The number of media channels available for advertisers to take their global campaigns to market has grown in the past decade. Alongside this, advertisers’ marketing implementation spend is beginning to catch up.
At least that’s the assumption that that can be made judging by the number of large networks that are spinning off production units into fully-fledged implementation houses. Omnicom’s eg+ Worldwide being the latest example.
While this makes sense for agency networks intent on protecting their margins, it’s not clear whether advertisers and publishers will benefit.
Disappearing advertiser spend
Transparency has always been one of the questions on the minds of advertisers when considering networked agencies. They will want to understand exactly how their spend is deployed throughout the network and how much of it reaches the publisher.
Nick Manning, chief strategy officer of Ebiquity, a leading independent marketing analytics specialist, suggests this could be as low as 40 cents in the dollar: “Far too much control still lies with agencies and ad tech firms, with far too much of an advertiser’s spend disappearing into the supply chain across multiple, often unknown, intermediaries.”
Overheads, legacy technology and lengthy processes
Larger agency networks may also struggle to match the agility and efficiency of the best independent agencies. The overheads, legacy technology and lengthy processes common within large corporations can also apply in large agency networks.
In contrast, independents have the advantage of low overheads, as well as the ability to keep them low. They can cherry pick the very best technologies and customise
or build them where they see value for themselves, their partners and clients.
Digital asset management systems as well as approval, translation and video subtitling applications are powering today’s best global marketing campaigns towards success.
Multi-independents agency solution
Many brands take the option of assembling the best independent agencies and bundling them together to create their own solution. There are obvious advantages to cherry picking the best independents within their areas of specialism. Advertisers retain the power to select:
- The best hotshot creative agency to work with, whether they have a global network or not.
- Their preferred media agency, where control of transparency and margins remains with the advertiser.
- A global marketing implementation agency that offers a global network, scalability and/or efficiencies to suit the advertiser’s needs.
Collaboration is key to this. There are many examples of where multiple independent agencies have worked together to deliver some of today’s best-known global campaigns.
EA Games’s FIFA 16, IHG Crowne Plaza’s You First and Fitbit’s Find Your Fit are examples of where Freedman International has worked on such activity.
When Fitbit, the wearables firm, decided to launch its first global TV campaign, it turned to Argonaut, a hotshot creative agency from its home city of San Francisco. Its “Find Your Fit” work was implemented across six markets and the creative, its TV clearance, subtitling, voiceovers and implementation were all delivered successfully by the best-of-the-best independent agencies. In fact, the campaign was so successful that it now reaches 15 markets and continues to grow. The collaboration itself is also extending to other partners and legal bodies.
Who benefits from the network agency model?
Of course, network agencies continue to have their place. Multi-national advertisers, such as Mondelez and Heinz, that aim to squeeze as much value as possible from their chosen agencies, will most likely welcome the spin-off implementation houses.
However, in my view, this is another model that is designed to protect the margins and status quo that already exist within the networked agency model and will not appeal to fast growing and moving companies. Companies such as EA Games and Fitbit are voting in favour of the independents and finding a good deal of success doing so.
Kevin Freedman is chief executive of Freedman International
This advertisement feature is paid for by the Marketing Agencies Association, which supports the Guardian Media & Tech Network’s Agencies hub.
