This section contains three types of resources:
Agency profile information that is included in 4A’s Agency Search has been provided by each member agency at the agency’s sole discretion. The 4A’s does not audit, verify or edit agency profile information. Each 4A’s member agency is solely responsible for the comprehensiveness, accuracy and timeliness of the agency profile information that they post on 4A’s Agency Search. If any site visitor has questions or comments pertaining to agency profile information that is posted on 4A’s Agency Search, the questions should be addressed to the listing agency.
If you are an agency employee looking for information about how to update your agency’s profile, see Agency Search Tool – Making Profile Updates.
A selection of materials related to agency searches, new business, and related disciplines.
4As and ANA 2020 Best Practice Guidelines for Agency Search Consultants Paper
Given the important role agency search consultants play in helping clients and agencies find the right partner, the 4A’s is pleased to have partnered with the ANA on 2020 Best Practice Guidelines for Agency Search Consultants.
Relationship Management Best Practices Guidance
Considering the time, energy and expense marketers spend conducting reviews—and that agencies spend on developing new business—it’s critical for both partners to ensure a long and fruitful relationship.
Having a powerful relationship-management program can help you get your relationship off to a good start and stay on track. The 4A’s Relationship Management Best Practices Guidance is your new playbook.
4A’s Agency Prospect Assessment Guidance
The 4A’s New Business Committee has developed new “Agency Prospect Assessment Guidance” to help facilitate more consistent and efficient implementation of longstanding 4A’s guidance regarding the appropriate level of thoughtful consideration and discussion prior to engaging in a review.
Agency Reviews for Project Work Guidance Considerations
Developed by an ANA/4A’s task force, this white paper provides clients and agencies with principles to help optimize the review process for project assignments.
Agency Selection Briefing Guidance
The intention of the ANA/4A’s Agency Selection Briefing Guidance is to provide basic guidance for clients who are unfamiliar with the fundamentals of briefing an agency, and give clients experienced in agency briefings additional best practices to consider.
ANA/4A’s Guidelines for Agency Search
An ANA/4A’s executive task force, comprised of seasoned agency and marketer experts, has developed guidance for agency searches. The objective of the ANA/4A’s Guidelines for Agency Search is to document and publicize best practices for both clients and agencies to consider in the agency search and selection process.
Best Practice Guidance: Ownership of Agency Ideas, Plans and Work Developed During the New Business Process
The 4A’s recommends that agencies preserve ownership of new business-search ideas, plans and work product.
Best Practice Guidance: Agency Search Agreements (AKA New Business NDA’s)
The 4A’s recommends that agencies execute new business agreements with client prospects at the outset of every agency search.
4A’s Committee Advocates Agency New Business IP Protection
Members of the 4A’s new business committees encourage search consultants to specify that the rights to Intellectual Property (IP) created by agencies during the review process remain the property of the agency until the marketer either hires the agency to execute the work or the parties agree to a commercially equitable payment for the assignment of usage rights.
4A’s Guidance | Agency Opportunity Screening Criteria
Agencies can dramatically increase new business performance by learning to be more selective in the pursuit of client opportunities. The 4A’s New Business Committee has developed guidance “4A’s Opportunity Screening Criteria” that advises that just as clients screen out agencies to find the best fit, so should agencies screen clients.
4A’s Guidance: Post-Review Feedback
The 4A’s guidance directive, “Post-Review Feedback,” has been developed by the 4A’s New Business Committee to help inform the agency community of best practice relating to conducting routine and formal agency assessments following participation in all major agency reviews.
Agency Search “To-Do” List
Start by Aligning Marketing Resources and Expectations
This 4A’s guidance for marketers addresses agency/marketer relationship fundamentals, suggestions for evaluating agency resources and tips for conducting an agency search.
4A’s Viewpoint: Problematic RFP and Pitch Behaviors
The Dirty Half-Dozen That Will Doom Your Agency Review
New Business Tool Kit
Quick must-have resources for all agency new business professionals and marketers looking to conduct an agency search.
Confidentiality of Marketing Services Position Paper
A new 4A’s paper recommending that recommends that agencies remain vigilant in protecting confidential media and marketing services information arising in connection with the agency’s work for its clients.
New Shoes: How Understanding Organizational Culture Improves the Performance of the Advertising Agency Industry
The 4A’s Management Series publication “New Shoes” by Lorraine Stewart Lockhart includes discussion related to the following aspects of organizational culture: How to think about organizational culture; Core value systems; Why culture is relevant to agencies and client marketers; How distinctive culture can WOW clients and engage employees; and What culture is Not! This publication will help agency leaders understand the importance of structuring and articulating distinctive and relevant agency culture as an antidote to agency commoditization.
Agency Search Consultants Provide “One Piece of Advice” for Agencies (2018)
The 4A’s asked industry leading agency search consultants to provide “One-Piece-of-Advice” that the association could share with members as they begin thinking about their new business plans.
New Business Surveys
Agency/Advertiser Value Survey, Agency Search: What Matters?
Standardized Agency New Business Questionnaire
The Standardized Agency New Business Questionnaire is designed as a recommended guideline for advertisers and agency search consultants to follow when soliciting information from ad agencies.
Standardized Marketer New Business Questionnaire
The Standardized Marketer New Business Questionnaire is designed as a recommended guideline for agencies to follow when evaluating participation in an agency search. It is intended to help reduce the risk of unpleasant surprises in the agency search process and minimize costly mismatches in marketer-agency relationships.
Conflict Policy Guidelines
This position paper addresses trends in client/agency conflict policies and reflects consideration of these issues by the 4A’s New Business Committee.
A Marketer’s Guide to Best Practices and Processes for Finding a New Agency
This publication, which was authored by Joanne Davis, is intended to provide guidance to marketers on how to conduct an agency search. It contains checklists, timetables, sample questionnaires and suggested best practices.
4A’s/ANA Best Practices in Agency Search and Selection Process
The purpose of this document is to identify best practices that may facilitate the agency search and selection process for advertisers, agencies, and search consultants.
4A’s/ANA Rules of the Road for Agency Search Consultants
This document sets forth seven “Rules of the Road” for agency search consultants to follow when conducting an agency review.
Accounts In Review
The 4A’s maintains a cumulative analysis of published agency review/search activity – 2017 and prior years.
The Accounts in Review analysis includes:
New Business Activity Tracker
Each month R3 and 4A’s bring you the New Business League rundown of creative and media new business activity in the US and around the world. And exclusively for 4A’s Members, an expanded New Business activity summary in Excel that includes detail related to identified wins, including the incumbent agency and the new successful agency.
Webinar: Stop Negotiating – it doesn’t work
This presentation, originally delivered to the 4A’s National Large & SAMS New Business Committee on July 31, 2019, by Brett Colbert of Colbert Group Consulting, was re-recorded by Brett Colbert on August 22, 2019.
Webinar: The Top Ten Things I’ve Learned In Thirty Years Of New Business Fun
This presentation was delivered to the 4A’s Southern Region New Business Committee on June 4, 2019 by Diane Fannon of The Richards Group.
Webinar: Perspectives on New Business and Client Relationships
This presentation was delivered to the 4A’s Central Region New Business Committee on June 13, 2019 by Deb Giampoli of Stone Soup Consultants.
Webinar: Our World in Transformation – What does it mean for growth?
This presentation was delivered to the 4A’s Western Region New Business Committee on June 5, 2019 by Catherine Bension of SRI.
Webinar: A View of New Business From the Other Side of the Table
This presentation was delivered to the 4A’s Southern Region New Business Committee on June 6, 2018 by The Bedford Group.
Webinar: A Perspective on Client Attitudes, the Current Search Environment, and Things Agencies do that Drive Me Crazy
This presentation was delivered to the 4A’s Western Region New Business Committee on May 15, 2018 by Russel Wohlwerth, Owner of External View Consulting Group.
Webinar: How To Buy A Gorilla: Taking greater control in the battle for new business
This presentation was delivered to the 4A’s National New Business Committee on May 3, 2018 by David Meikle, Founder of The How to Buy a Gorilla Company.
Webinar: What Clients Want from Their Agencies and What Wins New Business
Phil Asche and Hayes Roth of Relationship Audits & Management provide insights and guidance gained from thousands of client and agency interviews and surveys on: What clients want from their agencies and What wins new business. This session was recorded during the National New Business Committee Meeting on February 22, 2018.
Webinar: New Business – Understanding and Working With Procurement
This presentation was delivered to the 4A’s Central Region New Business Committee on November 15, 2017 by Annette Cerami, Procurement Manager, Marketing & Services, at Constellation Brands.
Webinar: New Business — Marketplace Observation & Winning in a Process Driven Review
This presentation was delivered to the 4A’s New Business Committee on November 2, 2017 by Matt Ryan of Roth Ryan Hayes.
Webinar: Improving Agency Relations with Marketing Procurement – Mary Ann Brennan
Procurement thought leader Mary Ann Brennan (Sr Director Global Procurement, Mattel, and ANA Agency Relations Committee Co-Chair) shares information and suggestions related to improving agency relations with marketing procurement with the 4A’s community, via a complimentary members-only webinar sponsored by the 4A’s Western Region New Business Committee.
Webinar: New Business Committee Q2 2017 – The State of Agency Business Development
The 4A’s and business intelligence firm Advertiser Perceptions partnered on a new study examining the current state of the advertising agency business. In this recorded webinar from the Q2 meeting of the 4A’s New Business Committee, Randy Cohen, President & COO of Advertiser Perceptions discusses findings from the recently released report “The State of Agency Business Development.”
Webinar: New Business Committee Q1 2017 Meeting on Agency Search Portal
Search Consultant (and former 4A’s New Business Committee member) Melissa Lea of R3 Worldwide participated in the January 31st, 2017, committee session. In this recording, she shares her perspectives on agency search dynamics — including trends related to client objectives and requirements, client goals for agency searches, and search consultant observations that she wished she knew as an agency new business executive.
Webinar: Q4 New Business Committee – Webinar with Agency Spotter Co-Founder Brian Regienczuk
In this webinar, Agency Spotter CEO and Co-Founder Brian Regienczuk shares findings and key learning from Agency Spotter’s Agency Search Trends Report. The presentation was originally delivered at the Q4 meeting of the 4A’s New Business Committee.
The Marketer’s View-Leapfrog Mine Fields and Exceed Client Expectations
Lorraine Rojek was joined by Alltel Communications VP Marketing Erin Taylor; Royal Caribbean SVP Marketing Alice Norsworthy and White Castle VP Marketing Kim Bartley.
The New Age of Digital, Media, and Agency Search
The 4A’s was pleased to host leading agency search consultant Catherine Bension, President and CEO, Select Resources International.
Working With Search Consultants
In November, 2007, the 4A’s hosted another Webinar in its “Tools, Tips, and Tactics” series: “Working With Search Consultants, Featuring Mercer Island Group’s Steve Boehler.”