Money Shows on the Screen: How Casual is Reinventing the Agency Model

Ask anyone in the industry, and they will tell you that timelines are shorter while deliverables are increasing and the budgets for like-for-like work are getting squeezed. It seems like the price, time, quality triangle – pick two – is being crushed.

So what’s going on, and how can creative businesses continue to deliver quality work with proper oversight against these headwinds?

One way we have done it at Casual is by combining the traditional agency account and production roles. Historically, accounts looked after the clients and production delivered.

For many years, we tried to make this work. Adding a more strategic layer should have helped our clients to see us more in this light. It made sense to separate the production team from the sales/account team as this would allow each team member to focus on what they did best. It never really worked.

Remove Account Management?

Production is not a huge margin business. The clients are cost-sensitive and they often get in touch when they have a specific project in mind, which means that they want to start talking brass tacks from call one. Having a salesperson who doesn’t know their gaffer from their grip doesn’t quite cut the mustard.

Now, you could argue that this is because we’re not positioning ourselves properly with our clients. Increasingly, the value that we offer as a business is in building long-term audience engagement. This takes many months and can only be partially achieved through individual projects. If we were more focused on the long-term process from conversation number one, then account staff would make more sense.

The Rise of Disintermediation

I’m not so sure. The world is changing rapidly. Everywhere we look we see disintermediation: ‘Cutting out the middle man’ to the layman. Being able to speak to someone who has delivered what the client is asking for in the past and knows exactly how to get it done from conversation one is key.

Also, even for on-running strategic projects, there is huge value in having deliverers working on the constituent elements. It means that the overarching narrative of the series comes through in every asset, with less costly oversight. It also means that more of the budget is seen on the screen – an essential asset in modern business comms.

In fact, just yesterday, we had a client in APAC say how good it was to be in the room with the people who are going to make the project – rather than an account team who need to go and pull levers.

This speeds up decision-making and means that many of the problems that need to be overcome in production can be addressed before even leaving that first briefing room.

The Hybrid Role of the Executive Producer

Now of course, this means that the executive producers have to wear two hats, and to be honest, each one wears them slightly differently - some are more producer-focused, others more client-focused.

It also creates a hybrid role which can be challenging to the uninitiated. Being an executive producer is very different to being a producer. All filmmaking is about problem-solving. Some big, some small, but solve hundreds or thousands of problems and you will have a film. This tangibility is arguably one of the best things about it.

I like to think of senior producers as being experienced and excellent at solving those problems as they arise. For exec role of an executive producer is more focused on devising, identifying, and creating problems in the first place. This is far less tangible and different.

So who does the strategic thinking?

That’s where our territory managing directors step in. After working their way up through production and executive roles, they’ve gained the hands-on experience and high-level perspective needed to weave individual projects into a cohesive, long-term brand narrative.

By concentrating strategic oversight within this leaner role, we reduce overhead and channel more of the client’s budget directly into production - rather than allocating it to additional account personnel.

Meanwhile, our executive producers also contribute vital insights by spotting challenges early and ensuring every creative decision supports the broader vision. The result is a streamlined, cost-effective process in which strategic thinking remains front and centre from concept to delivery.

We’re still evolving…

This is just our way of making it work. Over nearly two decades and thousands of projects we have made a huge number of mistakes we have made sure to learn from. Given the pace of change in the market, and the art and science of video we’re all still learning everyday.