If you ask an agency to pitch, you owe them the truth
We Scout agency co-founder Lori Susko argues that feedback after a pitch is critical for PR professionals, and that honest feedback doesn’t weaken a partnership — it strengthens it.
Lori Susko - author
There’s an unspoken rule in the agency world that almost everyone understands and almost no one consistently follows: if you invite an agency into a pitch, you are responsible for how that process ends.
Don’t get me wrong, I have always thought the pitch process for comms agencies is totally flawed. Multiple agencies pour weeks of senior thinking into new business pitches. Money, time, and effort is invested. Strategy, creativity, and experience are given freely, as we all show our best work.
Yet, almost every peer in the industry that I have spoken to is well versed on receiving a vague email or no explanation. No context. No learning. And in some cases, no feedback at all.
Very well written article thank you. As an incumbent agency we were asked to pitch a project against three other agencies. We asked repeatedly about the deliverables for the pitch and were told again and again what they were. When we were informed we’d missed out we were told it was because another agency/s had excelled on a completely different set of deliverables. WTF. We’ve been working with the client for over 10 years and find this incredibly disrespectful. It feels like they’ve lost the love for us. Any advice? I haven’t formed a solution.