When Brands Skip the Pitch Consultants—and Go to LinkedIn Instead
What happens when big brands like The North Face and Jordan start crowdsourcing their agency searches on LinkedIn?
The industry starts buzzing—and splitting.
An Ad Age post from Lindsay Rittenhouse that made the rounds on LinkedIn this week:
Why major brands are hiring agencies on LinkedIn—and dividing the industry
In recent weeks, brands like The North Face and Jordan have made headlines—not for their creative campaigns, but for how they’re choosing their creative partners.
By posting open calls for agency support on LinkedIn, they’ve bypassed the traditional consultant-led pitch process and triggered a wave of debate across the industry.
Is this a smart, cost-effective evolution? Or a chaotic cattle call that commoditizes creativity?
Individuals more experienced than I have weighed in, but before I get to the main point of my post, the implications for agency business development, I did want to briefly respond to a few quotes from the piece:
The North Face: Good Intentions, Bad Execution?
The North Face example, I would agree, appears to be a straight up cattle call.
The North Face originally posted an announcement on LinkedIn for a “nationwide RFP” to hire “a studio for our digital e-commerce creative and operational needs”.
Per Lindsey Slaby (who you should follow if you’re not):
It also forces agencies to position themselves broadly—without the necessary details—diluting both their credibility and TNF’s ability to evaluate them meaningfully,” she wrote. “This is the process agencies frequently criticize—one that shifts the burden onto them, leading to wasted time, misalignment and frustration. … If the goal is to find the right partner efficiently, this method seems counterproductive.
And then Jonathan Balck, co-founder and managing director of independent creative shop Colossus, said:
The tactic risks commoditizing creativity, which has recently become a hot-button topic, because it creates an auction-style process that feels entirely transactional.
All of a sudden you’re delivering ideas to a client you’ve never met just to get in the door,” Balck said. “I don’t necessarily blame these agencies that are replying. I get it. It’s not a criticism of them. It’s more like, ‘Is this where we are?’
This Isn’t New—It’s Just More Public
Yes, but, isn’t this just the RFP process anyway, whether it’s posted on LinkedIn or not?
(And to be clear, we’re not fans of the RFP hamster wheel at RSW. We don’t ignore them as we’re working for our clients to drive new business, some do make sense, but we’re also not constantly chasing them.)
And them Lindsey points out that these types of callouts –
. . . have attracted a slew of responses from agencies that may not necessarily be fit for the job.
But this is North Face’s problem isn’t it? (And one they probably came to quickly regret fomenting.)
When Open Doesn’t Mean RFP
But reading the piece, the Nike Jordan and Feastables examples weren’t RFPs, and that’s where I don’t have a problem.
In fact, I would call it an opportunity.
From the Ad Age piece:
Benjamin Kaplan, a senior creative director, global brand creative, Jordan Brand, also recently said in a LinkedIn post that he was seeking creative agencies specializing in seasonal retail storytelling, retail and brand activations and events.
And Bryan Waddell, senior brand director of marketing at Feastables and a former marketer at Nestlé for six years, explained how he did it in 2024:
“We are not running an RFP, instead my DMs and inbox are open for the next 45 days to hear from you,” he had written in the LinkedIn post, which garnered nearly 500 likes and more than 150 comments in one week.
As an executive at Feastables, a small snack brand launched by YouTuber MrBeast, Waddell said he didn’t have the resources to run a consultant-led pitch like he did when he worked at Nestlé.
Here’s the Shift That Matters
Now to my point:
Brands are increasingly using alternative tactics to formal reviews.
That comes directly from the Ad Age piece, and as an agency principal or growth leader, you already know this. (Or you should)
One last quote:
For him [Waddell], he said the goal of the LinkedIn call out he launched was to create a Rolodex of potential agency partners that could be a fit for an immediate project or one down the road. And he said Feastables was successful in identifying those partners.
“Any crack in the door is an opportunity,” Waddell said.
This.
Regardless of where you stand, one thing is clear: this shift has implications for agency business development, and how big those implications are, we’ll see.
But for shops willing to adapt, it presents new opportunities to get in front of brands, in some cases, without the red tape of a formal RFP.
BD Leaders: Read Between the Lines
Below are three key BD takeaways every agency should be thinking about now.
(And these should be incorporated into your new business efforts whether this LinkedIn strategy continues for brands or not.)
1. Optimize your Agency LinkedIn Page Yesterday
Even if you’re skeptical of the “LinkedIn cattle call,” more brands could use the platform to scout talent in the future. (Ands again, even if they don’t, you should be using LinkedIn to follow and interact with your prospects. More on this below)
That means:
- Your agency’s LinkedIn presence should clearly communicate your specialties.
- Key leaders at your shop should be actively engaging and posting relevant work.
- Keep case studies, client wins, and differentiators front and center.
BD Tip: Treat your agency’s LinkedIn page like a storefront—because for some brands, it’s becoming the front door.
2. Refine Your Outreach Pitch for Fast, No-RFP Scenarios
When brands post these open calls, they’re not asking for a 20-page deck. They want fast clarity.
You should:
- Create a lean, well-positioned intro message that highlights relevance to the ask.
- Lead with results, not philosophy.
- Be ready with modular creds you can personalize quickly.
(Forget LinkedIn for a moment, this is something you should have, period.)
BD Tip: Build a “Quick-Strike Kit” that lets you respond in 24 hours with purpose and precision.
3. Rethink How You Identify & Nurture Opportunities
This shift signals that the agency search process is potentially becoming more fluid—and often less formal.
And yes, it’s only a handful of brands right now, but you should be doing the following 3 things regardless:
- Track your key marketing decision-maker prospects on LinkedIn and engage with them meaningfully.
- Don’t pitch—comment, contribute, and add value to public posts.
- Use LinkedIn outreach not only for prospecting but also to stay top of mind for project-based work.
BD Tip: Business development isn’t just about knocking on doors—it’s about already being in the room when the conversation starts.
You Don’t Have to Like It—But You Can’t Ignore It
Again, it will be interesting to see where it all goes, but in the Nike and Feastables situations, at least, I see those as more potential opportunities.
And we can talk about commoditizing creativity all we want, but as they say, it is what it is.
Agencies can choose not to be a part of it, as is their right, but their competitors will be there.
