When the Proposal Looks Polished, But Something Feels Off Even a well-written RFP won’t guarantee perfect proposals, although it should make off-base ones less likely. When the responses start coming in, it’s worth reading with two lenses: What does this proposal reveal about the agency? And what might red flags in agency proposals be telling…
When organizations issue an RFP, they often focus most of their energy on the questions. What should we ask? What information do we need? How can we ensure the proposals we receive are apples-to-apples? What gets less attention, but deserves far more, are the RFP evaluation criteria. The scoring model, if you will. Evaluation criteria…
Resource Expectations Shape The Team You’ll Actually Get. When you’re hiring an agency, you’re not just hiring a brand name; you’re hiring the people behind it. And yet, many RFPs focus heavily on services, timelines, and budgets while leaving critical questions about the team itself frustratingly vague. If you want the right team on your…
Respect the Work You’re Asking For There’s a subtle but powerful way to improve the quality of proposals you receive: build a timeline that respects the effort required to deliver great work. Too often, RFPs are issued with aggressive deadlines based on internal pressures that have nothing to do with the agencies you’re soliciting. Your…
Questions Are Already Part of the Process. Are You Using Them Strategically? Most RFPs include a formal opportunity for vendors to ask questions, typically with a deadline for submissions and a promise of shared answers. But how that window is structured – and how those questions are handled – can dramatically influence the quality of…
We’ve always been a city of splurges. Whether an exclusive wine dinner, a Michelin-worthy repast, or a one-night-only chef collab, there’s no shortage of high-impact, big-ticket prix fixe tasting menu experiences in Las Vegas for those seeking them. In the right context, they’re worth every dollar. But in a summer marked by slower tourism, shakier…
The Strategist’s Edge This is an occasional series about how to lead with intent, nuance, and purpose, whether you’re building brands, guiding teams, or making decisions that matter. Check out the rest of the series here. Whether or not “strategist” is your title, a core part of leading smart, effective agency work is helping ideas…
“Tell us about your team.” It’s one of the most common requests in an RFP, and one of the least revealing. On the surface it seems reasonable: you want to know who you’re going to be working with. You want to understand their experience, their capabilities, their bandwidth. But more often than not, this question…
An article I published a decade ago about business words that start with “C” has been getting some recent traction. It gave me pause to reflect on how relevant it remains today, and whether there were additional “C words” beyond the original eight that might be worth adding to the mix based on the same…
The Flip Side of Strategic Ambiguity In our last RFP Clarity post, we made the case for purposeful restraint in RFPs, explaining how leaving some space can prompt more revealing, strategic responses. But not all ambiguity is helpful. In fact, when key details are missing or unclear, it can lead to confusion, misalignment, and responses…
Spotify has “Wrapped.” We have Taste Track. Just as Wrapped rounds up a listener’s habits and highlights, Taste Track is our midyear restaurant recap, reflecting how we ate dinner out in the first half of 2025. As strategic, analytical types, we turned the lens on ourselves: when and where we dined, how often, which new places stood…
The Assumption of Clarity It’s common to think that the more information you include in an RFP, the better the outcome will be. After all, clarity is kind, right? And a comprehensive brief should, in theory, yield more accurate and aligned responses. But there’s a nuance worth exploring: not everything needs to be defined up…
In his 2005 Stanford commencement address, Steve Jobs famously said: “You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backward.” It’s true – and I believed it long before I ever heard that quote. My own nonlinear career path has unfolded more like a series of unexpected links than a straight…
Even the most thoughtfully constructed RFP will generate questions. That’s not because you left something out; it’s because your bidders bring a different perspective. What seems obvious inside your organization may feel ambiguous, incomplete, or open to interpretation to someone on the outside. That’s not a flaw in the process, It’s an opportunity. Smart Agencies…
Whether you manage RFPs regularly or only occasionally, this series is designed to help you approach the RFP optimization process with more clarity and more confidence. The Silence Is Familiar You issued an RFP and eagerly awaited the responses. But when they arrived, something felt off. Maybe the submissions were vague. Or misaligned. Or too…
Stepping Into a New Role After more than a decade at Allied Global Marketing, including the past three years as EVP of Strategy & Innovation, I’ve stepped away from full-time agency life to begin a high-impact new chapter through SW14 Group. My time at AGM was nothing short of extraordinary. I’m proud of the work…
By Arlene Wszalek and Tom Wszalek The Big Picture Recent creator economy trends across media, tech, and entertainment point to a single, powerful theme: Control is the new currency. From interface updates to monetization shifts to alternative ownership models, platforms and creators alike are renegotiating who controls visibility, tone, and value. At the same time,…
(Originally published on Allied Global Marketing’s Knowledge page.) From AI-powered personalization to AR-enhanced environments, guest expectations are rapidly evolving. In this post, I explore key takeaways from CES 2025 and how forward-thinking entertainment and hospitality brands can embrace emerging tech to create smarter, more seamless guest journeys. Read the full article on the AGM website
(Originally published on Allied Global Marketing’s Knowledge page.) We’re heading into a year that promises big shifts in audience behavior, platform innovation, and how brands define success. I shared my perspective on what’s ahead with Allied Global Marketing—highlighting the seven trends that I believe will shape 2025. From AI-powered personalization to the growing fusion of…
(Originally published on Allied Global Marketing’s Knowledge page.) When it comes to major events packed with brands, booths, and activations, it’s easy to get swept up in the noise. But does showing up always equal standing out? In this article for Allied Global Marketing, I unpack the pros and cons of participating in high-clutter events…
(Originally published on Allied Global Marketing’s Knowledge page.) A modern marketing strategy is only as strong as the data behind it—but not all data is created equal. In this post for Allied Global Marketing, I explore how brands can shift their focus from passive metrics to intelligent insights that drive real impact. From aligning data…
(This post was originally published on The Drum.) This article explores how automation and generative AI are reshaping the modern marketing agency—from media buying and reporting to creative development and strategy. It highlights not only the tools transforming the industry but also the shifting expectations of clients and talent. While the tech is evolving fast,…
(Originally published on the Allied Global Marketing Knowledge page.) Your brand is never “finished”—it’s a living system that needs regular check-ins to stay aligned with your audience, your goals, and the cultural moment. In this article for Allied Global Marketing, I dive into how and why to conduct strategic brand audits. From evaluating brand equity…
The Insight There’s a significant gulf between consumers aware of a given product or service (those who have heard of it), and those familiar with it (meaning they could explain the product or service, and what it offers, to someone else). Awareness by itself is insufficient to differentiate your product from competitors, or to enable…