Small agencies rescue the country

Can small agencies help us out of the recession? Alex Bogusky thinks so, based on their capacity to behave entrepreneurially in a way big shops can’t. Here’s a quote from his AdAge article:

The reality is they (small shops) can do things for their clients the big monster shops can’t. With fewer people and less overhead, they offer the nimble and fast approach to problems a lot of nascent brands need.

I’m not sure small agencies can make a meaningful impact on economic recovery. But I do believe they are the key to strengthening the ad industry. The ability to develop great ideas and act quickly on them is the critical advantage in our business, and it’s only going to grow in importance.

As someone with a happy history in a couple big agencies, I can tell you that “nimble” is not in the employee handbook. In many ways, we’d have been at a disadvantage going up against a small agency in a pitch. Thanks god clients weren’t smart enough to invite any.

Anyone with a stake in the Rochester ad business ought to feel great about this. Because you put nimble to work every day.

Matt Jones