At a recent new business presentation, our team from SMZ introduced themselves and talked about being “extra eyes” for the client prospect. We’re proud to say we did win that business, hence the eyes have it.

That led me to think about all the ways we as a good (to great) agency use our extra eyes.

We study the competition. Not just their spend and media mix but how they present the brand and deliver the customer experience.

We look at consumer trends. Each year we report on the Pantone color of the year. “Intense colors seem to be a natural application of our intense lifestyles and thought processes these days,” Pantone Color Institute executive director Leatrice Eiseman forecasts for 2018. If you’re a fan of tennis and watched the U.S. Open and the players’ clothing, you know that to be true.

We board the bus and get out in the field. SMZers recently did a tour of Detroit with Detroit Experience Factory, got a behind-the-scenes look at the new Little Caesars Arena (Red Wings home opener tonight!) and shopped fitness centers. Sometimes a workout is work.

If we do some if not all of these extra eyes activities, we help make brands stronger and brand leaders a little smarter. May I call the vote? The eyes have it.

Jamie Michelson, President/CEO