NMA published a response from Mauricio Leon to my piece on trading directors.
His argument boils down to the fact that long-term partnerships are about much more than just price - for example, they will typically include improved service-level agreements, research projects and exclusive opportunities.
That's fair enough, and I wasn't really arguing that cheap was bad per se - in fact it's easy to argue that most digital media is over-priced. My point really is that by negotiating individual deals, you can take a client's requirements into account and create a bespoke package that will probably be better value in the long run.
As for the access to research, that can often be negotiated as part of relatively small buys, so I don't see that as a serious argument. The fact is that trading directors are there to get the best prices for their clients and to maximise profits for their agencies - but not necessarily in that order!
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