Nothing is promised in business. Brands, marketers and businesses-developers around the world began 2020 with fine-tuned plans and strategies for growing their business and its share of the market. 

But as Mike Tyson once sagely noted, everybody has a plan until they get punched in the face.

The recent development of the Covid-19 pandemic has felt much like a punch in the face to businesses across the globe, creating unforeseen challenges as to how we do our daily business.

Finding new agencies traditionally required face to face contact, whether it was chemistry meetings, attending events or running pitches. None of this is now possible.

From working with existing partners to finding potential new suppliers, Upfront Business Development is currently researching what alternatives there are and how brands would like agencies to approach and engage with them.

The survey has already received some insightful feedback showing that the vast majority want to do pitches and meetings online with platforms such as Zoom, Google Hangouts and Microsoft Teams.

Although industry events are unlikely to be in the diary over the next few weeks, there is a big interest in online panels, content and forums that seem to be the big source to searching for new agencies.

The research is still underway so if you’re a marketer working for a brand, there’s still a chance to have your say – the more creative, the better!

 Click here to complete the 2 minute survey. 

Over the coming weeks we will be releasing the key insights and comments from this research. We will also be using the information to help inform other brands and agencies of current challenges in this uncertain time.