'Birds of a Feather Flock Together': Strategic Implications for Advertising Agencies

ABSTRACT Advertisers who perceived high similarity between themselves and those within their advertising agency rated their agency as superior to those who felt they had less in common with agency contacts. Outcome measures examined included communication, performance, intention to remain with the agency, and defection following the departure of agency personnel. Differences based on the organizational level of the respondent emerged. Lifestyle factors of similarity were found to play an important role in perceived agency performance, lending support for deeper exploration of client traits and personality prior to the agency9s assignment of personnel to a client account.