How agencies can take client relationships from projects to retainers

Be a partner, not a project

Tom Denari, president and CEO, Young & Laramore: “While retainer-based relationships provide consistent, predictable revenue that allows agencies to plan and staff appropriately, the real value lies in fostering a deeper partnership between the client and agency. A long-term commitment encourages collaboration, strategic alignment and mutual investment in success. In contrast, project-based relationships often limit the dynamic to a transactional, client-vendor interaction, which can hinder the development of a truly integrated and effective partnership.”

Holly Ripper, managing director, BBH London: “As with any relationship, no-strings can be fun, but the best connections come from a long-term partnership. We need to keep demonstrating and delivering the value you get from a longer-term relationship for our clients. Our teams live and breathe the brilliant brands we work with and become their closest allies. We have inspiration walls for every client lining the walls of BBH and our clients sit cheek-by-jowl with their teams. We want to be on the daily business update calls, in their offices, meeting with the sales, product and tech teams because that’s how trust is built and how great ideas are made. Vorsprung durch Technik was spotted on a factory floor visit at Audi. Taking ‘Another Whopper on the Side of a Bus’ to Burger King was only possible because of our long-term relationship. I don’t know how you make all those wonderful serendipitous ideas happen on a project basis?”

Maor Ofek, founder, Side St: “While most of our client work starts with foundational projects like visual identity or positioning strategy, working with startups naturally requires an ongoing process. Our clients engage with us to build a more strategic, creative partnership that goes beyond deliverables. Given the nature of startup culture, many of our clients lack the internal resources to continuously evolve their brand. Therefore, they rely on us not only for the brand activation phase but also as partners for their long-term initiatives. This approach shifts the relationship from being project-based to something more continuous. It’s the long-term strategic thinking that allows us to spot hurdles before they happen, a skill that makes us invaluable to clients.”

Laura Tannebaum, EMEA managing director, NewGen: “To move client relationships from project-based to retainer, agencies must consistently demonstrate value. However, it’s a catch-22, as delivering results on projects is harder due to fluctuating resources and a lack of deep brand understanding. Project work forces agencies to stretch or scale their teams, leading to instability and making consistent performance more challenging. Retainers, by contrast, provide predictability and allow agencies to better allocate resources and build stronger relationships. This deeper understanding of the client’s business enables the agency to become a strategic partner rather than just a service provider. In turn, trust is built more easily, leading to better collaboration and long-term success for both parties.”

Visar Statovci, co-founder & managing partner, Waste Creative: “Assuming a strong relationship exists, and the agency has consistently demonstrated the ability to deliver quality, the conversation is usually about ‘why’ a retainer is better than project-based. In our case, we have focused on building our ability to understand and act on the business challenges clients face and ‘write their briefs for them’ rather than wait for one to land at our door. This focus on being seen as the agency that understands the client’s strategic priorities, challenges and opportunities tends to result in us becoming a key, indispensable partner, which leads to retained work. However, like every relationship, working with a client has to be balanced and work both ways if you want longevity. Agencies should leverage the trust built with clients in their intelligence and talent by explaining that priority access to it only comes with secure, regular income.”

Don’t become a short order cook

Sarah Collinson, CEO, Havas New York: “Position yourself as a business partner, not a vendor – not just delivering on your project like a short order chef but as strategic experts who care about their wider business and will add real value to the brand and to your clients personally. Be proactive, not just reactive. Look for opportunities beyond your precise brief and think bigger about that ask or bring something new. Push for great but don’t be a dick about it. Nurture every relationship. The client team wanting to spend more time with you as humans is almost as important as delivering excellence.”

Nate Swift, CMO, BarkleyOKRP: “We focus on execution, strategy and relationship to build clients’ businesses and move from sometimes being seen as a vendor to being an essential partner. In execution, we emphasize complementary services with more staying power, so showing how we can pull a creative project through to, say, CRM and social extends the impact. In strategy, we show the power of the whole brand by modeling how innovation, operations, internal comms, training and marketing materials can work cohesively to create a singular value proposition for all stakeholders. In relationships, we help clients navigate internal and external complexity – from cross-functional integration to internal (peer-to-peer) communications and external partner management. By helping the business well beyond the project, we become a first call. That leads to retainer engagements. But at the end of the day, none of that matters if you’re not delivering great work that motivates consumers, inspires organizations and drives results.”

Kelle Coleman, head of marketing & growth, Verb: “Strategy, flexibility and proactivity are key. Be a strategic partner and go beyond executing tasks by offering advice and insights that showcase your understanding of the client’s industry and business challenges. When your agency is seen as a thought leader and consultant, it naturally leads to a longer-term relationship. Understand client constraints and customize retainer packages based on the client’s needs, goals, and budget. A flexible, scalable model allows clients to see retainers as adaptive and responsive to their evolving challenges, making it easier for them to commit. Finally, instead of waiting for a project to end, begin discussing retainer options early in the relationship. Focus on how consistent, ongoing collaboration can help them achieve their broader business goals, ensuring the conversation is outcome-driven rather than task-based.”

Lauren Kushner, CEO, Kettle: “Success comes when you know a client’s business inside and out. It’s a mindset: instead of resourcing the retainer, focus on casting the right team for the challenge at that moment by using an embedded team model. I always cringe when I hear people talk about retainers. It stirs up feelings of complacency and other ills brought about by traditional agency models. Embedded teams shift the sentiment from something transactional to something intrinsically human. Think in terms of core teams and flex teams and quickly deploy new people and new skills based on the inevitable shifts in priorities a business may face. Each person on the agency team becomes invaluable because the embedded model hinges on each individual’s deep understanding of the business and how to drive it forward. This shift from one lead agency lead being accountable for success to an entire team accountable for propelling business growth is significant. Embedded team models foster new ideas through a shared sense of accountability paired with a true appreciation for an unbiased perspective an agency partner can bring.”

Helen Brimacombe, director of client experience, IMA: “Agencies need to show the value in long-term collaboration, proving that consistent, strategic planning leads to better campaigns and overall brand growth. By working together regularly with dedicated teams, agencies gain a deeper understanding of both a client’s business and the wider industry. At IMA, our proposition is based on building real relationships, using real insights leading to real effectiveness in our work. Delivering strong results early on is crucial for building trust; campaign measurement and evaluation are key from the start. Sometimes, we offer a hybrid approach – mixing project-based work with a smaller retainer, giving clients a chance to see the benefits without a full commitment right away. In the end, we aim to be a long-term partner, not just a supplier, creating strong relationships that are both sustainable and mutually beneficial. With clients that have been with us for 20+ years, it seems to be working!”

Shared goals get results

Andrew Dimitriou, global chief client & growth officer, Dept: “Agencies and clients are in the relationship that they create. Ultimately, the foundation of an excellent client relationship is mutual respect and a focus on achieving shared goals. Just like any relationship, there are a few simple things that both clients/agencies can do to succeed. The first: build trust. Sounds simple, but it’s hard work. Trust is established through transparency, reliability, and a deep understanding of the client’s needs – and focus on great work. The second: be flexible to adapt to changing client needs and provide proactive ideas to strengthen long-term partnerships. The third is integrity. Be true to who you are. I have seen relationships get spoiled way too often due to pricing discussions. The reality is simple: our work has value, and it should be priced accordingly. Be clear and transparent about it. And please celebrate the successes. This is hard work. Acknowledge it.”

Patrick Garvey, founding partner, We Are Pi: “At We Are Pi, we keep it simple and relentless. We focus on two things: being creative problem solvers when things get tough and being the best part of a client’s day. But the reality is that success isn’t a solo game – it takes both sides showing up. To move from project-based work to retainers, you can’t just be in reaction mode. At Pi, we create space. We carve out moments in the madness to build trust, challenge the status quo, and find mutual wins. That means putting in the time to understand what truly keeps clients up at night and offering solutions before they ask. It’s about making clients feel heard, valued and empowered – and that’s where we excel. So, when a client feels like you’re invested in their growth and not just the next brief, you stop being a vendor and become their go-to. In short, retainers and long-term relationships can’t be expected – they’re earned by proving you’re indispensable.”

Tom Atkinson, head of client services, Maverick Media: “Above all, it’s about behaviors. There’s often a pervading sense that a retainer is won when the final deal is done. But that’s a myth and suggests that successful client relationships are a science, that it’s possible to follow a series of steps towards retainer greatness and watch the revenue roll in. The truth is different. Good agencies behave their way into retained pieces of business and, like any relationship, there should be an equal mix of passion, authenticity and jeopardy in the behavior that’s involved. Passion is about going the extra mile, building teams of people who believe in a client’s brand, whose brand knowledge becomes a ‘brain trust’ with value beyond project delivery. Authenticity is the integrity to give a differing perspective or even fess up to failures in service of something bigger than the here and now. And jeopardy is the confidence to take a risk. To invest in a project that has potential but not yet a budget, or to innovate when business as usual would be the easier option.”

Lee Climpson, partner/production director, Transmission: “The real trick to turning one-off projects into long-term partnerships is showing clients that you’re in it for the long haul. Sure, delivering a great project matters, but it’s about proving you can add value beyond that – like offering insights into their broader strategy, identifying opportunities they haven’t yet explored, or suggesting ways to improve results. It’s all about showing clients that you’re invested in their success, not just the next pay check. Two big keys to this are being flexible and maintaining an open line of communication. Offering a trial retainer or creating an entry point production gives clients an easy way to dip their toes into a more committed partnership. And after a project wraps up, stay in touch, offer suggestions and check in regularly. It’s about shifting from being just a service provider to becoming their go-to partner.”

Building trust & value is the silver bullet

Emma Thompson, head of agency, Golley Slater: “Moving a client from project-based work to a long-term partnership comes down to trust, value, and collaboration. Opening the door to those longer-term opportunities requires agencies to deliver measurable results, maintain communication even after the work is completed and offer flexible retainers. Proposing these kinds of strategies and fostering strong, transparent relationships is critical to building trust. By focusing on these areas, agencies can show their value and strengthen client relationships over time.”

Anthony Abrahams, managing director, Iris: “The key to consistent and repeatable revenue creation is consistent and repeatable people and products, coupled with honest conversation and measurable performance. A combination of familiarity, reliability and likeability through a consistent team breeds client trust, which results in greater commitment, loyalty and spend. Repeatable products with tangible and measurable outcomes create clear expectations and enable you to continuously identify optimizations and efficiencies and, therefore, deliver more value. Once you have these foundations in place, it’s possible to move the work and relationship into a more ambitious place based on a shared vision and objectives. To govern this on an ongoing basis, open and direct sharing of information is essential. From the agency, this ranges from feedback on the quality of briefs to reconciled data on exactly where time is being spent. From the client, this is everything from feedback on the development and delivery process to sharing regular business performance metrics to identify what is and isn’t working.”

Tom Crush, director, Experience: “The million dollar question! (Quite literally.) Let’s start with relationships and trust. In the events game, we live or die on our performance on the day, so our signed-up, retained clients are the ones we have delivered for time and time again over many years, and we’ve developed personal relationships with them as we have sat in the trenches with them under extreme pressure – and delivered together. That’s why they choose to commit to us. But also, it’s a fact of life that procurement invariably runs the game – it always comes down to the bottom line and providing added value to improve ROI and stand out. We can offer deals for bulk work or market share over a longer period of time and even throw in some free consultancy, but it helps when our contacts can go back to the number crunchers with a small discount of some kind….”

A mix makes most sense

Louise Rudaizky, managing director, Atomic London: In my view, neither retainer models nor purely project-based models are necessarily the best way forward for creating the best work and fostering strong, long-term client relationships. Retainers are a good way for agencies to deliver over and above, year-on-year, for their clients, but there are increasingly fewer procurement frameworks that allow for it. On the other hand, purely project-based work tends to lead to transactional relationships and creative outputs limited by one-off budgets. In my experience, the Committed Project Model, whether paid monthly or per project, is a great hybrid option for both parties. This approach ensures both agency and client are equally invested in the best possible work and output. It pushes agencies to bring their best talent and effort and clients to engage with the same energy and attitude. Plus, with this commitment, agencies can forecast and plan better, allowing them to consistently over-deliver, which is where 90% of the true value is created for clients.

Josh Clarricoats, co-founder, Insiders: “There are fewer retainers than ever available, and that’s affecting agencies. Economic instability means that while clients know they have to spend, their boards want to be able to claw back the money if needed. Budget is confirmed throughout the year. Work gets done. But the up-front commitment has gone for many. So if you can’t persuade clients to take on retainers, then perhaps the question is, can agencies make projects work in a profitable way? The benefit of retainers was always that they allowed you to become a true business partner to the client and get involved further upstream, solving business problems, rather than just marketing ones. The result will probably be more of an ‘agency of record’ model than a monthly retainer – simply because of the way budgets are now being allocated. Many agencies have emerged to make the most of this more project-based future (including Insiders). It’s a challenge for some more established agencies used to other ways of working, but it’s one of the ways to evolve through a challenging time by reframing what a ‘long-term client relationship’ looks like.”

Mark Christou, principal, CBX: “You don’t necessarily need to move every client to a retainer-based relationship. Yes, agencies want the security that comes with a retainer, but we need to be honest with ourselves that retainers at times mean we’ll lose money because those ‘above and beyond’ asks will always happen. Don’t get me wrong, over-delivery goes hand-in-hand with retainer models, which are an ideal state, but they’re not a perfect solution. I’d argue that bigger agencies need a blend of projects as well because the truth is that while it’s hard to convert clients to a retainer model, it’s also hard for agencies to make retainers make financial sense. There are, of course, upsides too, which is that when a retainer is in place you’re treated as more of a consultancy than ‘just’ an agency or vendor which creates a top line advantage.”