From whispers in agency corridors and pitch-room chatter to what’s buzzing on clients’ side, we’ve got the overheard and untold stories of the advertising industry and its people.
Party poopers
We hear that top bosses of a few global ad networks have asked their India teams to put a pause on office parties and expensive off-sites. With the headquarters feeling the heat of economic fluctuations, these top bosses are getting anxious about spending on seemingly extravagant things and seeing big party bills. Indian agencies of these networks are currently the revenue generators and that’s why HQ bosses are telling all of them that the party can wait! But in good old Indian jugaad style, we’re certain that adwallahs will find creative solutions to their woes. This also reminds us of the time when a top agency boss in India supplied free-flowing alcohol for parties at a discounted rate. The only catch is one had to order from his family’s booze business. Time to make some calls, we guess!
The Zen creator
A founder of an independent agency is exploring the creator side of his personality. We hear he is trying to find a balance between pitching new businesses, hiring new talent, making Reels and going Live on various social apps. He is also taking social detox once a month to clear his mind and timelines. Now that’s a lifestyle that keeps giving fodder for Linkedin posts. Any guesses?
In an exclusive relationship
Over the years, agencies have come up with different models to handle conflicting accounts including second agencies to handle big businesses. We are now hearing that clients want agencies to be their exclusive partners. They don’t want them to handle any other competitive brands in any way. However, they are not ready to pay a premium for these exclusive arrangements, especially to leading creative agencies. So a lot of clients are looking for small shops who can be exclusive partners at one third of the cost. A CXO of a top creative agency says, this option of plenty is killing the traditional agency models and the old guard needs to buckle up. Fair warning.
Cost of creativity
A popular startup founder reached out to an independent writers’ group to create an advertising splash. We hear several other popular startup CEOs also reached out to them for creative association. Insiders tell us that the group is known for being selective about their work. They were paid what they quoted without any negotiations because the founder didn’t want to compromise on creative output. Rumours are that the group has over a dozen brands chasing them for an upcoming sports league.
Chat of the town
We hear a curious legacy marketer dialed his marketing consulting agency to chat about ChatGPT. The marketer was experiencing FOMO. One of the agency’s top CXOs gave the marketer a detailed presentation on ChatGPT. By the end of it, the marketer was left thinking deeply and then he joked how this could mean that he could now cut the agency’s service fee. The call ended with a lot of awkwardness and nervousness.