The Big Agencies Are Consolidating. Where Does That Leave Smaller Advertisers?
Three giant agency groups, a run of senior reshuffles and growth that is patchy in the UK. Why a smaller advertiser should think carefully before joining a big agency's client list.
The world’s media agencies are now dominated by three groups: Publicis, Omnicom after its takeover of IPG, and WPP. Publicis reported organic growth of 5% in the third quarter, with media growing fastest (Adweek). Havas reported 2.4% growth and described the UK as “challenging”, according to Campaign. WPP has reshuffled its senior team again under chief executive Cindy Rose, including a new chief client officer for WPP Media in the UK.
Why this matters to a smaller advertiser
Holding companies are built around scale. Their trading deals with broadcasters are negotiated on the total money they control, and their attention follows the biggest clients. When growth is hard to find and the groups are restructuring, the pressure is to win and keep the large accounts. A brand spending a few hundred thousand pounds on TV can still get a good rate through a big agency. It is much less likely to get senior attention.
You buy a big agency’s rates. You rarely get its best people.
What you get, and what you don’t
- You get access to pooled trading deals, broad research tools and a single point of contact for every channel.
- You often don’t get senior buyers on your account, flexibility on small or short-notice campaigns, or full visibility of how your money is used in the group’s wider deals.
- Watch for principal-based buying, where the agency buys inventory itself and resells it. It can be good value, but it is not independent advice.
When an independent makes more sense
An independent TV buyer earns its keep when your budget is too small to matter to a holding company but big enough that mistakes are expensive. Typically that means first-time TV advertisers, direct-response brands that need weekly optimisation, regional campaigns, and brands that want a second opinion on what a big agency is charging. The test is simple: who will actually plan and negotiate your schedule, and how senior are they?
Questions to ask any agency
- Who will buy my airtime day to day, and how much experience do they have?
- Do you earn rebates or volume bonuses on my spend, and do I see them?
- Is any of my airtime bought on a principal basis?
- Can I audit what I paid against what was delivered?
Our guide to choosing a TV media buying agency covers fee models in more detail.
Independent, senior TV buying advice for UK advertisers — no unnecessary agency layers. Get a clear view of what to buy, why it is worth buying and what a fair price looks like.
Contact Matt Way