The agency structure dictates the ideas you get.
Every agency makes the claim that they are media-neutral, fully integrated, 360, or some other catchphrase implying ideas that are bigger than any one channel. The intent is certainly there, but the very structure of the agency prevents it from happening. Agencies have accumulated a full-time staff of people who need to be allocated if that agency is to survive as a business. This is true for almost any type of agency, be it traditional, digital, or social. If you have a dozen copywriters on staff, you better be generating ideas that require a lot of copywriting. Similarly, it you have 3 Flash programmers on staff, you better be doing some Flash development. So imagine a situation in which a traditional agency is on retainer with a client. What is the likelihood that the agency will come back and recommend moving most of the budget into shopper marketing? Sure, the agency has shopper marketing in their holding company network, but moving the budget to them means the agency loses the bulk of their retainer. Will the agency reward the Account Director for slashing their retainer and putting agency staff in jeopardy? Of course not. That’s why you’ll get the ideas that match the resources of the agency.
Related to this structural issue is the myth that agency creatives are focused on ideas that transcend channels. It reminds me of the “IT expert” that only shows up in movies. This fictional guy is equally adept at every computer application ever written, knows both hardware and software, has a PhD level understanding of encryption algorithms, and immediate access to every database on the planet. Meanwhile, in real life, if you need help with a Mac version of Office, the PC guy in tech support can’t help you. Similarly, a creative brought up to think in terms of websites is not likely to start thinking about a marketing problem in terms of retail events. Another one highly skilled in the art of scripted :30 stories isn’t going to be comfortable crafting a social media program.
It is not a question of smarts, talent, or even intent. Architect Louis Sullivan expressed the adage that “form follows function.” In the case of agencies, function follows form.
The Ryan Report 