Media agencies have been the big generators of profits for agency groups over the past few years, managing to sustain a commission based on media billings (albeit at a low rate) whereas their creative counterparts have tried to charge by the hour.
And no company believes in advertising more than Reckitt-Benckiser, the upstart household products rival to Unilever and Procter & Gamble that has turned the unlikely combination of the Reckitt & Colman food business from East Anglia and the Benckiser detergents business from Holland into a global giant. Its brands include everything from Dettol to Cillit Bang to diner favourite French’s mustard in the States.
But now Reckitts has called a media review of its $1.3bn media account pitching Havas’ Media Planning Group, WPP’s OMD and Publicis’ ZenithOtimedia (Jesus, these are terrible names) against each other.
Whichever two lose will end up axing jobs left right and centre and even the winner will be on reduced pickings.
Is there any way of winning this account other than offering the lowest price?
The big earning days for media agencies may be on their way to the history of fond recollection.