Quick Pulse: Why We're Talking Today

• What's the immediate trigger for exploring agency consolidation right now? Options: CMO or marketing leadership change, Board/finance cost mandate, Brand consistency crisis, Underperformance across campaigns, Proactive simplification effort, Other
• How soon do you need a partner in place to begin meaningful work? Options: Immediately (0–30 days), Short (1–3 months), Moderate (3–6 months), Long (6+ months), Unsure
• Who inside your organization will be the day-to-day sponsor for this relationship? Name role(s) and a single sentence on what success would make them proud.
• Have you attempted consolidation or a major agency change before? If yes, what happened? Options: Yes — attempted but stalled, Yes — attempted and partially completed, No — first time, Other
• What's one thing that would make you decide not to pursue consolidation even if the proposal looked good on paper?

If This Fails, What Exactly Breaks?

• What is the single business consequence you most fear if the agency roster stays fragmented? Options: Eroding brand equity, Wasted media spend, Missed revenue targets, Operational chaos/inefficiency, Board/exec scrutiny, Other
• Which brand or performance metrics have recently shown stress (please give specific metrics and trends)?
• Tell us a concrete example in the last 12 months where multiple agencies produced inconsistent work that damaged a campaign or brand moment.
• How often do these coordination failures affect executive confidence in marketing? Options: Every board/quarterly review, Multiple times a year, Occasionally, Rarely, Never sure
• If a consolidation effort underdelivered, who in your organization would feel the repercussions most intensely and why?

Where the Current Roster Actually Breaks Down

• Which single weakness of the current agency mix undermines you most: creative inconsistency, media fragmentation, digital execution, or production delays? Options: Creative inconsistency, Media fragmentation, Digital/tech capability gaps, Production and delivery delays, Measurement/attribution confusion, Other
• Select all channels or capabilities where you believe current partners are underperforming. Options: TV/Streaming, Paid Social, Performance/Programmatic, Search, CRM/Email, Content production, Retail/Activation, Measurement/Analytics, Commerce integrations
• How often do senior creatives or strategists rotate off your account, and what's the felt impact? Options: Very frequently (quarterly), Regularly (biannually), Occasionally (yearly), Rarely, Not tracked
• Give an example of a handoff failure between creative and media that cost time, budget, or effectiveness.
• Which quality-control gates are missing today (e.g., senior creative sign-off, integrated media testing, production QA)? Options: Senior creative sign-off, Integrated creative/media testing, Production QA checklist, Measurement validation, Campaign pre-flight review, All are missing, Other

Call Out the Failure Modes You’d Bet On

• If you had to pick one way an AOR will most likely disappoint you, what would it be? Options: Staffing down after the pitch, Exceptional in one channel but weak in others, Fee model incentivizes underinvestment, Creative and media remain siloed, Poor governance and slow decision-making, Other
• Which of those failure modes have you already seen in past agency relationships? Tell the story and impact.
• What controls or contract terms would you need to feel protected against that failure mode?
• How tolerant is your leadership of a slow start versus poor quality? (i.e., time vs. output trade-off) Options: Prefer fast start even if imperfect, Prefer slower start with higher quality, Need both speed and quality, Undecided
• Are there procurement or legal constraints that make certain mitigations (e.g., staffing SLAs, liquidated damages, holdbacks) impossible? Options: Yes — significant constraints, Some constraints but workable, No — flexible, Unsure

If This Partnership Makes You Look Brilliant, What Will Be Different?

• Imagine it's 12 months after onboarding and leadership is thrilled — what exactly are they pointing to? Options: Clear uplift in brand metrics, Lower marketing overhead, Seamless cross-channel campaigns, Higher creative resonance, Better attribution and decisioning, Other
• Which 3 KPIs should we prioritize to prove value quickly? (e.g., brand awareness lift %, cost per acquisition, NPS, conversion rate)
• Please provide current baseline values for your top 3 KPIs and the improvement targets you would consider a success in 6 and 12 months.
• Beyond numbers, what qualitative shifts would signal a win (e.g., calmer internal stakeholders, fewer emergency briefs, clearer brand voice)? Options: Calmer stakeholder meetings, Fewer cross-agency disputes, Faster campaign approvals, Consistent brand voice across channels, Stronger creative recognition, Other
• Which audience or segment must show improvement first for the program to be judged a success? Options: Core audience, New customer acquisition, High-value customers, Digital-first cohorts, Retail/partner channels, Other

How This Will Change Your Team—The Human Side

• If consolidation works, what will your marketing team stop worrying about day-to-day? Options: Agency coordination, Inconsistent creative, Media attribution arguments, Production bottlenecks, Vendor billing disputes, Other
• Which internal roles will gain responsibilities and which will be reduced (list roles and the expected direction of change)?
• How politically sensitive is this change inside the organization (is it low friction, a mid-level change, or a leadership-level battlefield)? Options: Low friction, Moderate sensitivity, High sensitivity — leadership-level, Undetermined
• What would make your internal partners (sales, product, legal, procurement) actively champion the AOR instead of passively approving it?
• Tell us about one person or function you worry will resist this change and why — what's their main concern?

Practical Constraints: Contracts, Budgets, and Timing

• What single procurement or contracting rule will most determine whether a proposal can be accepted? Options: Budget approval timing, Procurement-approved vendor list, Required indemnities/insurance, Payment terms (Net 30/60/90), Fixed-fee restrictions
• When does your next formal budget window or planning cycle occur? Options: Within 30 days, 1–3 months, 3–6 months, 6+ months, Rolling budget/continuous
• Do incumbent agreements have notice or termination windows we must respect? If so, summarize them. Options: Yes — fixed notice period, Yes — phased transition required, No — flexible, Unsure
• Are there finance or procurement constraints that make certain commercial models (retainer, fixed-fee, performance-based) more or less acceptable? Options: Prefer retainer, Prefer fixed-fee, Prefer performance-based, Open to hybrid, Unsure
• List any mandatory legal or security requirements (e.g., data residency, SOC2, brand usage limitations) we should build into an SOW.

Pilot vs. Big-Bang: How Do You Want to De-risk?

• Which approach best fits your tolerance for risk: a narrowly scoped pilot campaign, a phased channel rollout, or a full-scope launch? Options: Narrow pilot, Phased rollout, Full-scope launch, Hybrid (pilot + parallel integration)
• If a pilot, which objective should it prove first: creative resonance, media efficiency, tech integration, or governance cadence? Options: Creative resonance, Media efficiency, Tech/data integration, Governance and cadence
• What success criteria would you set for a pilot (please be specific: metric thresholds, timelines, and qualitative signs)?
• How many channels and which internal teams must be included in any pilot for it to be meaningful? Options: 1 channel + core team, 2–3 channels + cross-functional team, Full cross-channel + extended teams
• What is your preferred minimum pilot duration to evaluate meaningful results? Options: 1 campaign cycle (4–8 weeks), 1 quarter, 2 quarters, Longer than 6 months, Unsure

Politics, Emotions, and the Hard Yes

• What's the internal phrase you dread hearing in month one after onboarding (e.g., 'they're unfamiliar', 'creative feels junior', 'we're losing control')?
• Who are the three people or committees who must be convinced for this to move forward, and what does each need to see?
• What are absolute deal-breakers that would stop you from selecting an AOR no matter the creative or price? Options: No senior-team commitment, Inflexible contract terms, Lack of measurement transparency, Poor cultural fit, Fails security/compliance
• On a scale from 1–10, how ready are you to move from discovery to a formal review process? (1 = not ready, 10 = launch the RFP tomorrow) Options: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10
• What's the best next step you'd like from us after this discovery (e.g., stakeholder alignment workshop, pilot proposal, commercial model options)? Options: Stakeholder alignment workshop, Pilot proposal, Commercial model options, Case studies and references, Draft SOW outline, Other

Quick Snapshot: Who's On Your Team Today

• Roughly how many external agencies do you currently manage? Options: 1, 2–3, 4–6, 7–10, More than 10
• Which agencies make up your current roster? Please list agency name and primary remit (creative, media, digital, CRM, production, PR, etc.).
• How long have these agency relationships typically lasted? Options: Less than 6 months, 6–12 months, 1–2 years, 3–5 years, 5+ years
• Which model best describes how budget is split across your roster right now? Options: One agency >50% of budget, Two agencies share majority, Evenly distributed across many, Varies substantially year to year, Don't know / varies by program
• Who inside your organization owns day-to-day coordination of agency work and governance? Options: Brand/Head of Marketing, Marketing Operations, Brand Director/VP, Procurement, External consultant, Cross-functional committee
• Which agency contracts are up for renewal or formal review in the next 12 months? Please list agency and expiry month.

Are You Comfortable Leaving Brand Health to Chance?

• When every agency operates as its own island, how do you expect customers to experience a single, coherent brand?
• Which customer touchpoints most frequently show inconsistent voice, visual identity, or quality? Options: TV/Video, Display/social ads, Owned social channels, CRM/email, Retail/point-of-sale, PR/earned media, In-store activations, Other
• Can you describe a recent moment when conflicting agency outputs confused customers or diluted campaign impact?
• How have those inconsistencies shown up in your metrics (brand awareness, conversion, CAC, retention)? Please provide specific examples or numbers if available.
• When these issues surface, how does the leadership team talk about them—annoyance, concern, or urgent risk to the brand? Options: Not a concern, Mildly concerned, Concerned and seeking change, Urgent problem requiring action

Where Do Contracts Hide the Problems?

• What in your current contracts is quietly preventing better, more integrated work from happening?
• Which fee and engagement models are in place across your agencies today? Options: Retainer / fixed fee, Project-based, Media commission, Performance-based, Hybrid models, Unsure
• How flexible are termination or scope-change clauses when you need to consolidate or reassign responsibilities? Options: Very flexible, Somewhat flexible, Rigid and restrictive, Unsure
• Do any agreements create vendor lock-in, exclusivity, or other conflicts that complicate consolidation? Options: Yes — exclusivity clauses, Yes — preferred vendor or bundle clauses, Yes — IP or rights issues, No, Unsure
• Have billing disputes, hidden fees, or scope creep historically eroded trust with any agency? Please give one concrete example and the impact.

What Keeps Senior Talent from Staying?

• If senior talent rotates off accounts after the pitch, who is left to protect your brand and strategic intent?
• How often have senior agency leads or creative directors changed on your accounts in the last 12–24 months? Options: Multiple times per year, About once a year, Every 1–2 years, Rarely, Never
• What are the primary reasons senior staff move off your account? Select all that apply. Options: Pulled to new business, Promoted internally, Burnout/overwork, Compensation or incentives, Agency strategy shift, Performance-related changes, Other
• Has creative quality or campaign performance dipped after senior talent left? Tell us about one campaign where that happened and what changed.
• How important is a contractual seniority guarantee (senior bench or named leads) in any future AOR arrangement? Options: Non-negotiable, Very important, Somewhat important, Nice to have, Not important

Which Integration Points Regularly Fail?

• Which day-to-day handoffs between agencies silently fail and regularly cost you time, money, or brand equity?
• Select the handoff points that most often break down for you. Options: Strategy → Creative, Creative → Production, Creative → Media, Media → Measurement/Analytics, Digital → CRM/Experience, Agency → Internal teams, Other
• How regular and effective is joint planning for integrated campaigns (e.g., shared briefs, joint sprints, creative/media playbooks)? Options: Weekly integrated planning, Monthly, Quarterly, Ad hoc as needed, Never
• Where do data and access gaps block integrated measurement (shared dashboards, audience data, tag governance, creative asset libraries)? Describe the biggest gap.
• Who currently owns measurement and attribution and how often do you receive integrated performance reports? Options: Agency owned, Internal analytics/BI, Third-party measurement vendor, Shared responsibility, Unclear

What Would Consolidation Need to Prove—Right Away?

• If we proposed one accountable AOR, what must it prove in the first 90 days to earn your trust?
• Which immediate success signals would convince you consolidation is working? Options: Senior team fully in place and committed, First integrated campaign executed on brief and schedule, Unified measurement/dashboard live, No drop in KPI performance, Clear governance cadence established, Cost-neutral or demonstrable savings, Improved creative quality metrics
• How quickly would you expect to see measurable performance improvements after consolidation? Options: Within the first campaign (1–3 months), By quarter 1 (3–6 months), By 6–12 months, Longer than 12 months, Unsure
• What would be an early 'deal-breaker' outcome that would make you reconsider consolidation?
• Which stakeholders must be visibly reassured in early weeks (e.g., procurement, finance, CEO, business units) for consolidation to proceed? Options: CMO / Head of Marketing, Procurement, Finance / CFO, Brand/Creative Leads, Business Unit Heads, Legal, CEO / Board, Other

If We Built a Single Accountable Partner, What Would It Change?

• Imagine the agency that actually solved this—what would your Monday morning look like six months after consolidation?
• List the top three outcomes you would expect from successful consolidation across brand, operations, financials, or people.
• Which internal obstacles are most likely to sabotage consolidation even if the agency delivers—select all that apply. Options: Stakeholder fragmentation / bypassing the AOR, Procurement contract constraints, Existing vendor commitments, IT / data access delays, Budget timing and fiscal cycles, Cultural resistance to change, Other
• What realistic timeline does procurement and legal need for a smooth transfer of work, assets, and rights? Options: Immediate (2–4 weeks), Short (1–2 months), Typical (3–4 months), Long (4–6+ months), Unsure
• Would you consider a staged pilot (one brand, one channel) to de-risk consolidation? If yes, what scope feels right? Options: Yes — single brand/campaign pilot, Yes — single channel pilot, No — prefer full consolidation, Maybe — depends on terms
• What contractual or operational safeguards would make you confident to move forward (examples: SLAs, named senior guarantees, acceptance criteria, staged payments)? Please specify the top 2–3 must-haves.

Start Here: What's the Most Pressing Thing Right Now?

• What's the single most important marketing challenge you want solved in the next 6–12 months?
• Which brand or business unit should a consolidated AOR relationship truly own? Options: Corporate / master brand, Single product line, Regional market, All consumer brands, Enterprise / B2B business, Other
• What is your timeline for deciding on an AOR or agency consolidation? Options: Within 4 weeks, 1–3 months, 3–6 months, 6–12 months, No defined timeline / exploratory
• Which event most triggered this push to consolidate (select all that apply)? Options: New CMO / leadership change, Board or CFO cost mandate, Brand inconsistency crisis, Poor campaign performance, Operational complexity / too many vendors, Other
• If consolidation fails, what's the single worst outcome the business must avoid?

Are You Comfortable Letting Fragmented Agencies Keep Calling the Shots?

• What part of your current agency ecosystem do you suspect is driving inconsistent brand work?
• How many discrete agencies or specialist vendors support your marketing today (creative, media, digital, CRM, production)? Options: 1–2, 3–4, 5–7, 8–12, 13+
• Which functions most frequently produce conflicting outputs or guidance? Options: Creative, Media buying / planning, Digital / UX, CRM / Email, Production / Vendors, Measurement / Analytics, PR / Earned media
• Tell us about a recent situation where fragmented ownership created a visible problem—what happened and what was the impact?
• When those coordination failures occur, who on your side usually steps in to arbitrate or make the call? Options: CMO / Head of Marketing, Marketing Ops / Director, Procurement, External consultant, No clear owner
• How long have you been tolerating the fragmentation or coordination gaps we've just discussed? Options: Less than 6 months, 6–12 months, 1–2 years, 2+ years, We've always accepted it

Where the Money and Time Vanish

• How much of your budget do you suspect is being lost to coordination, rework, duplication, or missed opportunities?
• Which hidden costs have you measured or seen repeatedly (select all that apply)? Options: Creative rework and rewrite, Media overlap / inefficiency, Duplicate production expenses, Procurement / legal overhead, Delayed launches / missed windows, Lost opportunity from inconsistent messaging, Other
• What is the approximate annual marketing budget (for the scope under consideration)? Options: < $5M, $5–20M, $20–50M, $50–150M, >$150M
• How often do campaigns miss launch windows or peak moments because of inter-agency coordination problems? Options: Almost always, Often, Sometimes, Rarely
• Which measurement or attribution gaps make it hard for you to see the value of integrated work?

When Good Work Disappears: Talent and Trust

• If your senior agency lead left this account tomorrow, how confident would you be that performance and quality wouldn't decline? Options: Completely confident, Somewhat confident, Not confident, It would materially suffer
• Have you experienced agencies downgrading staffing after the pitch (senior people replaced with juniors)? Options: Yes — frequently, Occasionally, Rarely, Never, Not sure
• Which senior roles do you insist remain dedicated to the account to feel secure? Options: Executive Creative Director, Lead Strategist / Planner, Media Director / Head of Buying, Account Director / Lead, Data & Measurement Lead, Production / Ops Director
• Do your existing contracts include named personnel or minimum seniority protections? If yes, what form do they take? Options: Yes — named personnel, Yes — minimum seniority clauses, No formal protections, We're negotiating protections now
• Describe a time when a staffing change altered outcomes—what happened, how long did you notice the impact, and what did you change as a result?

What Would Real Success Actually Feel Like?

• Imagine week 12 after onboarding—what unmistakable evidence would tell you the AOR switch is working?
• Which primary outcomes will prove early success for you (select up to three)? Options: Brand awareness / consideration lift, Sales / revenue growth, Lower CPA / CAC, Improved customer retention / LTV, Retail activation / distribution gains, Stronger creative consistency / brand health
• What minimum improvement or absolute target would you consider a successful first integrated campaign? Options: No specific numeric target, Small improvement (1–5%), Meaningful improvement (6–15%), Significant improvement (16–30%), Transformational (>30%)
• How will you weigh creative quality against commercial performance when judging early results? Options: Creative first, then performance, Performance first, creative secondary, Equal weighting, Depends on campaign objective
• What reporting cadence and format would keep you informed without feeling micromanaged? Options: Weekly executive summary, Bi-weekly performance deep-dive, Monthly scorecard + weekly highlights, Quarterly strategic reviews

Can Your Systems Be Stitched Together Without Breaking?

• If we requested full access to media, CRM, analytics, and production systems today, what would be the single biggest technical or legal obstacle?
• Which platforms and systems must be connected during onboarding (select all that apply)? Options: Analytics (GA / Adobe), CRM / CDP (Salesforce / Segment / HubSpot), DSPs / Ad Servers, Social walled gardens (Meta, Google, X), SSO / Identity providers, Production asset management / DAM, Other
• Are there data privacy, vendor contract, or regulatory restrictions we must account for (e.g., no-sharing clauses, GDPR complexities)? Options: Yes — privacy/regulatory constraints, Yes — vendor contractual restrictions, Yes — internal policy limits, No significant restrictions, Unsure
• Who on your team will own provisioning access, contract transitions, and security approvals during onboarding? Options: IT / Security, Marketing Ops, Procurement, Legal, Cross-functional committee
• Historically, how long does it take your organization to enable SSO / API access across the core stack? Options: <1 week, 1–2 weeks, 2–4 weeks, 1–2 months, >2 months

What's the Deal-Breaker in a Commercial Model?

• Which fee or contracting approach instantly destroys your trust in a partner? Options: Fixed fee with opaque scope, Low fee with junior staffing, Media commission-only models, Complex bonuses tied to vanity metrics, Aggressive change-order billing
• Which commercial models would you consider for an AOR relationship (select any that are acceptable)? Options: Transparent retainer (hourly / capacity), Fixed-fee with clearly defined scope, Retainer + performance incentives, Commission/percentage media model, Outcome-based / revenue-share
• What transparency (reports, raw media invoices, time logs, seniority rosters) would you require to feel comfortable with a retainer?
• Would you be open to incentive-based compensation tied to agreed KPIs, and if so, what level of upside/downside feels reasonable? Options: Yes — material incentives, Yes — modest incentives, Maybe — depends on KPIs, No — prefer fixed only
• What internal procurement, legal, or finance approvals will any commercial model need to clear before you can sign? Options: Legal review, Finance sign-off, Procurement RFP, Executive / Board approval, Other

Who Would Push Back — and How Do We Bring Them Along?

• Who in your organization is most likely to resist consolidating agencies, and what is their core argument?
• Which internal stakeholders must sign off on the final AOR decision (select all that apply)? Options: CMO / Head of Marketing, CEO / Board, Procurement, Finance, Brand / Product leads, Regional marketing leads, Legal
• What three criteria will those stakeholders use to choose between finalist agencies? Options: Creative excellence, Media scale & buying power, Digital & data depth, Cost savings / efficiency, Governance & SLAs, Leadership fit / chemistry
• How do you prefer objections be handled during vendor reviews—data-first, proofs/case studies, client references, or collaborative workshops? Options: Data & attribution proof, Creative case studies, Client references / live calls, Hands-on workshops, Combination
• What's the single deliverable or piece of evidence we could prepare now that would materially increase the chances of smooth stakeholder sign-off?

Getting Oriented — a quick snapshot

• Who should we say we're talking to on your team (name, role, and primary responsibility for marketing decisions)?
• Which best describes your organization today? Options: Mid-size consumer brand, Large consumer brand, Technology brand, Financial services brand, Other
• How many external agencies are currently delivering work for your brand? Options: 1–2, 3–4, 5–6, 7 or more, Unsure
• What's the primary reason you’re exploring consolidation right now? Options: New CMO/directive, Brand inconsistency, Cost reduction, Operational friction, Performance issues, Other
• If you had to summarize your ideal outcome from consolidation in one short sentence, what would you say?
• How urgent is this decision on a scale of 1–5 (1 = exploratory, 5 = must decide now)? Options: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Who Really Holds the Reins?

• What would actually change about this project if the person who matters most to the final sign-off weren’t fully aligned?
• Who are the essential decision-makers and economic approvers we must convince (titles only)?
• How do procurement and legal typically influence agency selection and contracting here? Options: Hands-off, Guideline-driven, Highly prescriptive, Deal-breaker on terms, Unsure
• How long does your internal procurement cycle usually take from shortlisting to signature? Options: 2–4 weeks, 4–8 weeks, 2–3 months, 3+ months, Varies widely
• Are there stakeholders who must be consulted even if they won’t attend vendor reviews? Who are they and what concerns do they typically raise?

Are You Quietly Tolerating Chaos?

• What one consistent problem in your current marketing execution would you say you’ve learned to ‘live with’?
• How often does inconsistent creative execution cause measurable harm (brand confusion, missed deadlines, wasted media spend)? Options: Every campaign, Often, Occasionally, Rarely, Never
• Tell us about a recent example where agency fragmentation led to a visible brand or performance failure—what happened and what was the impact?
• When those failures happen, who in your organization feels the pain most acutely (role/team)? Options: CMO/Head of Marketing, Brand/Creative Lead, Media/Performance Team, Sales/Commercial, Procurement, Other
• How long have these fragmentation issues been occurring? Options: Less than 6 months, 6–12 months, 1–2 years, 2+ years, Varied

If You Audited the Roster Tomorrow, What Would Embarrass You?

• Which of these best describes your current contractual landscape with agencies? Options: Fixed-fee AORs, Project-based statements of work, Retainers plus add-ons, Hybrid / mixed, Unsure
• What hidden costs or duplicate fees do you suspect live across your agency roster (production markups, overlapping retainer work, media inefficiencies)?
• Do you have consolidated visibility into all agency contracts, renewal dates, and termination clauses? Options: Yes—centralized, Partially—some gaps, No—fragmented, Unsure
• If you had to name the single biggest performance gap across agencies (creative, media, digital, measurement, production), what would it be? Options: Creative quality, Media targeting/buying, Digital product experience, Measurement/attribution, Production speed/cost, Other
• How much internal effort does your team spend coordinating agencies each week (estimate hours across team)? Options: <10 hours, 10–25 hours, 25–50 hours, 50–100 hours, 100+ hours

Where Do You Fear the AOR Will Fall Short?

• If an AOR is brilliant in one channel but weak in another, which weakness would be most damaging to your brand? Options: Poor digital/social execution, Weak media integration, Junior creative teams, Slow production, Weak CRM/retention work, Other
• How worried are you that an AOR will staff senior talent during the pitch and then replace them after contract signing? Options: Very worried, Somewhat worried, Neutral, Not worried
• What guardrails would make you comfortable that senior talent stays on your account (specific contractual or governance measures)?
• Have you experienced an agency under-investing because of a fixed-fee model? What did that look like in practice?
• Which commercial model do you believe best protects performance and investment: fixed fee, hybrid (base fee + performance), or fully performance-based? Options: Fixed fee, Hybrid (base + performance), Performance-based, Undecided / depends on details

What Does Winning Look Like — Not In Theory, But in Numbers?

• If you had to pick one primary KPI that proves consolidation worked at year-end, what is it? Options: Brand awareness (reach/recall), Sales / revenue lift, ROAS / ROI, Customer acquisition cost (CAC), Retention/LTV, Other
• What is your current baseline for that KPI and what realistic improvement would you accept as success within 12 months?
• Which of these secondary metrics are critical to your evaluation (select all that apply)? Options: Creative lift metrics, Media efficiency, Channel attribution clarity, Speed to market, Production cost per asset, Governance compliance
• How will you validate creative quality independently from short-term performance (brand testing, focus groups, creative QA)? Options: Pre-launch testing, Third-party brand studies, Internal brand panel, Post-campaign creative audits, No formal process
• What acceptance criteria would make you sign off on the first integrated campaign?

How Will Day One Look at Your Team’s Kitchen Table?

• What onboarding failure would make you regret switching to an AOR?
• Which of these handoff items are already consolidated and ready to share with a new partner? Options: Brand guidelines, Audience data segments, Creative asset library, Performance dashboards, Vendor contracts, None of the above
• How much access can a new agency expect to your data and systems in the first 30 days (analytics, CRM, ad accounts)? Options: Full access immediately, Staged access within 30 days, Limited access, requires approvals, Access not currently available
• How long would your team need to support incumbent transitions and knowledge transfer? Options: 2 weeks, 4 weeks, 6–8 weeks, More than 8 weeks, Unsure
• Are there regulatory, security, or vendor restrictions that would complicate data sharing or media management during onboarding? Options: Yes—significant, Yes—manageable, No, Unsure

What Could Break This Partnership in 12 Months?

• If you were writing a regret note a year from now, what single issue would you expect it to cite as the cause of failure?
• How do you prefer performance problems to be surfaced—real-time alerts, weekly deep dives, or monthly steering committee reviews? Options: Real-time alerts + weekly checks, Weekly meetings, Monthly steering reviews, Quarterly only
• What escalation path within your organization should an agency use when a campaign underperforms?
• Have you had failures where internal stakeholders bypassed the lead agency? How often does that happen and what’s the typical consequence?
• What contractual or governance mechanisms do you believe reduce the chance of breakdown (SLAs, staff retention clauses, performance penalties)?

Decision Triggers and Commercial Redlines

• What’s the single contract term you would rather walk away than compromise on? Options: Senior staffing guarantees, Performance-based payments, IP ownership, Termination notice/terms, Data access controls, Other
• Which commercial model would make procurement most comfortable for this engagement? Options: Fixed fee with detailed scope, Base fee + variable performance, Time & materials, Project-based SOWs under umbrella contract, Other
• How do you define acceptable cost transparency from an agency (line-item budgets, production pass-throughs, media margins)? Options: Full line-item transparency, High-level categories, Standard industry disclosures, No preference
• Are you willing to include contractual KPIs and financial holdbacks tied to performance? Options: Yes—preferred, Open to discussion, Prefer non-financial governance, No
• What internal approval thresholds (budget or contract value) will this deal hit that we should be aware of?

First 90 Days: A Realistic Roadmap

• If you could guarantee one concrete outcome by day 90 that would make the board/cmo comfortable, what would it be?
• Which of these must happen inside the first 30 days? Options: Data & account access granted, Core team embedded, Brand platform agreed, First campaign plan drafted, Governance cadence scheduled
• Who needs to be present for a 30-day handoff check-in from your side (roles only)?
• How do you define a successful first integrated campaign (timeline, KPI improvements, creative approvals)?
• What frequent reporting format would help you feel confident in early progress (dashboard, executive one-pager, deep-dive deck)? Options: Live dashboard, Weekly one-pager, Monthly deep-dive, Ad-hoc as issues arise

Your Hidden Stakeholder Emotions

• Who internally benefits from the current multi-agency setup and might resist consolidation—even silently?
• What are the common emotional reactions you’ve seen when bringing up consolidation (fear, relief, skepticism, excitement)? Options: Fear of change, Relief/optimism, Skepticism, Indifference, Excitement
• Have any stakeholders voiced a past negative experience with an AOR model? What was the core complaint?
• How would you like an agency to address internal politics or mistrust proactively? Options: Dedicated change plan, Transparent staffing commitments, Regular cross-stakeholder forums, Third-party audits, Other
• If someone on your team privately told you they hope consolidation fails, what would you ask them first to understand their real concern?

Are You Ready to Build Trust?

• If trust had to be rebuilt from scratch, what is the first concrete action you would expect from an AOR in month one? Options: Immediate senior leadership time, Full transparency of plans and costs, Pilot creative deliverable, Data sharing and open dashboards, Other
• How frequently do you want executive-level check-ins after the contract starts? Options: Weekly during first 90 days, Bi-weekly for 3 months, Monthly, Quarterly
• Which governance body would you prefer to see established (select all that apply)? Options: Steering Committee (execs), Operational Hub (weekly), Creative Review Board, Media & Measurement Council, Escalation path document
• What reporting cadence and format would make you feel informed but not overwhelmed? Options: Weekly highlights + monthly deep-dive, Bi-weekly status only, Monthly KPI + quarterly strategy, Quarterly only