Let's dance: achieving maximum synergy with your advertising or marketing agency is like perfecting a dance partnership. Here's how to develop a good working relationship that enables performance to soar from the ordinary to the extraordinary.

• Author: Hatch, Cary
• Position: Fundamentals: advertising agencies

Recall the first dance at the last wedding you attended. Unless the bride or groom was a professional hoofer, the choreography was probably rather ordinary. Now picture Fred Astaire in his tuxedo mad Ginger Rodgers in her evening gown tripping the light fantastic. That's extraordinary dancing.

Most banks, regardless of size, maintain an effective, but ordinary, relationship with their advertising, marketing or public relations agencies--your average wedding dance. However, some financial institutions achieve the distinction of extraordinary relationships--the Fred Astaire and Ginger Rodgers partnership.

"Extraordinary delivers more than just quality execution and a solid return on investment. The best relationships offer a range of tangible and intangible benefits that ensure that the communications programs are not merely supporting the bank, but are leading the charge in support of the financial institution's business goals. When you achieve maximum synergy with your agency, you have a partner who helps you identify and pursue new opportunities, a guide who helps keep the vision focused, and a navigator who helps keep your communications on course.

Realizing this type of relationship requires more than just the proper alignment of the stars. Your internal culture must support the time and risks needed to achieve great things, and you must find an agency team that complements your culture.

However, first, to build an extraordinary relationship with your agency, you need to cover the basics--no matter what your culture.

Start with the ordinary

Before you achieve an extraordinary relationship, you have to accomplish an ordinary one. "Ordinary" starts with having the right people performing the right roles at your bank and having the right team at the right agency. By getting the basic structure in place, you ensure that the relationship is positioned to solve problems strategically rather than merely execute predetermined activities.

Banks, like other organizations, tend to hire agencies for two reasons: first, to gain access to strategic expertise and, second, to increase the number of hands available for execution. Unfortunately, too many organizations hire just for extra bodies. If a relationship that delivers extraordinary results ks what you are after, you have to hire for both.

If you're not sure you that have the correct balance, review the following checklist to see if your [rank is on the proper path:

* Are senior management...