How do agencies manage 40 retail adaptations in one week?

The back-to-school week

In late August, Paolo's agency receives the back-to-school brief from a stationery brand: one key visual, 40 formats across eight retailers. Flyers, shelf strips, digital screens, two ePharma banners. One deadline: the following Friday.

By Wednesday the team has delivered 22 files. Seven come back with comments, from three different people at the brand. Two retailers change their screen size mid-week. The project manager keeps a spreadsheet of what's done, what's approved and what's waiting. Nobody else can see it.

On Friday the brand asks why the Coop files aren't ready. They were never in the list. The brief said "all retailers" and Coop had been added in a follow-up email on Tuesday.

The business problem

Bulk adaptation is where agencies earn or lose the year. Scope that arrives in pieces can't be quoted, planned or defended. When approvals and changes arrive one email at a time, the agency's spreadsheet becomes the only source of truth, and it's always one step behind.

When the deadline slips, it's the agency that looks late, even when the scope moved.

How does RMM run a bulk adaptation as one job?

• One job, every touchpoint listed. The brief fans out into one line per key visual × touchpoint. You see exactly 40, with each spec and retailer, and anything added later shows up as a new line.
• Deliver shared files once. When touchpoints share a key visual and pack shots, download the package once and upload one delivery for the whole job.
• Approvals in one place. Each file is approved or sent back with a written comment in its delivery folder, with no side emails.
• One deadline, negotiated in the open. Propose a new date for the whole job; the brand accepts or declines, and the history stays on the brief.
• Your own performance view. First-pass rate, rework rate and overdue jobs, so you can show clients the facts.