By Tanya Fretheim, CEO
This week, the ad world experienced the merger heard ‘round the world. Nearly 10,000 jobs affected internationally. Three legacy ad agencies with nearly 300 years of collective advertising greatness gone.
It’s a sad time for those of us who love a good ad because the agencies that are now gone created some of the best ads ever made. But as the head of a local agency here in Chicago, I’m not here to shed a tear for acronyms on the exterior walls of some downtown skyscraper. I’m also not trying to dance on gravesites. But I believe the recent mega-merger could be good for agencies like ours and the types of businesses we hope to serve.
Certainly, fewer agencies in the world means less competition for us. It also creates opportunity for businesses that don’t have massive budgets or the global needs of multinational brands. The door is now open for dissatisfied clients looking for a more personalized and focused touch that mega-agencies could not provide. In moments like this, our ability to be lean, flexible, and more focused becomes the remedy some may seek.
As a nimble agency, we take pride in our ability to deliver personalized attention to our clients without the need to feed massive operating budgets. Their business is our business. Their branding, messaging, campaigns, they all get tailored to meet their goals in a firsthand fashion. Nothing gets lost in translation because there is no need to translate. A smaller, nimble agency like ours can deliver more value than a big-name agency that treats them like one of hundreds of accounts.
The inevitable account shuffle to come for existing clients during the merger will no doubt be exhausting and expensive. Re-educating and retraining teams. They’re entering a whole new onboarding process they never wanted. With a firm such as ours, we’re deeply invested in every piece of business and would never dare to endanger it by shuffling it off elsewhere when the deliverables are done. There is no handoff after the senior pitch to junior team. If a client needs to switch horses midstream at midnight, we’ll all be there treading water in our pajamas with the reins of a new stallion in hand.
As a mid-sized agency, we understand that nobody knows your business, your customers, and your market like you do. We also understand you hire us for the expertise of our team and our point of view. But your dollars are spent on craft and creation. We don’t have floors and floors of lawyers and market experts, soothsayers and fortune tellers that need to get paid for getting to know your brand. There are no marble floors or expansive board rooms that require a hefty bill to cover the cost of rent. Do you want market research? Big budget video? Clear cutting strategy? We can do that. Do we require it like many big agencies do?
No.
Additionally, the reported 4,000 layoffs nationally means some incredibly talented people with big brand experience will start looking for a cozier home that our agency can offer: a home without the intense security protocols to walk in the door. No revolving door of leadership, team members, or accounts; a place where they feel welcomed rather than a number on a keycard. Again, I’m not trying to dance on gravesites but rather change storm clouds into some sunshine. If you’ve been recently cast off from a big agency, bring your big brand expertise to a smaller agency and they will love you for it.
If you’re a business or nonprofit, or a recently reduced agency professional, now might be the perfect time to engage with an agency like ours. You’ll benefit from the personalized approach, attentive service, smarter budgets, and a partner who generally cares about your success. If so, my phone is always on and there’ll always be an open space on my calendar to talk.
