50% of the times your work is getting rejected but it couldn’t grab your attention.
More than 95% of the times I have seen agencies implement totally changed elements of their plans on client dictates that couldn’t be explained justifiably. Not even for 1% of times have I seen them reduce this ratio from 95% to less! That’s the routine they are busy with! Or at least their management wants teams to be busy with. Because quality comes with time and agencies barely have time!
We have seen vastly different products and brands implementing very similar plans except with some difference in weights and skews. Top it up with buying mandates that aren’t paired with consumer availability but are with pricing availability! Do you really think your plans have reached right consumers?
Why would it have to matter so much for the things to look right only on paper? Would it have to matter at all?
Do corporates have marketing pressure to retain brand opulence of their parents?
Do unsought things creep in and get their way because it’s easier to explain or manipulate expected results of any campaign than unexpected results of real campaign (that can’t go wrong anyway)?
Afterwords:
If things ain’t working, accept that you ain’t doing them right. Being defensive or spending time on justifications puts you last on row away from learnings and improvements.
If a client didn’t implement your plan, accept that it never fitted their game plan. If your campaign didn’t generate enough response and actions, accept that you never exercised real actions! Don’t look for drastic change in 100% solution. Had it been in your control your actions would have worked earlier too. Look for gradual solution in pieces that are usually scattered on various dimensions.
Have patience and be happy about doing your bit over time. Worrying about others not doing their bit is like expecting them to fit into a frame that can’t match their picture size.
Epilogue:
Invest your efforts behind lowering your rejection score. It will automatically improve performance of your plans
