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At the Insight Centre at the IPA, we work with over 200 UK agency members, from big network players to smaller boutique shops. We create and commission market and consumer reports/studies/surveys for member engagement, as well as working alongside other IPA departments. We subscribe to a wide and large range of resources which we subsume under three main pots: category/consumer/advertising.
IPA Case Study
What made ALF stand out?
Value for money.
The cost has always been fair and any incremental rises over the years have always been well communicated and explained in advance. Not once have I felt contract renewal and cost proposals have been unreasonable.
Quality.
ALF is a one-stop shop for spends (including the ability to examine these at a regional level), advertiser and non-member agency contacts, quarterly reporting (including by medium and category), and weekly advertiser news. There are not many alternatives I can think of, certainly few that would deliver what ALF does.
It would be remiss of me not to mention all the side benefits too; the numerous newsletter types (which can be selected on and off) are just right, and the weekly product launch is always an insightful and easily digestible read. The interface is easy to use, which makes life a lot easier.
Customer Service.
Finally, and most importantly, our customer service team is always at hand to help us with any ad-hoc queries. We’re very fortunate to have a friendly, engaged and supportive contact in India, and she has gone above and beyond for us on many occasions.
How easy was it to get started with ALF?
Super easy (bearing in mind there are only a handful of users across the IPA). What helps here is that this has never simply been over a Zoom call; the onboarding has been both in-person, on the phone, and online, which has naturally helped us build a good relationship with the key contacts we have at ALF.
The team at ALF is always available to help.
They never leave us hanging or treat us like an inconvenience at all. This is very reassuring. India, in particular, makes regular calls during the year to see how things are at my end. I can safely say not everyone shows this care or initiative!
"There are not many alternatives I can think of that would deliver what ALF does."
Can you share any success stories?
I would say the biggest success story, from my point of view, is how we have been able to commit long-term to the ALF platform – a testament to India and the team. In the initial years, we simply opted for 12-month fixed contracts, never sure whether the service would be something that might be dispensed with should we ever encounter budgeting pressures.
Thankfully, this was never a possibility, and having increased exposure of the service among colleagues along with the extra help the ALF team have given us over the years, we successfully argued for our current contract to be more long-term (over the span of several years).
It’s a sign of our satisfaction and a collective decision to commit to the relationship further, which goes to show how the partnership has grown over the years and how much of a useful ally the ALF platform has become.
Would you recommend ALF?
Having the platform at your disposal ensures you’ll always learn something new while enabling you and your team to keep abreast of what’s important across the industry (and what isn’t). It’s an easy-to-use platform with just the right level of features, and the team at ALF are always adding extra value as the site develops.
In an era where people increasingly need to eyeball their budget requirements and the suite of resources they command, the bang for your buck with ALF is evident, and quickly something you’d want to ring-fence when it comes to budgeting for the next year.
I would very much endorse ALF as a subscriber platform.
"The bang for your buck with ALF is evident - and quickly something you’d want to ring-fence when budgeting for the next year."
