Service. Manufacturing. Retail. Businesses tend to place themselves in industry categories to help them define what business they are in. For years, marketing agencies have considered themselves in the service industry.

However, the article that we read for our latest installment of the ADD Book Club, “I’m Getting Out of This Industry,” by Alex Bogusky, questions the accuracy of this classification. (ADD stands for Attention Deficit Disorder; we generally can’t focus long enough to read full-length books, so our club discusses articles.)

Jordan Milan contends that agencies have to straddle several industries, as Holly Olson listens.

What industry are agencies in?

Alex argues that in a typical service setting, you go to the business, ask for something to be done and in return, you get exactly that. However, many agencies are asked to create something new and inventive for their clients. This is a trait that you would not want from, say, your hair stylist. After exploring the possibility that agencies may be in the manufacturing industry (meaning we create objects) he settles on a category called the creation industry. This means that agencies create new items that have never been thought of before.

There’s more than one category.

In our discussion at WestmorelandFlint, we talked about whether this analysis is correct. We found that it depends on the agency.

• Many firms are run exactly in a traditional service-oriented model. The client asks for a piece of communication and is specific about how it should look. In the end, the client gets exactly what they’ve asked for.

• Other agencies are experts that advise clients on what direction they should take their communication strategy.

• Another group of agencies are built on the basis of breaking new ground and taking their clients ahead of the curve.

There is plenty of room for each type of agency. It all depends on what the business in search of marketing communication help is looking for. Therefore, it is extremely important for businesses to shop around to find the right type of agency to work with.

When I say “shopping around,” I do not mean finding the right price. Rather, you should be in search of the right type of agency that works for you. Whether they are order takers, strategy makers or ground breakers, you will find more success working with the agency that’s the right type for your business.

What industry do you think agencies are in? What industry should they be in? We’d love to hear your comments.