Steve Piluso, A.C.

Interesting insight into conversations between Google and publishers, all seemingly focused on yield optimization for their respective organizations with little discussion on improving advertiser campaign performance or return-on-ad-spend. Advertisers investing in programmatic digital media really need to take note of the continued lack of transparency, hidden ad tech fees, and manipulative pricing methodologies that are emblematic of this space and that are sapping their working media dollars.

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Solid overall performance for Omnicom in Q2 with Advertising, Media and Experiential leading the way, but Asia Pacific continues to be challenging   John Wren, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Omnicom said: "Our 5.2% organic growth in the second quarter drove solid growth in adjusted EBITA & EPS, with good performance in our larger markets and disciplines. With the rapid adoption of Gen AI, creativity and talent matter more than ever to address the breadth and complexity of consumers. To serve our clients with the best, most advanced capabilities, we continue to strategically align our agencies and invest in robust data and technology, scaled content and production, e-commerce, and retail and performance media - all embedded in our industry-leading Omni platform."   Having set organic revenue growth expectations at between 4% and 5%, delivering 5.2% in Q2 (4.6% for H1) must have been satisfying for Wren to announce.   Key to this was 7.8% organic growth in the Advertising & Media discipline, which represented 53.1% of total revenue in Q2. Another discipline with very strong performance was ‘Experiential’ which saw 17.6% growth off the back of 9.5% in Q1, but this is off of a relatively smaller base of just 4.8% of total revenues.   However, these overperformers were offset by underperformance in all other disciplines: Precision Marketing, Public Relations, Healthcare and Execution & Support grew by 1.4%, 0.9%, 2.0% and 1.2% respectively – well below the 5.2% average for the quarter. But the most challenged discipline for the second quarter in a row was the curiously named Branding & Retail Commerce which saw a 3.8% organic decline (Q1 it was also down 3.8%).   It would seem that the online / retail commerce bubble off the back of Covid has worked its way through, whilst consumer appetite for experiences – physical experiences in particular – have grown. Not really new news.   The geographic split of Omnicom’s revenues shows four regions performing well: US (which is 52.8% of total revenues), UK, Euro Markets & Other Europe and Middle East & Africa grew 6.3%, 6.9%, 4.5% and 8% respectively. Latin America showed very impressive organic growth of 24.5%.   But these were pulled down primarily by a 0.1% decline in Asia Pacific. The other region that saw a decline was Other North America, which was down a rather large 8.3%. Whilst it is a small proportion of total revenue at 3% there is a story behind this to watch. Over the last week it has emerged that BBDO, TBWA and DDB are coming together under the name of Omnicom Advertising Group. I should imagine that the independent agencies in Canada are rubbing their hands in glee. In the press release Wren stares that “we continue to strategically align our agencies”. Again, not really new news – a major group streamlining its businesses and brands … but sad for someone who has been in this world for a little while as I have. Some great analysis from The Drum with a little quote in there from me...

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A smart move by Colgate-Palmolive. It's not that people don't want to share any of their data - they want a fair exchange of value in return (and they want to be the ones to make the decision, not the other way around). “We’re not collecting data just to have it. It’s important that there’s a reason behind everything we collect – a value proposition.” #FirstPartyData #DigitalMarketing

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CMO’s, ask your chief media officer or head of global media if your agency takes a principal role in any of the media that is purchased on your behalf and if so, what percentage of your total media investments it represents. If they don’t readily know the answers to these questions you need to initiate an audit process. As my first boss in media taught me MANY years ago: “Don’t expect what you don’t inspect!” “Client-side members bear some of that responsibility because they keep squeezing compensation. They ask for extended payment terms. And they ask their agencies to buy cheaper. That trifecta of factors has contributed to the rise in principal media.” Bill Duggan, group executive vice president at the Association of National Advertisers And, to be clear, there are certain use cases where agency as principal makes sense, particularly for smaller advertisers who need to achieve their growth goals within a constrained budget. I personally don’t think agency as principal is appropriate for marketers who invest $100MM and up in advertising, however. #transparency #accountability #fiduciary Patience Haggin The Wall Street Journal

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Yep, scale still matters in media, especially if you’re an agency. Further agency consolidations aren’t necessarily good news for advertisers, who are facing more competitive conflicts sharing agencies with rival brands and facing reduced transparency as agencies grow more powerful. Possible this could trigger some high profile media pitches in 2025 as rival brands race to secure the best terms within the merged group. #MediaForGrowth https://lnkd.in/g4NnXTsE

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I can sum up the Omnicom acquisition of IPG in four words - technology and media scale.

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Great read from Bill Duggan about the importance of standardization when it comes to retail media networks' measurement. "Retail media networks are walled gardens—they are ad ecosystems that don’t share data—making it difficult to compare RMNs. To optimize investment, marketers need to be able to make apples-to-apples comparisons between RMNs," writes Duggan. #PerformanceMeasurement #Retail #Media #Advertising

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Please - whatever you do. Don’t put the “manosphere” in your next marketing deck. I know you want to. It’s a new, shiny label right there for the taking. Because that’s what we do as an industry. Rather than understand something, we simply label it, and by labeling it, we pretend to understand it. I’ve seen this manosphere word in about 4-5 articles since the election, including what brands should do about it. Nonsense. Enough. It reminds me of a few weeks ago when in the Wall Street Journal, I read an article about another dreaded term - “chaos marketing.” It sounds interesting. It sounds fun. It sounds extreme. “Chaos marketing.” The examples in the article were fantastic. Sunscreen from a whipped cream can. A tampon brand using ice cream packaging to stand out. This wasn’t chaos, this was clever. Incredibly creative and different ways to capture attention. But by using the word chaos, we reduce the tactics to unintelligent. It’s insulting and demeaning. It makes them appear like random thoughts of surprise, unserious marketing efforts that have no calculation associated with them. Why would a CFO want to fund chaos? Or let’s take it back even further. John Hagerty and Orlando Wood on the Uncensored CMO podcast a few months ago rightfully lambasted the word “consumer.” They were right - it’s a terrible word. It assumes that all your customers want to do is consume - consume media, consume creative, consume your product. That we are all just hungry seekers for content, leeching from one thing to the next. Maybe we’re just people, and the nuances within those people can create exciting opportunities to build product and promotions where those people are? And now we have the manosphere. Sure to be in every strategists 2025 predictions deck. “Aha, this is what the rise of the manosphere means for your brand!” Rather than label, investigate. Understand. Explore. It’s not the manosphere, it’s what young men interact with, talk and think about. It’s why they’re thinking what they’re thinking. It’s not some blunt term that simply means, go partner with Theo Vonn. By labeling trends or phenomenon we keep them at arms length. We don’t need to understand them completely, because we know the label, and that’s enough in a world that prioritizes speed over depth. And we sound even more cringey and detached from offering up any sort of powerful marketing strategies to influence customers. So please, I beg you. No “what the manosphere means for you” predictions for 2025. Do that only if you have already dug beneath the surface.

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✅🖥️ New York Times (6/22): “Streaming has long been hailed as a promising business, because companies like Netflix can add additional subscribers at little extra cost. The more paying subs a service has, the more the company’s costs can be spread out over a large base, lowering the cost per sub. But those want lots of options, and the costs of making enough programming can be enormous. As a result, a streaming service’s profitability depends in large part on how many paying subs are needed before those TV shows and movies become cost-effective. There was a time when industry execs hoped that number might be as low as 100MM. But now the consensus among many of the executives interviewed is that the number is at least 200, and possibly more. “If you’re going to be a full entertainment service with live sports and tent-pole blockbusters today, 200MM is a number that can give you the scale with the hope for growth over time,” Amazon (execs have) said. Bob Chapek, Disney’s CEO until 2022, also agreed that 200 was the number that meant “you’re big enough to compete.” Netflix has reached that, and then some, with about 270MM paying subs. Moreover, those pay an industry-leading average of more than $11 per month. Netflix is highly profitable, with operating margins of 28 percent. In the first quarter of 2024, Netflix reported revenue of $9.4B, and $2.3B in net income. No one else comes close. Disney and Amazon are the only other streaming services with more than 200MM subscribers.” ⬇️ #streamingtv #ctvadvertising #avod #svod #ott #fast #upfronts

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New Insights on Gen Alpha to help brands prepare.

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🚀 GLOBAL CMOs’ BIGGEST CHALLENGES AND PRIORITIES FOR 2025 Key insights from the latest CMO Barometer study (via AdAge, by Lindsay Rittenhouse) As we gear up for 2025, the challenges and opportunities facing CMOs are clearer than ever. From AI adoption to tighter budget constraints, this report sheds light on the pressing priorities shaping our industry. Here are my key takeaways: 1️⃣ AI at the Forefront: With 81% of CMOs prioritizing AI, the focus is on mass personalization powered by real-time data. It’s not just about cutting costs—it’s about using AI to unlock creativity, foster innovation, and connect with audiences in transformative ways. 💡🤖 2️⃣ Budgets Under Fire: With 27% of CMOs anticipating budget cuts, the mandate is clear: Do more with less. CMOs need to embrace resourceful creativity, leveraging tools and insights to deliver impactful strategies while maintaining agility. 🎯💰 3️⃣ Skills That Matter: From strategic thinking and emotional intelligence to AI expertise, CMOs are looking for dynamic teams that bridge creativity with data-driven execution. The need to build trust and alignment across the C-suite has never been greater. 🧠🌟 4️⃣ Shifting Priorities: It’s surprising to see sustainability take a backseat after being a top priority last year. While AI dominates the agenda, let’s not lose sight of the importance of ethical marketing and long-term brand responsibility. 🌍✅ As someone deeply involved in marketing and AI, these findings resonate strongly. The future belongs to leaders who can combine data, creativity, and ethics to create meaningful connections in a fast-evolving world. 📖 What’s your biggest focus for 2025? Let’s connect and share ideas! #CMOTrends2025 #AIInMarketing 🤖 #Innovation #MarketingLeadership 💡 #FutureOfWork #AdAge #MassPersonalization #CreativeExcellence

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