I received quite a bit of positive feedback to the recent post about "Why Agencies REALLY fire clients," including a note from a corporate marketer who asked, specifically, "How can I be a good client?" Great question, and the good news is that if the chemistry and trust are there from the get-go, the "formula" for a successful client/agency partnership is relatively straightforward. I used to tell prospective clients that the key to a successful program required: Access – to their executives, customers, developers, etc. and Action – in the form of rapid edit cycles, decision-making, etc. Lately I’ve added a 3rd "A" – which, handily, provides a "Triple-A" approach to talking about the ideal client/agency relationship model. The third "A" is… Appreciation – for the team’s hard work & acknowledgement of their successes. At the end of the day, we’re all human. No matter what it might say on their meticulously transcribed to-do lists, when 5pm (or 6, or 7pm for that matter) rolls around, and the team’s Account Eexec can make one… last… call… they are going to make it for the client who says "thank you" a lot.

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