“In 2021, the average number of agents a marketer worked with in South Africa was 12.7, a figure that has risen to 15.2, according to the AGENCY SCOPE 2023/24 study,” says SCOPEN president and CEO César Vacchiano.
”Here partnerships and agents include both advertising and below the line (BTL) agencies; digital platforms; media and PR agencies; partnerships with industry giants such as Amazon and Meta; and consultancies such as Deloitte, Accenture and others.”
The latest AGENCY SCOPE research shows the biggest growth for marketers has been in the number of digital platforms they now work with directly, which has leaped from 4.4 in 2021 to 5.3 today, Vacchiano says.
“The impact of this growth on marketers is the hefty task of having to manage anywhere between nine and 20 agents across the ecosystem, in an economically turbulent market. Some marketing leaders have appointed a lead agency to assist with the heavy lifting.”
The trust factor
Says Johanna McDowell, CEO of the Independent Agency Search & Selection Company (IAS) and SCOPEN partner, “Ramifications will not only be felt by marketers. With the growing number of different agencies and agents comes more responsibility and accountability required by each partner in the system. Agencies need to be far more able and willing to collaborate with their clients, as well as all the other agents in the mix.”
McDowell adds that the trust factor becomes far greater than ever before, “with each agent adapting to a new level of confidentiality and integrity, while dampening any sense of competitiveness that may arise within the larger circle of partners”.
The brand is boss
Marketers will be looking for all participants to understand that their loyalty is to the brand.
Says Vacchiano: “To work together with peers you may have always seen as competition takes honesty, transparency and emotional intelligence (EQ) to unite as a single team in support of the marketer and the brand.
“The ability to manage this often comes only with experience. Then add the various personalities working across marketing, communication, advertising and media, and you have a recipe for one of two things: Disaster or discourse.”
Noting that marketers in Brazil work with an average of 17 agents and China tops that with 25.6, Vacchiano points out that South Africa is not far behind at 15.2, and the UK with 9.1. “As long as markets keep changing and platforms and new agents are added at speed, we believe we’re going to see more collaboration in the ecosystems and even greater trust required among the appointed agencies.”
When seeking partners, Vacchiano and McDowell concur: Marketers will be scouting out those who can place principles above personalities and show up for the brand.