Categories: ad agency business

Deutsch Takes Over Lowe: Done Deal

Posted by: David Kiley on October 15

Interpublic Group of Companies made it official today. Its Deutsch unit will absorb Lowe & Partners in the U.S. But they didn’t take my advice by bagging the Lowe name…

Deutsch Likely To Swallow Lowe at IPG

Posted by: David Kiley on October 14

Interpublic Group of Companies is in advanced talks to merge the U.S. offices of Lowe with Deutsch. The talks were first reported by Adweek. Lowe has been in disarray for…

Volkswagen Going To Next Round With Ad Agencies

Posted by: David Kiley on September 09

German automaker Volkswagen is going to the next round of creative presentations, according to industry executives, with DDB, Deutsch, Goodby Silverstein and Partners, and Wieden & Kennedy. The automaker put…

Leo Burnett Scores AOL Reinvention Job

Posted by: David Kiley on September 08

Score one for the old lion club of Madison Avenue. AOL, the one-time Internet juggernaut now being run by Google innovator Tim Armstrong, tapped Leo Burnett to run the…

Chrysler’s Search for New Ad Agency Help Is On

Posted by: David Kiley on September 02

As reported earlier here, Chrysler has a search and review on for new ad agency help. Despite the automaker’s woes, it is viewed as plum for agencies, because of the…

It’s Hobbes Versus Locke in 21st Century Ad Biz

Posted by: David Kiley on July 31

By Jon Bond Bond is co-chairman and co-founder of Kirshenbaum Bond & Partners When I was in high school, we learned that one of the biggest debates in the…

At New GM, Ad Agencies Could Get Second Life

Posted by: David Kiley on July 22

It’s been a bad week for advertising creative executive Gary Topolewski. General Motors vice chairman and new chief marketing officer singled out a Buick LaCrosse ad recently crafted by Topolewski,…

KFC + Oprah = I Don’t Get It

Posted by: David Kiley on May 07

Kentucky Fried Chicken has for many years tried to downplay its middle name. Fried food = bad food, so the story has been written the last 20 years. Some…

Cyrus Mehri’s Madison Avenue Attack Plan

Posted by: Burt Helm on January 09

D.C. lawyer Cyrus Mehri is coming. “Take cover, people. Take cover,” is how Steve Hall over at Adrants sums up the feeling on Madison Avenue. Mehri, founder of Mehri &…

Crispin racks Up Old Navy

Posted by: David Kiley on October 07

Old Navy has tapped Crispin Porter + Bogusky, Miami to take over its ad creative. The unit of Gap has pulled its business from Deutsch/LA last year, and took creative…

Mitsubishi Ad Account Short of Being “Red Meat.”

Posted by: David Kiley on March 26

Usually ad agencies view a car account going into review as a red-meat opportunity. The news that Mitsubishi’s U.S. account I headed for review is being greeted more like…

When Agencies Win Awards After They Lose The Account

Posted by: David Kiley on March 24

Boy that has to stink. At The New York Auto Show last week, IAG Research handed out its IAG Automotive Advertising Awards. IAG, of course, measures effectiveness of ads based…

Crispin Downloads Microsoft.

Posted by: David Kiley on February 27

Crispin Porter & Bogusky, Miami is showing that nay-sayers and boo-birds who were criticizing the agency after losing Miller and Orville Redenbacher, and predicting the agency was on the…

Inside an Ad Agency Youtube Parody of “A Few Good Men.”

Posted by: David Kiley on February 22

Sometimes a youtube video I see speaks for itself. This parody of “A Few Good Men” nicely captures some of the inside dynamics of an ad agency….

Get Ready for Some Whacked-Out Nike Ads

Posted by: Burt Helm on April 24

AdAge is reporting that Nike is moving its ad account to Crispin Porter & Bogusky. CPB is the Miami agency that created the creepy-looking Burger “King,” the creepy-looking undead Orville…

Car Advertising Accounts The Buzz At The NY Auto Show

Posted by: David Kiley on April 05

Forgive me if this is a little bit “Inside Baseball,” but I can’t help myself. Car advertising accounts seem to be very much in play right now, with good sources…

Fallon Has Inside Track on Landing Volvo

Posted by: David Kiley on April 02

Volvo Cars, which is in the middle of a review for its $150 million-$200 million global ad account, dropped incumbent Euro RSCG from the review. Also eliminated was Omnicom’s Amsterdam’s…

Wieden May Be Feeling Pressure. But It Is Feeling Confident in Cars

Posted by: David Kiley on March 28

Sure, Nike throwing some of its creative work open to other ad agencies is supposed to hot-foot Wieden & Kennedy into beefing up its digital capability. And that move was…

No More Man Laws — or any other goofy Crispin ads for Miller

Posted by: Burt Helm on March 22

This just in: Crispin Porter Bogusky just resigned its account with Miller Brewing. There were a series of warning signs: First Crispin’s “Man Laws” campaign (where Burt Reynolds and wrestler…

Deutsch Scores $200 Million Saturn Account

Posted by: David Kiley on January 30

General Motors has awarded its $200 million Saturn account to Deutsch, LA. The loser in this move is Goodby Silverstein & Partners, San Francisco, which held the business since…

Draft “On Top” Ad Stirs Controversy. But I Like It

Posted by: David Kiley on November 29

There is a hulabaloo about an ad that Draft/FCB created to salute award winners at the 2006 Cannes International Ad Festival. Adweek’s Adfreak bolg and The Chicago Tribune have…

You Can’t Knock Audi For Calling A Review

Posted by: David Kiley on September 29

Audi of America confirms that it is in the midst of a review for its estimated $100 million ad account. McKinney of Durham, NC has done, I thought, a pretty…

Strawberry Frog Lands Sam’s Club

Posted by: David Kiley on August 16

New York independent ad agency Strawberry Frog landed the ad account of Arkansas-based Sam’s Club, the warehouse store division of Walmart. Strawberry Frog succeeds Austin, Texas based ad agency GSD&M….

Heineken Chooses Sir Frank Lowe for New Agency.

Posted by: David Kiley on July 07

Sir Frank Lowe is putting his old ad agency in London back together like an old high school band. First, his agency, Red Brick Road, snagged Tesco from Lowe London,…

Pat Fallon’s New Book is Worth The Squeeze

Posted by: David Kiley on July 05

Advertising books. There’s lots of ‘em. I have yet to meet the CEO of an ad agency that didn’t think he or she had a book in them. In…

4A’s Chief Blasts Nets For No Show At Conference.

Posted by: David Kiley on February 27

The American Association of Advertising Agencies is about to get underway with its annual shmooze. And CEO, O. Burtch Drake took a swipe at TV network executives for blowing off…

I’m Looking Forward To Deutsch-Ikea: Part Two

Posted by: David Kiley on January 24

Donny Deutsch’s agency is back working for Ikea, eh?, even after the Donny had called Ikea furniture “total crap…I was always astounded at the shit people had to do to…

MINI USA Chooses Bay Area’s Butler Shine To Replace Crispin Porter

Posted by: David Kiley on December 08

MINI USA, after a three month search , chose Butler, Shine, Stern & Partners as its new ad agency, replacing Miami’s Crispin, Porter +Bogusky, which resigned the business last…

What’s an Ad Agency To Do? Fallon and Grey Get The Axe Despite Good Work.

Posted by: David Kiley on December 01

The other day I blogged on an ad by Fallon, London for the Sony Bravia TV. It’s a great cinematic ad, I blogged. Ballsy, I blogged. Sony, which obviously didn’t…

IPG Break Up Value Not So Tempting for Shareholders

Posted by: David Kiley on October 03

Interpublic Group of Companies Friday said it was posting a fresh $500 million hit to earnings as it restated its financial results since 2000. The continued drag on IPG’s financials,…

BMW Narrows The Search for the New Ultimate Ad Agency.

Posted by: David Kiley on September 21

BMW of North America today narrowed it’s search for a new ad agency to GSD&M of Austin, Kirschenbaum & Bond and Anomaly of New York, and The Martin Agency of…

Shareholder Proposal To Break Up IPG Goes Forward

Posted by: David Kiley on September 20

The Securities and Exchange Commission denied Interpublic Group of Cos.’ request to squash a shareholder proposal for the sale of the company, an action that could certainly lead to a…