BBDO's mustering of global resources, including from Asia-Pacific,
combined with insightful strategic recommendations have landed the
agency the whole of the DaimlerChrysler worldwide creative account.
BBDO beat out True North agency FCB to win the business in a competitive
pitch.
However, DCMA remained the auto giant's media agency.
DCMA was developed in 1998 as a joint venture between CIA and FCB to
pitch for the DaimlerChrysler media centralisation.
The entire account is believed to be worth about USdollars 2.4 billion,
the biggest in the world.
BBDO Asia-Pacific chief Peter Wilken attended the pitch as did regional
heads from Europe and Latin America.
"Basically, the representation by all the regional people was to
demonstrate support and commitment to this global structure. It was one
big team effort," Mr Wilken told MEDIA.
At the heart of the BBDO's recommendation was the setting up of a global
company within the agency, called PentaMark Worldwide, which would
operate as a unit totally dedicated to the Chrysler Group brands BBDO
Worldwide CEO Allen Rosenshine said, "The issue was how to consolidate
all their business in one global agency that could operate in the most
efficient manner to save DaimlerChrysler meaningful costs vis-a-vis
using BBDO and FCB as they had been doing, and to do so without
sacrificing the quality of the work.
"We showed a full global organisational plan for doing so as well as a
transition plan to put it in place.
"In addition, the resources of Omnicom, BBDO's parent company, were seen
to be more formidable and relevant than True North's, the parent of
FCB."
Meanwhile, talks have begun between CIA and Omnicom to determine how the
media account would be managed in the future.
