Account planning as a discipline has been somewhat obscured from academic view. In practice, it has played a significant role in the development of the marketing communications (especially, advertising) industry although it has been adopted in varying forms and with differing emphases. It has...

The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of account planning by tracing its origins, development and role from its genesis to its current status. Account planning grew out of dissatisfaction with advertising agencies’ ability to meet the challenges they were facing in the early...

This paper briefly outlines the origins and development of the account planning function within advertising agencies. The transformation of the marketing communications environment during the 1990s is discussed together with the evolution of marketing theory and practice. The main focus of the...

Account planning has established itself as a core competency of many top advertising agencies. The role of account planner is a result of advertising agencies’ recognition that effective advertising demands the influence of consumer insights, competitive intelligence, and trends analysis. Yet,...

Account planning grew out of a combination of the complementary roles of consumer research and media planning. Over time it has moved away from the traditional advertising agencies to media independents that act as ever more influential advisors into their clients’ marketing communications...

In commercial applications the somewhat passive notion of marketing research is increasingly being superseded by the more active idea of consumer insight. In advertising this subtle change of emphasis is captured in the evolution of the account planning role and the associated “philosophy”...

“Cool” is a quality highly desired by consumers and, therefore, highly desired by brand owners, yet it is frequently supposed to be elusive and obscure. Scouting for cool is known as “coolhunting” and its pervasive influence has captivated brand owners and their agencies alike. Its claim...

The account planning discipline practised in advertising agencies is a central element of a formal system for planning advertising campaigns on behalf of clients. Precise definitions are hard to find, but it is an intellectual process, to exercise quality control. The present study builds on...

In Australia, advertising agencies have partially embraced the UK‐originated account planning philosophy. In an exploratory study, six senior account planning directors were interviewed to gain insights into account planning in Australia. It appears that the scale and nature of the Australian...