Client role ambiguity and satisfaction in client-ad agency relationships

An earlier investigation of the relationships between very large advertisers and their ad agencies found significant correlations among the variables of client-role ambiguity (i.e., lack of certainty regarding relationship and occupational role requirements), client satisfaction, and other relationship characteristics, The present study replicated these findings by investigating a national sample of marketing clients representing much smaller firms. The results indicate that, while role ambiguity is correlated with client satisfaction in the small account setting, there are also significant differences in the consequences of the ambiguity construct between large and small advertisers. In addition, the present study confirms that most clients express quite high levels of satisfaction with their advertising agencies.