Libby Bollig’s Post

Omnicom Group’s planned acquisition of Interpublic Group (IPG), creating the world’s largest marketing services holding company, will also be a positive for independent midsize shops, according to their CEOs. Check out their thoughts on this week's mega-deal news ⤵️

I spoke with PRWeek about how the #communications landscape is changing, and the benefits of independence. As an independent agency, we have the freedom and agility to innovate and put our clients first. Read the full piece here: https://lnkd.in/ekwcGKYb   #LifeatRF #whatsnext

Kicking off the first Gen Zeitgeist of the year, Greenough Communications senior account supervisor Alana MacLeod dissects the benefits for Gen Z professionals of working for larger holding companies versus smaller, independent shops amid a rise in consolidation. "While big agencies follow the same cookie-cutter approaches, independent firms can give Gen Z freedom to innovate by stepping away from traditional playbooks and carving out new paths and ways of thinking about marketing, comms and PR."

Two of the big five agency holding companies, Omnicom and Interpublic Group (IPG), are set to merge. Trinity P3 Global Marketing Management Consultancy’s Stephen Wright breaks down the potential winners and losers from the deal and its implications for the Australian market. "... the tangible client benefits are hard to see — particularly in the Australian market. Does this market need a new agency behemoth? Almost certainly not."

Ad Agencies in Creative Crisis? CEO Says We're Losing Our Edge! Is the obsession with profits killing great ideas? Cressida Holmes-Smith, CEO of Lucky Generals, argues creativity is the secret weapon agencies are forgetting. Read full article here: https://lnkd.in/eWYNbsFy #Creativity #AdTech #Marketing #agencylife #ThinkDifferent #FutureofAds

What does Omnicom’s acquisition of IPG mean for the industry? 🌐 LBBonline - Little Black Book spoke to James Shoreland, our VCCP Media CEO, about how the news will impact how our industry operates. 📈James says the acquisition “is an example of a growing trend in our industry that we should all be excited about”. He explains that the scale of big holdcos is becoming a "hindrance to integration”, and as a result “clients have started to seek alternatives to help them integrate at pace”. 🤝James has noticed a number of agencies responding with a more integrated approach who are “best-placed for clients wanting to work with one partner across all crafts and processes, and they’re best suited for strategic and creative agency practitioners who love working in cross-functional teams.” ❓In an ever changing industry, James urges clients and agency folk to think about what type of agency they’d like to work with, or work for. Read the full piece here: https://lnkd.in/gsSwNjN9

Senior Media Analyst Jamie MacEwan was quoted in Campaign on the rationale of and potential for the merger of ad agency giants Omnicom and Interpublic Group (IPG). Read here: https://lnkd.in/eDduUnn9

Very much enjoyed masquerading as a competition lawyer this week to explore what this consultation from DCMS might mean for our media sector clients. The TLDR? The same regime, expanded to capture a broader category of news publishers, but not (despite alternative proposals) any "news creator". Interesting to see once again how fragmentation of media consumption (and in this case, specifically news) across platform/provider/screen continues to challenge our existing media regulatory regime.

Ad Age caught up with our Head of Context Planning, Joel Rodriguez, who's seen the transformation and growth of the company throughout his 13-year career here at Translation. Check out the link below to hear his insights on sustaining independence and what it means to push culture forward for two decades. #pushingcultureforward #thefutureisindependence https://lnkd.in/gc-47Zsi

What Bill Bernbach wrote in 1947 about the 'trap of bigness' seems rather prescient today, doesn't it? As news of the potential Omnicom-IPG merger swirls about, I'm reminded of how nature abhors both a vacuum and a monopoly. Just as a garden doesn't become more fertile by combining all the flower beds into one massive plot, our industry doesn't necessarily become more creative by consolidating its talent pools. The inevitable "synergies" (corporate speak for redundancies) will likely scatter some brilliant minds to the four winds. But here's the delightfully counter-intuitive bit: This corporate consolidation might inadvertently trigger the most exciting wave of creative entrepreneurship our industry has seen in decades. You see, when large organisations optimise for efficiency, they often create spectacular opportunities for inefficiency - and it's in these seemingly inefficient spaces where creativity often flourishes. The soon-to-be-redundant creative director who starts a boutique agency from her kitchen table might just create the next campaign that makes us all question our assumptions about advertising. The great irony is that while the merged entity will be busy harmonising systems and standardising processes, dozens of nimble new agencies will spring up, free from the constraints of quarterly earnings calls and procurement departments. They'll be the advertising equivalent of craft brewers in a world of multinational beverage companies. Bernbach warned about the danger of worshipping technique over substance. Perhaps this merger will inadvertently help restore that balance - not through the creation of a super-agency, but through the beautiful chaos of countless creative insurgencies. Sometimes the best way to preserve something is to break it apart and let it regenerate. Rather like starfish. #Advertising #CreativeIndustry #Marketing #Innovation P.S. - The history of our industry suggests that the most interesting work often comes from those who've been kicked out of bigger agencies. It's rather like how the best restaurants are often started by chefs who got tired of hotel kitchens.