Advertising Legend Geoffrey Roche Returns with New Marketing Firm, Disruptincy

North American advertising legend Geoffrey Roche and his business partner of five years, Jack Harding, have launched Disruptincy, a bold new solution for helping companies solve their marketing problems.

Utilising a unique brain trust of accomplished executives from around the world, Disruptincy brings forward-thinkers to the table to develop business solutions that transcend advertising.

The product of extensive conversations with clients in Canada, the U.S. and Europe, Disruptincy is built around the notion that today’s clients are no longer seeking just advertising solutions. “Advertising may not be what’s needed to fix their problems,” says Roche. “Often times it may be a business solution built around what they already have.”

These discussions also revealed that clients are seeking cost-effective ways to solve these problems without having to face the dreaded “What’s your budget?” question.

“For clients, that might mean less emphasis on big-budget TV campaigns in favour of strategically-minded work that embraces a variety of tactics, from in-store to PR, to an optimised strategy for key sales channels like Amazon,” says Roche. “We’re as focused as possible about doing what’s right for the client, both 10 days from now and a year from now. These will be actionable ideas that the client can use right away to change their business.”

Aiding Disruptincy in developing these solutions will be an esteemed group of acclaimed problem solvers from a host of industries, including CPG, home design, automotive, luxury appliances and social media.

Joe Mimran, founder of Joe Fresh and Club Monaco, a past star of television’s Dragons Den and a former client of Roche says, “this model entirely changes the way businesses can get help fast. In the time it takes traditional firms to engage with their clients, the Disruptincy team have already met with them, consulted with a group of bright C-suite executives and presented nine forward thinking ideas. Who wouldn’t want that?”

In addition to its unique take on sourcing and developing solutions, Disruptincy also lists upfront fees on its website, Disruptincy.com. Clients pay $1,500 for an initial consultation with the Disruptincy team and its partners; if it’s determined there’s not a fit, they will return $500 and recommend a partner they think would be more suitable.

Following a successful consult, a half-day offsite takes place at a cost of $5000. This is where Disruptincy has the opportunity to listen to stakeholders the client deems crucial to effectively communicating the market challenges they face.

Over the next nine days, Disruptincy will meet with a who’s who of C-suite executives— entrepreneurs, innovators and industry leaders capable of bringing new and actionable ideas to the client’s business, at a cost of $10,000.

Clients can either take these ideas to their existing partners to be carried out, or they can be executed by Disruptincy. “We want to give clients solutions they can use to drive business quickly, efficiently and effectively,” says Roche. “We only bring in who we need, when we need them. That’s it.”

Roche says it’s time for agencies to be candid and up-front about their fees. “Your dentist doesn’t ask you what your budget is before you get a tooth pulled,” he says.

Harding, who at 26 has already developed websites amassing 10 million monthly readers, says the up-front price structure levels the playing field for clients. “It’s a way for companies to get innovative thinking that may be beyond the bandwidth of their existing team,” he says. “We like to think of ourselves as their secret weapon.”

An inductee into the Marketing Hall of Legends, Roche is one of North America’s preeminent creative leaders. Under his leadership, Lowe Roche was named Agency of the Year six times by Strategy magazine, as well as Agency of the Decade. The agency was also named International Agency of the Year by U.S. marketing publication Ad Age.

After leaving the agency world, Roche and Harding have managed consulting assignments for some of the world’s largest companies, helping bring new and unique thinking to organisations unsure of their next move.

“Now is the right time to introduce our model to the marketplace, particularly as clients find themselves vying for attention from increasingly fickle consumers in an increasingly crowded and hyper competitive market,” says Roche. “Clients are often not getting the help they need from traditional sources in a timely fashion. In fact, in many cases they’re unsure of where to find the help. That’s where our model fits in.”