My competition is constantly outmaneuvering me in terms of media. How can I raise the level of strategic thinking for more dynamic solutions from my media agency?

You probably don’t need to be told the media landscape is changing faster than ever before. Understanding all the choices and the resulting, optimal mix takes increasingly more information, acumen and time. There are a number of steps you can take to improve the level of work you receive:

1. Review your compensation agreement to determine if the necessary amount of strategic resources is affordable under the current agreement. Remember, and agency will give you what you pay for.

2. Insist your media agency is present for key brand and business reviews, plans and creative development meetings

3. Review media agency staffing to insure you have sufficient strategic resources on your team

4. Allocate a portion of your budget for higher-risk initiatives; track the results and let your learning guide further involvement in new and different media approaches

5. Ask you media agency to compile a competitive review and identify strategies to usurp the competition in key media at the most relevant times