding services, ways of working, and training modules. While we’re confident in the value we offer to both clients and agencies, and stand staunchly behind our model, we also know that as the industry evolves, we need to move with it. So in the coming months we’ll be introducing some more products and services to further support both sides of the relationship equation to inspire, connect and elevate.
By understanding these different intermediary models, agencies can make informed decisions on what works best for their business, ensuring they engage with intermediaries that provide genuine opportunities, foster long-term relationships, and contribute to a supportive community.
To find out more about how Oystercatchers can help you, get in touch.