Why In-House Production Makes Sense... Sometimes

I tend to give most trends in the advertising industry a fairly wide birth. We’re total suckers for the ‘new and shiny’, and are all too keen to renounce everything in the name of new. I’ve been in this business long enough to see way too many ‘this is going to change everything” actually change very little.

However on this occasion, I’m proud to say that I’ve abandoned all reserve and become a fully paid-up member. I’m talking about the rise of in-house production in advertising agencies. Many agencies are talking about it, some agencies are gearing up to offer it and a few infinitely wise ones, such as my agency Amsterdam Worldwide, are busy doing it.

Regardless of your position on the subject, our behaviour is defined by the needs of our clients. And the most apparent need seems to be faster and cheaper. Don’t tell me you didn’t notice. Faster because windows of opportunity are smaller (but more frequent), faster because we consume such a vast rate of information these days that interesting has a much shorter shelf life, and cheaper because… well because someone invited the financial controller to the client presentation and they’re not leaving.

Bitter, moi? I am of course well versed in the argument of ‘Fast, Cheap, Good; Choose Two’, but notice that I said cheaper, not cheap. Efficiency makes you cheaper. Compromise makes you cheap. Cheap is still the enemy.

Our most recent work for Perricone MD [above] was an in-house production. Why in-house? Because to the simple question of how we could do the very best job, in-house was the very best answer. (More unusually, it was also directed in-house but that’s a more personal agency quirk than a greater trend in the industry).

To be very clear, I’m certainly not suggesting in-house is always the right answer. But on occasion, it is absolutely the best way to work. Why?

You have created a trusting relationship with your client. You don’t need to ask them to extend that sense of trust to people that they do not have a relationship with. Therefore, you should be able get the client to take much bigger leaps of faith, which every good piece of work requires.

As an agency, you understand the client better than anyone else. After months or years of a client relationship, you have an intimate understanding of what is right and what is wrong that simply cannot be shared or taught during the short period of a production.

It’s faster. And not just in terms of total production time. There’s also a nimbleness that allows you to adapt with circumstance and exploit opportunities.

Due to the smaller, more focused group, clients experience a much more involving process and a more responsive relationship. As the project is kept so close, the client has a greater sense of ownership and connection.

There are no Chinese whispers (is that term still PC?), with less layers there’s less chance of things getting distorted along the way.

All of these things, when handled correctly, should ultimately lead to great work. Of course, in-house also creates its own challenges that you have to deal with. The intensity of a project is magnified greatly. It’s relentless when there is no one else to help carry the load. It’s utterly absorbing, so time management can become quite a challenge.

The curtain is well and truly drawn back on the Wizard of Oz. There is less of a buffer between the client and the film, which, with the wrong client, could be a bad thing. So choose your in-house projects wisely.

And finally to the reoccurring theme of faster and cheaper: clients may not always recognise the difference between cheaper and cheap. If you cross that line, all is lost. If they want cheap, they should still go elsewhere.

There are, and will remain, many occasions when it’s not suitable to handle productions in-house. One of the skills needed in the world of in-house is the ability to recognise which projects they are. Complex productions still require the skills of dedicated production companies. That truth will remain. And many directors you’ll want to work with will only be accessible through a production company.

Production companies are in no danger as their services are and will continue to be vital, but it would be fair to say their cake may be sliced a little thinner in the future. But as so many production companies are more than willing to work directly for clients, I’ll hear no arguments on the fairness of this new arrangement.