While marketers are increasingly looking to engage consumers, agencies often fall short of being able to provide the skills necessary to accomplish this, according to a new report from Forrester Research called The Connected Agency. Some of the trends noted by report include: the talent and processes in creative and media agencies are still focused on delivering work with large audiences and large budgets; as new media grows, requiring agility and speed, agencies aren’t always up to the challenge; digital agencies have started to compete and win traditional work, however the wins stand out as the exception to the rule; new specialist agencies are emerging with a focus on word-of-mouth marketing, and marketers are increasingly looking to new advisors, such as consultancies like McKinsey & Company and Accenture or technology vendors like Unica and Interwove, to fill skills gaps at traditional agencies.
According to the report , approximately 55% of marketers think their agency is well-equipped to help with Internet advertising while 95% of agency executives believe they have a handle on these skills.
For more on how marketers and agencies are navigating these waters, check out this article.
