Publicis Omnicom Group: All the Facts You Need to Know
The Advertising world has been abuzz over the merger of Publicis and Omnicom, creating the largest advertising agency in the world. Christened Publicis Omnicom (eschewing the catchier Compuglobalhypermeganet moniker) the new company would account for over $22 Billion in ad revenue and bring together agencies like Saatchi & Saatchi and Leo Burnett with BBDO,DDB Worldwide and Razorfish. It also brings together clients like Coke and Pepsi as well as AT&T and Verizon under the same agency roof.
Aside from the obvious challenge of having major competitors being marketed by the same advertising agency, it’s fairly evident where this will lead. One of the first announcements upon sealing the deal is that “no layoffs have been planned”. While the merger may temporarily increase shareholder value in the short term, it’s bound to lead to a talent hemorrhage whether planned or not. And that’s not necessarily a bad thing.
There’s a great deal of strong work in advertising (especially digital) coming from smaller independent shops and it’s not hard to imagine some of the top talent in the new Publicis Omnicom taking a look at greener pastures. Our experience in working with high level talent at large advertising firms owned by huge holding companies bears this out. While working with large budgets and well-known brands is always a draw for the larger agencies, it sometimes comes at the expense of creativity, innovation and agility. Mergers of this size always result in an element of creative destruction.
There will be a period of adjustment on all sides. Publicis Omnicom will no doubt remain a huge force in advertising and marketing but there’s really no such thing as a “merger of equals” beyond the investor related definition – inevitably someone is going to feel that they are “more equal” than somebody else and eventually someone in leadership has to step up and say “we’re going this way”. It’s unclear who that may be in the short and long term.
And they will undoubtedly lose some clients who don’t feel they’re getting the attention they deserve. While their larger marquis clients will most likely stay, some of the smaller clients may not be so keen on being lost in the shuffle. And no matter what, Coke and Pepsi are not going to exist under the same roof.
So while in the short term other holding companies and larger ad agencies may be slightly intimidated by the big kid on the block, we’re looking forward to seeing the newer independent agencies that will emerge from this union and how they will approach the new clients that are suddenly seeking marketers who will consider them top tier.
It’s going to be an interesting time in the world of marketing.