Nottingham Trent University shortlists 17 agencies for ad work
Nottingham Trent University shortlists 17 agencies for ad workThe Drum understands that Nottingham Trent University has shortlisted as many as 17 agencies to compete for its advertising business.
The university started the tender process in August last year, saying it was seeking one agency or more to handle total business worth £925,000 a year.
Following a pre-qualification questionnaire it is now believed to have settled on a lengthy-looking shortlist, but it is not clear how many of those agencies stand a chance of being appointed.
The Drum asked Nottingham Trent University to clarify why so many agencies had been shortlisted. In response a spokesperson issued the following statement:
"The university is currently in the process of recruiting a number of creative thinking agencies to provide a broad range of specialist and general advertising services to support its existing in-house expertise.
"In keeping with fair and transparent EU tender regulations, these services have been broken into a number of specialist lots - creative agency, online media, offline media, data sources, international and video - to enable smaller agencies to compete in the tender process. The university is shortlisting qualified candidates for each lot, and agencies which cross over specialisms will not be expected to pitch more than once."
This news comes against a backdrop of industry unrest about the way universities and public sector bodies are handling tenders for advertising and marketing services.
St Andrews University was accused of inviting agencies to tender for design work only to appoint itself.
Merseytravel caused a similar outcry at the turn of the year after shortlisting 29 agencies to pitch for just two marketing briefs.
One ad agency boss described such 'shortlists' as "ridiculous" and "a major issue for agencies".
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Comments
It's just a good way of getting loads of ideas for fuck all. There, that's the ball rolling.
I honestly don't know why anyone bothers with these tenders anymore.
Only when our industry completely boycotts taking part in any of these ludicrous tender processes, will these nonsense public sector procurement people change the way they do things.
If agencies pitch for them, then it's a case of move me I'm burning.
Ridiculous....will someone please take a stand? Maybe Propaganda with there no pitching policy (that's a joke by the way!)
Shocking! 17 agencies=17 tenders=presumably they'll then pick 16 agencies to present (they've got to be seen to reduce the list!!) and then loads of unpaid work by the agencies (at their cost) and then 16 meetings.
What a shocking watse of time, energy and cost.
This is classic public sector - not a clue.
comments
Can a marketing director of some shape or form please comment on this?
Only 17...surely they could find some more! Surprised they can fit the pitch review into their busy holiday schedules...
Totally agree with all the previous posts 17 tenders makes a mockery of the whole process. Wasn't there a PQQ? That should be sufficient to whittle down the applicants to a more feasible 3 or 4, and if the criteria isn't strict enough then it needs changing. Perhaps the procurement department at the University should do a bit more work and conduct some research into just who they're inviting to tender and make some decisions that shorten the list.
I think it's a great idea..
Les Smith
Marketing Director
It is a joke - especially when they will have absolutely nothing different to say from all the other universities - how man 4 women to 1 man ads do they want?
And here we go again, simple don't do it.
We've stopped, so should you.
Reality is that if you get appointed you will not make any money on the account in any case.
Make a stand.
Actually, 17 agencies across 6 lots is only 2.8 per lot. So it's not as bad as it looks. The sad bit is seeing so many companies squabbling over a paltry budget, like pigeons pecking at a drunkard's vomit.
Is it me or does this happen every couple of months with the same string of comments. Whoever tenders for this deserves what they get.
And if anon 16.52, Les Smith, is really the Marketing Director, I should imagine you'll be getting what you deserve as well.
But on the flip side, it's Friday!!!!!!
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