Come to think of it, I probably shouldn’t shout too loudly. This article from Media Post explains that
The web and related digital technologies are exposing major weaknesses in traditional agency skill sets, according to a study released yesterday by Forrester Research.
This trend, the study finds, is working in favor of specialist digital shops, which marketers are increasingly calling upon to fill skill gaps.
The most shocking numbers? The fact that just 21% of marketers would recommend the agency they themselves hired, and 76% of them don’t measure the ROI for that relationship.
Hat tip to Robin Fray Carey via the Social Media Collective.
It is always nice to have some stats to back up what we know has been going on for a while. Most ad agencies love to spout off about how they have no silos, a good idea can come from anywhere, being media agnostic, etc. In my experience, not only is it not true, but it is also a bad philosophy.
There is no such thing as an Internet expert anymore. Email, SEO/SEM, Analytics, Social Media, Databases, Flash-design, Viral, etc. have all become sub-disciplines where no one can claim to be an expert in all or even hope to remain current on.
Personally, I wish that being a generalist was possible, but in this era of rapid developments it just isn’t. Many agencies don’t know what they don’t know about the net. So I say the future is not in being media neutral, but in being a zealot within a particular slice of media.
“You can’t have it all, you can only have a sliver of it all. So pick your sliver well, my friend.” Hugh (gapingvoid.com)