The Art of Account Management: Client Chemistry with Steph O'Neil
LBB> How did you first get involved in account management and what appealed to you about it?
Steph> I started my career working for one of Peter Jones’s digital agencies which gave me exposure to an agile and fast paced environment where I quickly got the buzz for solving brands challenges by taking exciting creative solutions to them - that reaction or response to an awe-inspiring creative concept is something I've never tired of!
From a young age I've always been very organised and eager to put a smile on people’s faces - whether competing at a sporting event, going the extra mile when working at a gastro-pub to giving customers the best service, or trying to impress by showing off my cooking skills. So the ingredients were all there when I tried my hand at account handling!
LBB> What is it about your personality, skills and experience that has made account management such a great fit?
Steph> I’m very level-headed and diligent, which has given me a brilliant foundation for being prepared for a variety of client interactions - whether it be managing client feedback, or navigating a tough commercial negotiation. I’ve since had a real interest in human behaviour and interactions, always eager to see how situations can evolve and play out. No two relationships are ever the same, and it’s always a fresh and exciting prospect of seeing how your partnership can evolve when meeting a new client.
I’ve been fortunate enough to work agency and client side, which gives me a great perspective of both sides of the coin, especially through tough negotiations and evolving client-agency relationships. I’ve worked at large network agencies such as WPP for five years, and also experience the smaller independent agencies which has given me an invaluable pool of knowledge and experiences to draw upon as I meet new brands and clients.
LBB> What piece of advice would you give to someone just starting their career in account management?
Steph> Account management is as much about generating ideas, and having great judgement, as it is about having brilliant communication skills and integrity. With agencies doing so much more beyond traditional campaigns (data, e-commerce, social) my advice would be to get as much exposure as you can within the agency and the industry as possible. Experience as many different interactions, and conversations as possible to observe and appreciate how situations are handled. When there are opportunities to understand more about the latest AI developments or social trends, put your hand up to be involved. Not only does exposure give you the breadth of experience across the industry that are invaluable to your future development, but it also gets you to understand if you have a certain flair or interest in certain areas, and It’s never a bad thing to be known more widely across the organisation too!
LBB> Thinking back to some of your most challenging experiences you’ve had in your career, what do you think tends to lie at the heart of the more tense or difficult client-agency relationships?
Steph> Honestly, I think the chemistry between individuals within the client-agency relationship is sometimes undervalued and is key to long lasting engagements. I’ve seen too many times, that some of the most challenging experiences are rooted in incompatibility of individuals, differences in how each party wants to work, and in turn has a knock on effect on the trust between the two parties. When you don’t have that strong trusted partnership at the heart of a client-agency relationship, you begin to see and experience gaps of knowledge sharing, transparency and a lack of shared vision and responsibility to the overall business objectives.
Setting very clear expectations on how each party wants to work up front is paramount, casting the right team members, spending enough valuable time together to cement the relationship, and never underestimate the impact of a change in personnel.
LBB> And what are the keys to building a productive and healthy relationship?
Steph> For me, transparency is above all the number one skill and behaviour that’s behind building a long lasting and solid relationship. From my time working client side at Amazon, I truly appreciated the value of open and honest communication with my agency counterpart, and was surprised at how quickly I questioned the trust, when there was a sense something wasn’t being shared with us. I often remind myself of this time to hold myself accountable for how best to nurture those client relationships now I'm back on the agency side - I've drilled this into the team, and it's something we all hold ourselves accountable to.
LBB> These days, agencies do so much beyond traditional campaigns and as account management you’re pulling together creative, experience, data, e-commerce, social and more - and that complexity can often be mirrored on the client stakeholder side too? What’s the key to navigating (and helping the client navigate) that complexity?
Steph> It’s as important as ever to build solid relationships across the full client matrix, so you’re best placed to navigate complex client landscapes, and are well informed about who does what, when individuals should be involved in key meetings or conversations. Building these relationships across the divisions, from junior to senior stakeholders means you’re also top of mind for clients to entrust you with news on changes or developments on their side.
I’d also say, be knowledgeable enough about the core disciplines, but don’t shy away from deferring to the experts! Be clear up front on where the experts sit within your agency and how to tap into them.
LBB> What recent projects are you proudest of and why? What was so satisfying about working on these projects?
Steph> Our recent ‘Don’t Stop. Sprint’ campaign for Screwfix which was an integrated campaign aimed to make them famous for their 60 minute delivery service has brought me a lot of joy - it’s the first large scale campaign we’ve launched since i joined Five by Five and it's been super insightful in many ways: getting to know the client team, seeing the brilliant creative expertise of the agency, and really getting under the skin of the Screwfix brand. Looking forward to the next!
Above: Screwfix 'Don't Stop. Sprint.'
