Reports & Guides

How marketing procurement can bridge the gap with marketing

RightSpend frames marketing procurement as an enabler. Whilst marketing often see procurement as synonymous with limits and budget wrestling, the paper, which can be downloaded here, outlines how the two departments “do not need to be diametrically opposed”, but can work seamlessly together. 

The key to navigating these two different planes and languages is to find a tool that can work between the “numbers” of procurement and the creativity of marketing. This comes from appreciating the nuances of both marketing and marketing procurement. 

As discussed in the paper, data is the hard fact, the statistic, the measurable end point that proves the point. It takes away any emotional investment into a decision by using measurable insights to unpack an agency’s capabilities within clearly defined boundaries.

Part of this is also asking the right questions to ensure brands can create an informed and accurate overview of their costs versus deliverables.

• What would be the best balance for brand building with our company – project or retainer?
• What is the agency’s profit margin?
• How do the agency’s fees fit within your business requirement? 
• What’s included in agency overheads? 
• Who is working on my project? 

Aside from asking the right questions, RightSpend offers more general guidance.

RightSpend’s key tips for marketing and marketing procurement: 

This means making sure the goals of marketing and marketing procurement are integrated. As well as this, procurement needs to frame themselves as the enabler of brand credibility and strategy.

Despite the fact that procurement is primarily the numerical, and marketing is the creative side, RightSpend urges that they should focus on commonalities rather than differences. This is where data can come in handy to open up vistas of information that both teams can use to determine their full scope of work. As well this, it can help marketing understand details of their campaigns and set deliverables, meeting shared budgets and campaign expectations.

Marketing can bring its expertise and understanding of the market, and providing transparency and access to information can change how procurement perceives their role and goals. By prioritising transparency and common goals, the marketing team can provide procurement with the tools they need to inform decision making and clarity. Ultimately, this clarity changes everything in terms of spend, insight and speed to market.

Procurement is equally a part of the dance, bringing the “technology two-step to the floor”. Here, investment into tools and technologies designed to optimise the procurement process can make significant inroads into alleviating pain points and giving marketing greater scope to innovate and create. 

About RightSpend 

RightSpend comes in to take the emotion out of the process, and their technology can help focus on outcomes and creative problem solving. 

RightSpend’s system speaks the languages of both procurement and marketing: adding value to the business, removing the emotions that clutter efficiency and engagement and replacing them with a solution that inspires confident insight into detail, spend, cost and scope. It also puts both marketing and procurement back in control without compromising integrity on either side. 

The system is designed to strengthen relationships without compromising agendas, a focus on transparency, clarity, process, technology and capability will ultimately ensure the results delivered by both departments are recognised by leadership, and measured in return on investment.

The RightSpend system also feeds into choosing the right agency. By using the bespoke consultancy, evaluation tool-kits, and research, they can help brands find an agency that delivers what they need. 

Crucially, RightSpend is keen to note that there is no golden rule or silver bullet that will smooth every bump in the proverbial road. But if data, technology and teams are empowered by clear processes, it’s far more likely that everyone is speaking the right language

You can view the full White Paper here.