Agents don't always necessarily book the most commercially successful acts but they usually do have an agenda.

For instance, one well known Scottish agent relentlessly pushes "Americana" acts of varying quality. To be fair, they are usually very good for "their kind" but this certainly has had an influence on the booking policy of many folk clubs for good or ill and the more traditional/home grown acts often miss out as a result.

However, whatever the genre of music, many clubs and concert organisers can fall into the trap of just accepting what is on offer when they could and should be more pro active themselves as regards bookings... i.e. seeking out the artists and styles of music that they and their audiences really want.

Of course, they should still be prepared to try something new or different as well and, arguably, they may benefit from the knowledge and efforts of a good agent too.