Ask & Answer: a client-centered way of jumping into a new project
When a studio or an agency starts working on a new project, they’ll hopefully want to get to know everything about the client. So, once they know the basics, they innocently keep asking and asking, assuming that “answering hard questions” is the client’s work. But, far from doing their job, thinking that way means they’re just wasting their client’s time and energy.
Asking the right questions is absolutely key, but answering them involves thinking. We don’t make our clients shoulder that responsibility. “Thinking” is on us, because it’s the way we bring value to our clients. Execution is the final output — and obviously we take care of that, too — but thinking is where we make a difference, because it’s in our core values and culture.
Our A&A process:
With all that in mind, we designed this method we call Ask & Answer. It goes like this:
- After we’re briefed, we write down everything we want to know, in the form of questions.
- After working out the right questions, we start a process of research and thinking, and we answer the questions ourselves.
- Finally, we send our clients a document with the questions and the answers, where they can add their comments and ideas or correct us if we’ve gone down the wrong path.
The important thing here is not the process. That’s not the big deal. We are changing and improving our processes all the time (in fact, constant improvement would be our “unique process”). The key here is the cultural concept behind it: we take control of the situation and go the extra mile without anyone having to ask us. We own the project and put ourselves in our client’s shoes from minute 0. This way, we are being truly proactive and making sure we make the most of our clients’ time. Then, our clients can sleep easy, knowing they can count on a partner they can rely on, and a team that won’t just execute. WE THINK.
