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‘We see disruption as a really great challenge’
It’s a tough time for marketing agencies right now. Automation, fleet of foot freelancers, consultancies moving into the space and an increase in in-house solutions are all threatening the role of the traditional creative agency; facts which are well documented in the industry’s press.
Campaign Live ran a piece earlier this year with this grand statement “Agencies have to be more bolshy to contend with consultancies in the year ahead” – and they are right. Big consultancies acquiring innovative start-up agencies is just one visible way in which the shift has dramatically moved towards technology, with creative agencies being squeezed out.
In March, Adweek boldly claimed that “the traditional agency is antiquated because traditional advertising is antiquated” and suggested that the “agency of the future will thrive by being quick and nimble”.
is needed now More than ever
I hesitate to refer to Six as a ‘traditional’ agency, despite the fact that we have been in Bristol now for over 20 years. Although on the surface, we appear to be just that – with big corporate clients and a slick professional process to match, we’ve always been vigilant and proactive in our approach to work and to changes in the market. And I agree with Adweek’s statement.
Bristol is a hub of tech innovation
The opportunities for our creative agency lie in harnessing data and innovation. By creating strong ideas, rooted in data and insights, we are making a difference for our clients. We’re strategic, creative and business focused – meaning we look at how to tackle the real business challenge, which could be answered through internal change initiatives as well as targeted external communications.
There are many challenges that go with this, how we price and sell the value of strategic creative – (the bit can’t be done inhouse), adapting our ways of working and how we work hard to attract the right skillset into the agency.
One of our greatest achievements for the last 20+ years has been our ability to adapt, allowing us to maintain meaningful relationships with the likes of Lloyds Banking Group and BP and grow a portfolio of diverse brands within finance, education and automotive sectors. Our recently refreshed proposition and brand values will directly impact how we grow and move forward as an agency and we’re very excited about them.
Turning uncertainty into certainty:
We see disruption as a really great challenge for us. As an independent business, we’ve been using it to define and control our own destiny. Rather than sit back and wait for change to happen, we’re taking hold of our future with a refreshed business focus. We started our change journey by questioning and listening to our staff, having recognised how powerful and invaluable it is to understand what they see as their agency of the future.
Agency culture plays a large part in our success and we’ve developed three ‘freedoms’ for our team. Free to shine, free to wow and free to own. These have been created to empower and motivate each and every one of us in everything they do.
Whether that’s allowing time to gain new skills and express interests, to be more entrepreneurial or to change the way in which we work, we are aiming for a braver and better agency as a result.
In a nutshell, we are working hard to turn uncertainty into certainty by listening to our team and including them in our agency of the future. By shifting our mindset from that of a traditional creative ‘delivery’ supplier to a valued trusted partner with confidence, pragmatism and the voice of our staff leading the way, we’re confident that 20 years from now, Six will look and sound very different.
Ruth Clarke is the deputy managing director at independent creative agency Six. She is an experienced marketer, who has worked with many different clients and brands, of all shapes and sizes.
Read more: The Bristol businesses daring to disrupt
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