3 Myths About Agency Client Experience Teams, Debunked

It’s time to rethink how you collaborate with your CX team.

Words by Jay Mattingly , Senior Director, Client Experience at Known

Having worked on client experience teams for the past 12 years, I’ve come to realize that account people occupy an interesting space in the agency world as the liaison between the internal and the external folks. And quite often their role and their value are completely misunderstood.

Depending on where you work in an organization, you may see CXers as many different things, and it may not always be positive. There’s a common misconception that CXers are clients in agency clothing, and that they don't remember that they work for the agency or the marketing partner. Or, that they serve as nothing more than a go-between for the clients and the agency, adding an unnecessary layer to an already complex process (in my opinion, being seen as the middleman is the worst assumption of all). But the role of CX is changing—in a good way—and it’s time to debunk these common myths about CX teams.?

Myth: CX people are just the messengers.?

Truth: I always preach to my teams that if they’re only forwarding messages back and forth, without understanding, digesting, and distilling the information and how it affects larger projects, campaigns, and interests, they’re doing it wrong. I look at my role as if I run my own business within the agency, and my interests are intimately tied to creating work that moves the client's business interests forward in a compelling way. I need to be an advocate for both sides, which means I have to understand the priorities and perspectives of both parties in order to have quality conversations and help ensure we’re making great work everyone is proud of that accomplishes the client’s goals.

Myth: CX doesn’t add much value.

Truth: This misconception stems from a combination of the “messenger fallacy” and the fact that what account people produce is intangible. We don’t generate creative ideas, we don’t produce spots, and we don’t build strategic frameworks. Yes, we have a hand in all of that, but our chief exports are trust, efficiency, and, to some degree, reading minds. A good CX person is intrinsically proactive. I'm constantly evaluating schedules for projects three months out even if we haven't talked to a client yet. For instance, I’ll give our legal team a heads up that we're going to submit a new SOW for a client even though the master services agreement hasn't been submitted. As a result, the legal team is thankful that they could block off time to review it and call out major issues well in advance. If you’re waiting to be told what to do, you’re already behind. Learning the skill of proactivity will serve a young CXer well in every aspect of their job, internally and externally.

Myth: We’re always on the client’s side.

Truth: I’ve sat in meetings where an overzealous account “leader” killed all the creative ideas because “the client won’t like it.” The best account people don’t kill work, they make it bulletproof by anticipating where clients might find issues and then building a solid solution before it’s needed. I’ll give you an example: Our team was recently developing a naming system for a major client. I tasked the CX team with making sure that whatever we took back to the client was deeply rooted in their brand guidelines. The names were amazing, but there were a few that didn't fit with the brand voice. We were able to get on the phone with the creative team, talk it through, and walk away with ideas that everyone not only felt very happy with, but were ready to defend to the client and say, “This ladders up to the brand voice. We know it. We've vetted it.” It worked because we came at it with a spirit of collaboration. I never challenge the creative integrity of an idea—I simply want to help our team sell their work.

If you’re waiting to be told what to do, you’re already behind. Learning the skill of proactivity will serve a young CXer well in every aspect of their job, internally and externally.

Debunking myths requires building good, consistent habits. And it’s much easier to form the right habits in an environment that supports them. At Known, transcending the traditional preconceptions of the account role isn’t just encouraged, it is celebrated. My team and I aren’t just business leads, we are Imagineers given permission to build the impossible. This year alone, we’ve been empowered to create bold new brand identities, support massive NFL stadium takeovers, and send people to space. If there’s one thread that runs through everything that I’ve discussed, it’s that the right team of collaborators and mentors make all the difference in debunking the myths above. I’ve found my tribe, have you found yours?

Remember: CX folks can be your greatest ally. But it requires mutual understanding of their roles, value, and expectations as the connective tissue running through all the great work agencies can make.?