In this new era of marketing, emerging channels and performance  measurement pressures, multiple vendor management can be challenging,  requiring intense coordination in creative formats and technologies  that don't easily work together. Working through a direct marketing  agency may relieve you from the management and coordination  activities but mark-ups take a big bite out of your budget. Costco is a great example of a company that values its relationship  with its service providers. For example, it understood that community- based marketing was critical to its regional and individual warehouse  success. However, the home office marketing groups were spending much  of their time and resources to customize and personalize messages and  materials for the regions and warehouses. Costco approached a  marketing service provider with this challenge, which resulted in the  creation of one fluid process within the