As we talk to marketing directors the world over it’s clear that people have very different ways of approaching their requirements to source and buy creative, marketing, advertising campaigns. Agency, in-house, a combination. And the fact that sometimes something else is needed. There’s no doubting the fact that one size really doesn’t fit all, so with apologies to shopaholics everywhere here’s our quick guide to buying what you need:

1) The boutique shopper. You are a great lover of the perfect solution for each particular need. You’re like a marketing WAG, someone who wouldn’t be seen dead in a big high-street department store when there all these delicious little boutiques waiting for your custom. So just as you’d head off to Anya Hindmarch for your perfect bag, you select a provider for each part of your marketing mix. The excellent digital. The newly-created social experts. The PR, not just specialising in PR, but specialising in your sector. The advantages of this are that you get the experts in each field and get the top creative treatments. But you have to be prepared to invest time and money – not just in briefing each time, but in the heavy duty parades to select in the first place.

2) Supermarket sweep. You are happy to do the one-stop shop and look for the full service, global agency network to deliver that experience. You want to arrive in one office, meet the different teams and trust your brand to one megastore. OK it may not be the cheapest option, but the convenience and their purchasing power, for everything from your media buying to print costs makes them hugely compelling. You know that you’ll have access to the latest and greatest from around the world. The advantages are that everything is from one provider, which in theory should make the process more streamlined. No need to re-explain your brand. But when you have only one provider the relationship can take over, the retainer tends to sneak in and if one part isn’t performing to your objectives it’s harder to make the break.

3)The rosterfarian. Multiple media-neutral, or integrated agencies – this shopper wants the best of both worlds and will hit the high street and the out-of-town retail parks. They want their primary provider but want to have plenty of backup options if the object of desire isn’t found in the first place, or if it’s too busy to find what you want in time.  The rosterfarian spends more time managing their agencies than performing their primary function – making sure everyone can pitch if required, checking out all the options, keeping on top of the roster if any new requirements come along. The pros – there’s little risk of not getting the job done. But in order to do this, it’s a constant management and juggling job, involving a lot of time and effort – and although a roster should drive price competition it rarely happens.

4) Home depot. The marketer who would rather get all the tools and equipment they need and manage it all in-house. Of course the tools and equipment here include the people assembling that flatpack and so that DIY project can become  a fairly hefty undertaking. But at least you can reflect on a job well done and all that money you’ve saved over your agency bills? Right? OK there may be a bit of a wobble as the image doesn’t quite fit the mailshot, but overall it’s not to bad. You can’t deny that you’re in control and you’re spending less. But the cons pile up  - you have to stay ahead of the game otherwise you’ll find that new ideas have come in and you’re still using the magnolia paint. For everyone that can rustle up something in Photoshop, there’s someone wishing they could have made it animated.

5) Needs must. This marketer waits until all the shelves are bare and the fridge has a solitary lemon before deciding that they really need to do something and dash down to the local convenience store. By this stage they don’t care if it’s going to win an advertising award, they just want someone to do it really quickly and for whatever spare change they have lying around in the budget drawer. The last minute approach normally comes out ok, but it doesn’t tend to build a brand long term. You tend to end up with whatever and whoever is available and so they will charge you what they think they can get away with and you don’t ever have the time to do a sensible comparison.

6) Smart shopper. The smart shopper knows that the best way to buy their creative services is a combination of everything – the mall was created for them. Having some reliable regular places to buy where you know exactly what you’re getting. Trying to minimise having to go out again because you’ve forgotten something.  Not having to go too far afield when a new approach is needed. Seeing some real choices as you window-shop.

The Creative Services Exchange was built for smart shoppers. It lets you buy just what you want when you want it. Or it can be where you come to for everything. If you’re a rosterfarian at heart, then we’re managing those multiple agencies for you: brief us, have one payment agent, and multiple creative options. If you like the specialist boutiques – they’re all in there. If you want to find the local supplier – there they are. If you want the unique creative treatment who’s creating a one-off for you, then you can find them on the Exchange.

Unlike your other agency shopping trips, using the Exchange is always green.You don’t rack up your carbon footprint with travel miles. It’s always cost-effective because you set the budgets. It’s always going to give you the sort of agency and creative shopping that suits your business and your style. And it can complement your existing habits.

If you have ten favorite boutiques but want the latest design, then you can brief the Exchange while still maintaining your other suppliers. If you have a fabulous in-house team but are missing that creative input for a new viral video, then you can brief the Exchange and take it back in-house. If your long-standing one-stop agency decides to leave you, you can get the one-stop shop experience by briefing a single point and having over 12,000 creatives respond.

So, start shopping smart and brief the Exchange now. And, if you’ve already gone out to an agency but realize it was the wrong place to buy – then you have no alternative.