The Impact of Full Transparency with Clients

Before I started Madison Taylor Marketing, I worked with agencies from the client side. I can’t tell you how many agencies would deliver reporting, strategy, proposals, etc. in an obscure, cryptic fashion; using all the right flowery buzzwords but lacking any actual substance.

This was incredibly frustrating for me. I’m someone who values transparency, and these experiences were ultimately a significant factor in my decision to establish my own agency.

Build Trust, Build Relationships

How many times have you heard relationship advice along the lines of, “without trust between you and your partner, there’s no relationship at all”? Well, the same goes for client-agency relationships. Full transparency with clients is our foundation for communication; it boosts their trust in us, particularly when it's clear that their interests are at the forefront of everything we do.

We allow clients free-range access to real-time third-party performance data for everything we do. Yes, we do this to evidence the value we’re providing, but also so that clients aren’t idly waiting weeks or longer for progress updates. There’s no one hiding behind the curtain. We’re completely exposed and the information is theirs for the taking, just the way an agency relationship should work.

We specifically tailor our work to client-specific needs, avoiding boilerplate marketing and the temptation to stagnate in an industry that is continually evolving. Moreover, our policy is that our clients own every single piece of work we provide for them; every bit of data, every deliverable, everything we do for them all belongs to them. After all, holding clients hostage is hardly constructive to building trusting, long-lasting relationships.

Provide More Than a Service

By integrating lessons learned from my client-side experience into how my agency works today, I’ve tried as much as anything else to amplify the importance of transparency in marketing. When we deliver to our clients, we’re steadfast in our commitment to provide only work that is directly supportive of their needs, and to do it with transparent accountability. Running the agency this way is the right thing to do, but it’s also my way of combating the conditions that caused my frustration when I was on the other side of the client-agency relationship.

It’s only when you’re providing more than buzzwords and a loosely related menu of services that the client-agency relationship can evolve beyond something that feels like vendor management. I personally stay motivated by building healthier client partnerships, but also, and by extension, showing other professionals that there’s an alternative to some of the not-so-great and long-standing industry practices.

While our partnerships with clients may not continue forever, we’re definitely aiming to make our impact on their organizations, and the marketing industry in general, everlasting.