Agency Spotlight: IF Agency

Alliance Members do a fantastic job of marketing on behalf of their clients, but many don’t talk about themselves enough. That’s why we’ve developed a safe space for Agency leaders to come and give an insight on what it is like to navigate the rollercoaster of running an Independent Marketing Agency.

Our first Agency under the spotlight is IF Agency. A proudly Independent Creative Agency delivering outstanding Brand Development and multi-channel Brand Activation campaigns for brands with ambition and integrity. We sat down with Christian James, Founder/MD to find out more about IF.

Q> In your experience, what are some common challenges that independent marketing agencies face, and how does your agency overcome them?

The most common challenges come under the headings of ‘Capacity’ and ‘Capability’. Capacity is a perception that a network agency has more resource to pull on and an independent will struggle to cope with bursts or prolonged periods of higher activity volumes. The reality is that here, the client has a dedicated and tailored resource team to manage the BAU volumes. And in times where increased resource is needed, we are far more agile - being able to re-allocate resource in a matter of hours if necessary. 

Capability is a fair challenge. We have always worked with a range of clients - from large multi-national to smaller local brands. And after 18 years, we have a depth of experience and expertise across our key sectors in both Consumer and Business Brands. Not all independents have this depth to draw from but we see our Capability as a real strength that we are more than confident in sharing with clients and prospects.

Q> What sets your agency apart from other marketing agencies in terms of your approach, strategies, or industry expertise?

Two things set us apart. Aptitude is one; after 18 years we have built up a great depth of experience and expertise in our key sectors. We use that experience to avoid pitfalls that others will not be aware of, but also to push ourselves to go beyond the obvious and find original, compelling creative solutions.

The second is Attitude; the ‘no dickheads’ rule is strictly applied here among a diverse group of creative people who’ve all bought into the agency vision and values.   

Q> What piece of work are you most proud of?

So many! It’s so hard to pin it down to one piece, so I'm going to pick a body of work instead. We were asked by Knowsley Safari to pitch for a new identity back in 2012. Instead we delivered a brand idea built on genuine consumer insight. 13 years later and that brand idea has directed and driven pretty much everything about the Knowsley experience; from the identity, to broadcast comms, digital and social, to uniforms, signage, promotions, events and even the toilet doors! It’s inspired the Tiger Trail and many other animal experiences and stands testament to our commitment to developing positive long term, partnership-based relationships.

Can you share a bit about your agency's journey and how you've grown since joining the Alliance of Independent Agencies?

We started out with an ambition to do great work with great people, have fun and make a bit of money. We’re still working on that last one but the rest has gone pretty well! 

As for the Alliance, it’s very early days but we think the opportunities for collaboration are immense - working with other independents and learning from them is what we are most looking forward to.   

Q> Can you tell me about your agency's core values and how they align with the mission of the Alliance of Independent Agencies?

We’ve a set of 5 core values guiding the agency. Three are very specific and don’t translate too well out of context. The other two are very much in line with why we joined the Alliance. Firstly ‘One Team’: We are a very collaborative group and have always believed we’d create our best work in partnership with colleagues, clients, peers and other agency specialists. And secondly: ‘Better people make a better agency’. To us this is about being a people first business, it’s about integrity and it’s about fun.

Q> How do you foster a collaborative and creative environment within your agency? Can you share an instance where teamwork and creativity led to a remarkable campaign outcome?

Some people are more naturally collaborative and we do everything we can in the interview process to make sure we only hire people who will thrive in our ‘One Team’ culture. The open plan layout of the office helps but it’s also vital to have break out areas for closer collaboration. Beyond the environment, our whole approach fosters collaboration - from all agency weekly update sessions, to workshop style project briefing kick-off meetings, to regular spontaneous and planned social gatherings. The collaboration leads to the creativity. We were asked recently to plan and deliver a new social content plan for a national chain of Italian restaurants. To kick start the project, we took the team off to learn how to make pasta. What’s not to like about messing about with pasta and a glass of wine? Actually some of it was edible. Any great team will tell you that you have to build spirit and culture ‘off the pitch’ in order to deliver success on it. We had a great night out together, got in touch with our inner Italian and subsequently delivered a campaign that increased sales by a tasty 93%.     

Q> Can you share a story about a time when your agency went above and beyond to exceed client expectations and deliver outstanding results?

I think every agency worth its salt tends to go above and beyond pretty much every day to exceed client expectations. Whether that’s through an idea, creative execution or great service. 

But one example springs to mind that I’m particularly proud of. During lockdown, an fmcg brand client of ours was struggling to get product to its community of direct sales customers, leading to a lot of negative comments on social. A team from the agency hired a van, drove to the client factory and filled the van with product which was then stored at the agency. The team then responded to any direct customer issues - sending out missing product with hand-written apologies, until the distribution issue was resolved. The feedback from customers was incredible, generating far more positive sentiment than any previous campaigns. The client was delighted and doubled their budget with us the next year. Literally everyone was happy.      

Q> And finally, how do you build an ever-lasting positive culture within your agency?

I don’t believe there’s just one way, it has to be authentic to your agency so you can’t just pluck a process off the shelf and expect it to work. But there are some common themes like keeping true to your values, listening to your team and making sure everyone feels valued and respected. It takes time and must be allowed to develop organically. And perhaps most importantly for me, having fun is fundamental. The day you take what we do too seriously is the day it dies.