Darren Woolley. Credit: TrinityP3
TrinityP3 has rebuilt its Agency Register, adding an AI search tool aimed at helping brands and procurement teams find partners faster.
Global CEO Darren Woolley told AdNews the update reflects a wider shift in how marketers approach agency selection, with more tenders managed internally and a growing focus on project work rather than retained relationships.
Research from TrinityP3 shows consultants now manage one in five pitches, with 60% handled by marketers and 20% by procurement teams.
The figures highlight a structural shift in how agency appointments are made, as companies take greater control of marketing spend and bring elements of the process in-house.
“Several factors are influencing the new business landscape for agencies, including in-housing, AI, a trend toward projects rather than AoR appointments and more,” Woolley said.
The Agency Register, built over almost two decades, contains thousands of agency profiles and detailed operational data gathered through TrinityP3’s consulting work.
Until now, it was only available to the firm’s direct clients. Woolley said the rebuild was designed to make that data more useful to the wider market.
“We realised we had a valuable resource in the TrinityP3 Agency Register that was only being used by TrinityP3 for those clients who were engaging us to assist with selecting agency partners,” he said.
“Making the Agency Register available to a broader audience of marketers and procurement teams makes sense for all.”
The rebuilt platform allows users to type requests in plain English and receive tailored recommendations from the database.
TrinityP3’s use of AI aims to remove friction from the process, providing faster and more accurate matches between agencies and marketers’ needs.
“AI search makes it easier for someone to search that extensive database by expressing their needs in natural language rather than treating it as a database,” Woolley said.
“Marketers and procurement teams can prompt the AI to search the database for what they need, expressed in the way they think and speak, rather than needing to understand the database structure, terms and labels.”
Woolley said the tool is intended to address inefficiencies in the traditional tender process, where open calls can attract hundreds of agency responses, often creating unnecessary workload for both sides.
“The value of any tool or process lies in the number of people who use it and in delivering the recommendations and results they require,” he said.
“The application of the AI function means more people will be able to get value from this resource by receiving recommendations on the agencies and marketing suppliers that best fit their needs.
“This broadens and improves the consideration process for those seeking agencies and increases exposure and opportunities for agencies when searching for new clients.”
The platform, available by subscription, provides users with information not typically found on agency websites, including ownership, size, key personnel, client rosters and service capabilities.
The data is drawn from almost 20 years of TrinityP3’s work mapping the agency landscape across media, creative, digital, PR and production disciplines.
According to Woolley, bias in search results is managed through the combination of user prompts and the structure of the database.
“Two factors drive the search: the enquirer's request for what they want and the ability to match that enquiry to the information held in the Agency Register database,” he said.
“The request drives the results against how comprehensive and up-to-date the information held within the Agency Register.”
Woolley said long-standing trust between TrinityP3 and the agency community has helped ensure the integrity of the information underpinning the system.
“The many years that TrinityP3 has worked with agencies to match them to clients' needs have built respect and trust,” he said.
“This is particularly important with the TrinityP3 AI Agency Search, as the marketer and the procurement team will provide prompts to define the types of agencies they are looking for, and the AI will match agency profiles on the Agency Register to those needs.”
He said the system is designed to create a more even playing field for agencies of all sizes.
“It creates a level playing field for all because the AI recommendations will be based on the advertiser and procurement request,” he said.
The rebuild also comes amid growing industry frustration with how pitches are run. Agencies have raised concerns about rising costs, time pressures and lack of direct contact with clients during tenders.
“We have recently heard from agencies, particularly overseas, about tenders where the agency and the client never meet,” Woolley said.
“The whole process is managed remotely, and the decision is made based on the documentation and presentations. In our opinion, this is not an improvement.
“But there is undoubtedly dissatisfaction with the current pitch process, with many agencies complaining about the increased cost of tenders and the demands on human resources within the agency.”
While AI is helping streamline early stages of selection, Woolley said technology cannot replace human judgment in making final decisions.
“AI is a fantastic tool, and at this stage, if it streamlines the process, then that is a significant improvement,” he said.
“Having it help you identify a short list of suitable agency partners from the many in the market is one thing.
“Having it decide for you on who you work with is something else entirely. AI will help to streamline the process, but for the foreseeable future, marketing is still about people.”
The AI Agency Search is being piloted in Australia, with TrinityP3 planning a wider rollout if successful.
If it gains traction, the system could further accelerate a shift already under way, one where marketers rely less on consultants to manage pitches and more on data and technology to guide their decisions.
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