A Marketer’s Career Journey: Transitioning from Agency to Client-Side Marketing

At Setup, we are in a unique position to have conversations with all types of marketers from every corner of the industry. We’ve learned through our annual Marketing Relationship Survey that sharing different perspectives on both the Agency and Client-side of marketing helps both parties understand and work better with one another. 

This also translates into giving marketing career guidance. After speaking with Andrea Striebel, the VP of Marketing for Floor & Decor, earlier this year about Client vs. Agency-Side Marketing: Understanding the Different Career Paths, we started a series highlighting different marketers’ experience working on both the Agency and Brand side of marketing. 

Because marketers are navigating the industry with their individual goals in mind, they can often stick to one side of the spectrum or the other, limiting their view to potential growth possibilities. We are continuing to explore the journeys of marketers who made the jump from Brand to Agency or Agency to Brand in this series. 

Since we already highlighted the leap from Client to Agency-side marketing in the blog “A Marketer’s Career Journey: Transitioning from Client to Agency-Side Marketing,” this time we interviewed Allison Turner, someone who has worked on the Agency side and has now transitioned into a role as Marketing Copy Manager at Floor & Decor on the Client side. Sometimes, working on both sides of the spectrum can amplify your role as a marketer and make you more equipped to take on and understand tasks.

In fact, in a recent CMO Spotlight interview, Mika Yamamoto, the Chief Customer and Marketing Officer at Freshworks, stated that “Any Client should probably step in the shoes of the Agency side just to see how Agencies work.”

1 | What advice would you give to someone looking to switch to the Agency side? Brand side?

“Regardless of which side you’re moving to, the first thing I would say is to evaluate what you want.” Turner advises marketers to have a clear goal about what they want out of their career and their company. 

She continued by breaking down the difference between the two, “With Agency, there’s a good chance you’ll be changing Brands and Clients, or at least working on more than one at a time. With the Brand side, you have one Brand that you’re able to dedicate yourself to entirely. Both have their strengths, and I find it really does come down to personal preference.” Like we discussed in “A Marketer’s Career Journey: Transitioning from Client to Agency-Side Marketing,” there are clear differences between the pace and work in an Agency or Brand, so deciding to work in one comes down to the individual.

“As far as specific advice – if you’re looking to move to the Agency side, make sure you can speak to how you would transition between tones and Brands. You can also position yourself as an expert in the vertical of the Brand you’re currently working on. For example, someone working at a cookie Brand isn’t just an expert on cookies – they understand CPG.

If you’re looking to go from Agency to Brand side, the best advice I can give is to make sure you research the companies you’re applying to. You’re going to want to be able to speak to why you want to leave the Agency world for that specific Brand. And if you’ve worked on a Brand in a similar vertical before, even better. For example, my experience working on a semi-custom home builder has helped me immensely in my current role. I spoke to the work I’d done on that Brand in my interviews and tapped into that knowledge as I went through the hiring process.” 

How can you make your past experience relevant to what you want in the future?

2 | What 3 ideal qualities would an Agency marketer need to succeed? What types of people tend to do well?

Embracing the three traits will prepare any marketer for an industry that is constantly changing.

1. Be Curious - Stay up-to-date on the industry and new technology. 

2. Be Flexible - Keep a positive attitude even if things are changing quickly.

3. Be Self-Driven - Look ahead and proactively find things that could help push the Brand further.

As far as the qualities that help Agency marketers thrive, Turner pointed out that people with integrity, humility, growth-mindsets, and diverse lives and experiences tend to do well. 

“When it comes to the types of people who thrive in an Agency environment, I find there are a few key traits. First, they are proud of their work but don’t let ego get in the way – they want to do good work that helps their Clients just for the sake of doing the right thing. I have found that introverts and extroverts do equally well, as long as they are team players who don’t take feedback personally. Lastly, I’ve found that people who have interests and hobbies outside of marketing tend to thrive – the experiences we have when not at the office can help inspire great work.” 

3 | What do you think is the biggest difference between being a Marketer on the Agency side vs. on the Client side?

The main difference Turner pointed out was the difference between one Brand vs several, and how your investment can change accordingly. 

“Focusing on one Brand seems straightforward, but it affects every aspect of the work. By having one Brand, I’m able to really immerse myself in that Brand. I can learn the ins and outs like the back of my hand, which can make creating content more efficient. It also means that I have a very stable, consistent team that I work with every day. This allows us to build partnerships and rapport that benefit the Brand and the work. There is also a view inside the business that you don’t get when you’re Agency side, and I really appreciate that insight.”

Turner made sure to add that just because you are working with one Brand, does not mean you don’t have Clients. “While we don’t pitch Clients like Agencies do, each project still has people that are invested in it. We still work with stakeholders, learn what’s important to focus on, and execute to the needs of those stakeholders. It is lower stress in some ways, but it requires just as much dedication to the Brand as the Agency side does.

Lastly, I’ve noticed a major difference in my own personal investment in the Brand. When working Agency-side, I always thought that I viewed Client Brands as my own, but the reality is that it’s so much different now that I’m Brand-side. I live this Brand every day and I see day in and day out how we affect the world and communities we live in. While I understand the desire to be exposed to many different Brands and projects, I find it very rewarding to be dedicated to just one.” 

4 | How do priorities shift when on the Brand side from how they were on the Agency side?

Agency-side priorities are to get and keep Clients.

Brand-side priorities are to drive the success of one specific Brand. 

“That’s not to say Agencies don’t care about their Clients – they absolutely do, but the reality is that the need to find Clients is always top of mind when working in an Agency. You never know when the next RFP will be or what will be coming through your door, and having that in the back of your mind takes more mental energy than many people might think.

Working for the Brand side, my main focus now is to make this Brand succeed, to push us forward and help us grow. Everything ladders up to one vision, and we have to make sure that everything we create supports the goals of the company as a whole.” 

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Transitioning your career and your mindset when you switch roles is a big shift that brings its own set of challenges and rewards. Whether you’re drawn to the fast-paced, multi-client environment of an Agency or the deep, focused work on a single Brand, remember to embrace curiosity, flexibility, and self-motivation.

Both paths require dedication and a passion for marketing. Agency life offers broad exposure to different industries and creative challenges, while Brand-side roles provide stability and the chance to deeply immerse yourself into one mission. By knowing yourself better and assessing your preferences, you can find success and satisfaction on either side. 

Ready to make the leap? Whichever step you take, embrace the journey with confidence, and know that Setup is always here as a resource to help marketers like you thrive.