“Walk a mile in their boots”: The Client Side

“Walk a mile in their boots”: It’s rather challenging on the client side right now. In my role at Opinium, Chair of the MRS, and interviewing them for Significant Insights, I talk to client-side insight teams all the time, and what I’m hearing right now is that, as well as it being a generally difficult time economically, they are wrestling with quite a few other challenges that are more specific to the role.

FYI fellow agencies.

Clients say – direct quotes:

– “We need new skills but there’s no time or support to develop them. The job has changed so much in recent years – arguably more so than on the agency side.” Insight leaders now need to be strategic advisors and communications experts, to manage data and make meaning from multiple sources and to navigate internal politics whilst optimising tech stacks and evaluating new tools. It’s exhausting – and there’s typically no training for much of this because until comparatively recently the role was focused on managing budgets and working with agencies to conduct projects. “And there’s also no time to inspire junior team members and help them grow and develop these new skills either, so the challenge compounds.”

– “We’re fighting for budget and having to defend the team to the rest of the organisation. Despite everything we do, the wider organisation doesn’t always see our value.” “They see us as gatekeepers, standing in the way of creativity and innovation” [actual quote!]. Either “we are overly rigorous and concerned with method or we are insufficiently scientific and predictive, with no proven ROI. Some even think we are both.” Our budgets are modest when compared to those for marketing and comms, but we’re still not seen as value for money, and we’re always having to do more with less. And now the business thinks that we can do everything for free with AI.

– It can feel lonely in insights – especially if you don’t have a big team. “Always having to justify our existence and defend our research when it conflicts with the gut instinct of the CMO can be isolating. We’re trying to build relationships across the company, but we’ve traditionally been siloed so it can be a slog.”

Sometimes I’m having these conversations in my role as Chair of the MRS; there is a lot that we and other industry bodies such as MRS, AURA and ESOMAR can do to help, such as providing resources and training, as well as just offering the support that comes with being part of a network of other professional researchers. But sometimes I’m having these conversations as CEO of Opinium, and I’m sure that there is a lot more that agencies like ours can do to help our clients too.

I’d love to start a debate about all of this.

If you are on the client side – does this resonate with you?

What else is causing you stress at the moment?

And what can agency partners do to support you?

jamesendersby@opinium.com