Digiday Research: Marketers aren’t relying on agencies to set up in-house operations.
This research is based on unique data collected from our proprietary audience of publisher, agency, brand and tech insiders. It’s available to Digiday+ members. More from the series →
Clients taking various marketing functions are finding there is no one right way to do it. They’re also choosing not to rely on outside help when developing their in-house marketing capabilities.
Of 73 client-side marketers with in-house agencies surveyed by Digiday this April, 71% said they do not use external help in the form of agencies, consulting firms or contract hires when creating in-house agencies.
While consultancies are attempting to cash in on marketers’ in-housing plans, few clients are taking them up on their offer. Just 3% of clients in the Digiday survey said they were working with consulting firms to take control of certain functions.
Instead, when outside help was needed, independent contractors, used by 26% of respondents, or existing agencies, used by 10%, were most likely to be called upon.
But building an in-house agency is no small feat. Leland Maschmeyer, chief creative officer at Chobani, said Chobani’s in-house agency came together faster than expected.
“The CEO and CMO supported it as an important company-wide priority and because we were able to re-allocate our agency fees straight to the in-house agency,” he said.
However, one challenge for clients hoping to build an in-house agency themselves is talent. While previous Digiday research found that agency workers believe in-house roles are safer, most would agree that they are less exciting.
“There’s a certain perception of in-house agencies,” said Maschmeyer. “With a wide variety of work and clients to pick from, it was challenging getting agency-side talent over the hurdle of choosing to work on just one client.”
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