The Junior Analyst Owns the Renewal Now
Your champion got promoted. The renewal is now owned by a junior analyst with no context and no power.
Based on real client experiences, but anonymized and dramatized to protect identities and confidential relationships.
Your champion at an enterprise retailer got promoted into a different team. The retainer renewal is now owned by a junior analyst who's been on the brand for a few weeks. They've never run a QBR with an agency, don't know the original goals, and seem nervous on calls.
- 01Champion drove multiple scope expansions with you over 2 years — analyst has zero relationship equity
- 02Analyst's manager (the real decision-maker) hasn't joined a single call
- 03Renewal in 60 days — analyst keeps saying "I need to check with my team"
3 minutes on a discovery call. Don't pitch deliverables — pitch the analyst on becoming the hero internally. Arm them to defend the retainer to their manager.
You're not selling the work, you're selling a person their own career. Get this right and the analyst becomes your next champion for 3 years.