Be My Valentine?

Be my valentine agency

As Avvio Reply’s resident serial dater, I am always providing everyone at work with my entertaining (and often disappointing) stories of the ups and downs of being a single-late-twenty-something dating in and around the Oxfordshire area.

Successful? Not always. Entertaining? Nearly always. Educational? Every time.

There is always something to be learned from a bad date. And I recently started wondering if actually there are some similarities between what we look for in a romantic partner, and what our clients look for in a creative agency to partner with.  

So, what should we all be looking for?

A good listener

Sadly, I’ve been on many dates where you feel the person sat opposite you is churning out the same old chat they do on all dates. They’re not listening, and it’s not personal. Then, every now and again you’ll come across someone who…might actually…be listening to what you’re saying? Taking the time to think about what you’ve just said, and coming back with a response that feels thought through and meaningful. Sometimes they even ask additional questions! 

If you can have an open two-way conversation, where you’re asking the right questions and are really listening to each other, that’s when you reach new territory. It shouldn’t come as a surprise that good outcomes come from insightful conversations. 

A creative sense of humour

Some of the best dates I’ve been on are the ones where I’ve laughed. A lot. Sometimes a little louder than I intended to. A good sense of humour is so powerful, and so are new ideas. Hearing an opinion or a way of looking at something that makes you question your own opinions can be really inspiring. (Not to mention very attractive.)

Here at Avvio, we are way more than your average Joe.

Personally, I’m not so creative. As an account handler, if your life needs some Monica Geller-ing, I’m your girl! But take it from me, the creatives at Avvio are bursting with new ideas. I’m always bowled over by them, so I’m always confident our clients will be too.

A partnership

My mum has always told me that a relationship should add to your life. And that should be the same with an agency. Collaboration is key, we should be adding value, we should be an extension of your team, helping you come up with ideas and ways of approaching things that you may not have thought of before. We should be taking away the pain points of a project and making your life easier.

We don’t believe in a traditional client/agency relationship. We prefer working as a partnership. Hopefully, a long-term one.

Mutual respect

Dating is hard. It always has been, but in the age of digital dating, and in a world where ghosting is so commonplace that it has been awarded its very own place in the Oxford English Dictionary, it’s all too easy to forget how we should be communicating, and harder than ever to know where you stand.

Personally, however awkward, I always think it’s better to have those honest conversations.

As clients and agencies, we’re all on the same side, and we both care about getting it right. When there is respect, and a two-sided, healthy working relationship, we can get to the right solution quickly and effectively. And hopefully achieve results that will outlast just a great first date/project.

Chemistry

Oh, and one last, crucial thing. That age-old search for that unexplainable and inexplicable ‘click’.

We really think we could be a good match, but we’ll never truly know until we meet up face-to-face. So, fancy meeting up for a coffee sometime?