This year’s Agency Report Card holds few surprises, although there are some notable developments. There’s no question agency groups such as Interpublic, Omnicom, Publicis and WPP took a hit last year. But there were no major casualties, despite some individual offices suffering.
The Japanese giants arguably bore the brunt of the economic crisis, as their core business shrank considerably in the domestic market, forcing increased diversification.
Interestingly, 2009 was the year that smaller agency networks stepped further forward. BBH made up in creativity what it lacked in scale, while PHD made a strong showing. It gained two points on the report card, having benefited from OMG resources to win some of the biggest pitches of 2009, ending the year with the prized Unilever China account.
We have been compiling the report card for seven years in an effort to reflect, fairly and accurately, the year that was. It’s not a perfect science, but we believe it’s a comprehensive report of agency performance, packed with information and analysis that we hope you will find valuable and thought provoking.
Each score card focuses on the Asia-Pacific performance of a particular agency, with both regional and local highlights.
We’ve set out to be as fair and accurate as possible, because we know that these assessments matter. They matter to agency staff and clients - potential and existing. They also matter to network leaders and holding company chiefs keen to get Media’s perspective on how their Asian assets are doing.
The fact that these assessments are of so much importance is something that we’re very proud of, but it’s also exactly why compiling the report card is such a painstaking and lengthy process that begins four months earlier.
As billings are only a partial indicator of an agency’s health, our own assessments on business development, management strength, innovation and work have become even more pertinent, filling the quantitative vacuum with a careful qualitative assessment. Being able to judge how well an agency head steered a network in difficult times, how committed a regional creative director is to producing work that works, or how strong partnerships between offices are when it comes to delivering integrated solutions, are important indicators in determining agency performance.
It’s against these measures that marketers judge whether an agency is right for their brand, and young talents decide whether they have a long-term future in the agency. And it’s against these measures that analysts are increasingly evaluating networks.
As always, we welcome your feedback on the Report Card.
Email atifa.silk@media.asia
This article was originally published in the 28 January 2010 issue of Media.
