Art & Commerce: When Worlds Collide

How to avoid the abuses of dot.com delinquents Guessing that every advertising person who read John Tierney's article--"The Big City; Rudeness and Riches Dot-Com"--in The New York Times (Jan. 29, 2000) read it with a note of recognition. I did. Tierney talks about 20-something dot.comers showing up late for meetings, abusing an agency's time and resources, having minimum experience and maximum attitude, jumping you through hoops and then never getting back to you--the all-too-familiar litany of dot.com abuses we've all experienced. First, I want to go on record as an agency executive who welcomes dot.com business--i.e., the right dot.coms. The right ones are run by inspiring entrepreneurs, they're fun to work on, they're energizing, they're void of the kind of decision anxiety that constipates the conduct of business on a lot of traditional accounts, and we get to invent of whole new way of taking products to market. That's a marketing person's dream. Or a marketing person's nightmare when the abuses Tierney highlights prevail. do consequat.Duis autem vel eum iriure dolor in hendrerit in vulputate velit esse molestie consequat, vel illum dolore eu feugiat nulla facilisis. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit, sed diam nonummy nibh euismod tincidunt ut laoreet dolore magna aliquam erat volutpat. Ut wisi enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exerci tation ullamcorper suscipit lobortis nisl ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis autem vel eum iriure dolor in hendrerit in vulputate velit esse molestie consequat, vel illum dolore eu feugiat nulla facilisis at vero eros et accumsan et iusto odio dignissim qui blandit praesent luptatum zzril delenit augue duis dolore te feugait nulla facilisi. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit, sed diam nonummy nibh euismod tincidunt ut laoreet dolore magna aliquam erat volutpat. Ut wisi enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exerci tation ullamcorper suscipit lobortis nisl ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis autem vel eum iriure dolor in hendrerit in vulputate velit esse molestie consequat, vel illum dolore eu feugiat nulla facilisis at vero eros et accumsan et iusto odio dignissim qui blandit praesent luptatum zzril delenit augue duis dolore te feugait nulla facilisi. Nam liber tempor cum soluta nobis eleifend option congue nihil imperdiet doming id quod mazim placerat facer possim assum. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit, sed diam nonummy nibh euismod tincidunt ut laoreet dolore magna aliquam erat volutpat. Ut wisi enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exerci tation ullamcorper suscipit lobortis nisl ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis autem vel eum iriure dolor in hendrerit in vulputate velit esse molestie consequat, vel illum dolore eu feugiat nulla facilisis at vero eros et accumsan et iusto odio dignissim qui blandit praesent luptatum zzril delenit augue duis dolore te feugait nulla facilisi. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit, sed diam nonummy nibh euismod tincidunt ut laoreet dolore magna aliquam erat volutpat. Ut wisi enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exerci tation ullamcorper suscipit lobortis nisl ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis autem vel eum iriure dolor in hendrerit in vulputate velit esse molestie consequat, vel illum dolore eu feugiat nulla facilisis at vero eros et accumsan et iusto odio dignissim qui blandit praesent luptatum zzril delenit augue duis dolore te feugait nulla facilisi. Nam liber tempor cum soluta nobis eleifend option congue nihil imperdiet doming id quod mazim placerat facer possim assum. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit, sed diam nonummy Ut wisi enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exerci tation ullamcorper suscipit lobortis nisl ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis autem vel eum iriure dolor in hendrerit in vulputate velit esse molestie consequat, vel illum dolore eu feugiat nulla facilisis.suscipit lobortis nisl ut aliquip ex ea commoNam liber tempor cum soluta nobis eleifend option congue nihil imperdiet doming id quod mazim placerat facer possim assum. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit, sed diam nonummy nibh euismod tincidunt ut laoreet dolore magna aliquam erat volutpat. Ut wisi enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exerci tation ullamcorper suscipit lobortis nisl ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis autem vel eum iriure dolor in hendrerit in vulputate velit esse molestie consequat, vel illum dolore eu feugiat nulla facilisis.suscipit lobortis nisl ut aliquip ex ea commo do consequat.Duis autem vel eum iriure dolor in hendrerit in vulputate velit esse molestie consequat, vel illum dolore eu feugiat nulla facilisis. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit, sed diam nonummy nibh euismod tincidunt ut laoreet dolore magna aliquam erat volutpat. Ut wisi enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exerci tation ullamcorper suscipit lobortis nisl ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. uis autem vel eum iriure dolor in hendrerit in vulputate velit ess I'm guessing that every advertising person who read John Tierney's article "The Big City; Rudeness and Riches Dot-Com" in The New York Times (Jan. 29, 2000) read it with a note of recognition. I did. Tierney talks about 20-something dot.comers showing up late for meetings, abusing an agency's time and resources, having minimum experience and maximum attitude, jumping you through hoops and then never getting back to you--the all-too-familiar litany of dot.com abuses we've all experienced. First, I want to go on record as an agency executive who welcomes the right dot.com businesses. The right ones are run by inspiring entrepreneurs, they're fun to work on, they're energizing, they're devoid of the kind of decision anxiety that constipates the conduct of business on many traditional accounts, and we get to invent a new way of taking products to market. That's a marketing person's dream. Or a marketing person's nightmare when the abuses Tierney highlights prevail. My agency handles three dot.com dream accounts. CDNOW pioneered when it comes to building online brands, and our partnership with them goes back to 1997-- before the dawn of Internet time. National Discount Brokers brings a refreshing objective to the online brokerage space--making money. PhoneFree.com has put together a team of marketing professionals who make it feasible and enjoyable to operate in Internet time. When it comes to the abusive dot.comers, Tierney suggests agency folk can't afford to push back at these badly behaving clients. And Jason McCabe Calacanis, editor of Silicon Alley Reporter, says: "People interpret this industry as rude because the pace is so fast. It's like being on the sidewalks of New York during rush hour--you can't expect someone to say, 'Excuse me,' if they bump into you." My reply to Calacanis is: "Yes, I can." To tolerate the kind of behavior he defends is a sheer act of desperation. And yes, I can push back. We've declined to pitch many accounts that showed signs of dot.com rudeness. My agency has resigned two dot.com clients that conducted business badly. When search consultants ask for our agency's point of view on the foundations of a successful client/agency relationship, here's what we say: -Make a smart match. (Choose a partner you can respect or the relationship will falter.) -Treat it like a living, breathing relationship. (Work at it, just as you would in a marriage.) -Come to the relationship for the long term. (There are no quick fixes--in life, or in marketing.) -Spend each other's money as if it were your own. (It's a business relationship.) -Know your respective strengths and "let go." (That doesn't mean the client's not in charge.) -Put all your decisions through the consumer filter. (The consumer rules.) -It's all about results. (Agree on the benchmarks for success.) I suggest this is the formula for any successful client/agency relationship--dot.com or otherwise. To all those dot.coms for whom this makes no sense, don't bother to call. K

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Art & Commerce: When Worlds Collide

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