The gruelling and stressful nature of the pitching process has been laid bare in a new report which reveals that up to one in ten (11%) agency staff has had to leave their roles due to stress-induced medical issues.
Carried out by presentation software provider Pitch, the report surveyed 1,029 agency staff and marketers across the UK and US. Alarmingly, it also found that half (50%) of participants admitted to being ‘burned out’ by the pitching process, resulting in 17% taking paid time off work, 11% being medically signed off work and 11% leaving their roles altogether.
Many respondents also cited ongoing global economic uncertainty as an added factor in the pressurised pitching process, with 70% of those surveyed believing that they were under additional pressure.
Frustration with team-members changing content also featured high on the grip list, with 69% singling it out.
“With so many companies now assessing the bottom-line impact of pitching for new business, they can no longer afford to ignore the toll the pitch process takes on employee welfare either,” Pitch chief marketing officer Sarah Kiefer said.
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“Stress and burnout are massive contributors to staff turnover rates, so leaders in the marketing sector need to assess if their approach to winning business is sustainable.”
On a more positive note, 71% felt that the switch to remote working had ‘opened up new opportunities’, with over half (54%) believing that hybrid working made it easier to collaborate throughout the process.
More than six in ten (61%) however believed that virtual pitching had made winning new business more difficult.
Speaking to Campaign, Gravity Road creative director Rob Mayhew added: “Having spent over 20 years working in the industry, the pressure of pitching has never changed. It still involves late nights, a gold/silver/bronze budget, three routes (two safe, one exciting), working weekends, no time to rehearse… I could go on.
“But pitching should be the best bit about our job — the thrill of the chase, the joy of boundless creativity. Working on pitches used to be a badge of honour, but it has become a trigger of stress and burnout in recent years. Agencies need to re-evaluate the impact that pitching can have on teams, and provide solutions for making the process easier, more collaborative and fun again.”
