International: An Agency to Manage an Enormous Number of Touch Points
Q&A: Aegis Media Americas CEO David Verklin

NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- London-based Aegis Group has bought four marketing companies in the past three months, including Genesis Media, one of Canada's largest independent media agencies, and Implicom, a direct-marketing specialist in France. David Verklin, CEO, Aegis Media Americas, characterizes the company's purchases in recent years as emblematic of its vision for the marketing agency of tomorrow.
Here, he talks with Advertising Age about strategy, integration and what Aegis might look like in 10 years.
MediaWorks: What is it that you are trying to build with your recent acquisitions in the Americas?
David Verklin: We really believe there is major opportunity north of the border and south of the border. Our Canadian business has been slowly but surely growing, and we just acquired the last major independent in Canada [Genesis]. We will use that to bring out our second brand in Canada, which is Vizeum. I believe Carat will go from the No. 7 player in Canada, which is where we were 60 days ago, to, by the year end, the third-largest agency in Canada.
We also believe there is an enormous opportunity in South America in digital. The digital revolution will come to Latin America next. So we bought AgenciaClick in Brazil, which was the largest independent digital agency in Latin America. ... We fully intend to build out Isobar [Aegis' digital network] throughout Latin America ... so one part of the strategy has been geographic expansion.
MediaWorks: And the second?
Mr. Verklin: The next thing is this move to create the agency of the future -- the merge of Carat Fusion and Carat USA. That's a big deal. It's never been done before at this scale. The new Carat is 1,000 people, eight offices, 250 clients -- it includes digital creative. Nobody's done it at this scale. This would be akin to Starcom and Digitas merging, and I don't think people quite have figured out what we are up to. I don't think it takes a rocket scientist to say that you need to bring your on- and offline enterprises under one operating system. The clients are there and the consumer is there. It's not like the consumer makes a distinction between TV and online. And the clients are saying, "Just manage the brand."
MediaWorks: How have the new offerings at Carat and Aegis been received by clients?
Mr. Verklin: I gave a speech two years ago at an OMMA conference, where I said that within two years, 20% of most client spending would be digital. And everyone laughed. It's not that funny anymore. The new Carat clearly is looking at managing a business that has become digital faster than anybody could have imagined. The new Carat is much more prepared for web 2.0 ... [and] I'm surprised at the speed that clients are getting there. I think [Aegis] is ahead of the market and I'm really proud of that. We are six months to a year ahead of the market, but isn't that what I am supposed to do?
MediaWorks: Some of Aegis Group's acquisitions have been in ad serving, sports marketing and direct -- how do they fit into the big picture?
Mr. Verklin: Well, let's go through the companies. You saw us buy Bluestreak, which I think has been one of our most clever acquisitions. In the ad-serving business, the big player by far is DoubleClick. The second biggest player is Atlas, and between the two you have 90% of the business. But what about the other 10% of the business? The next big player is a company called Bluestreak, and they are particularly good at rich-media ad serving. So that brings us into ad serving. Genesis is more scale in Canada. ... We bought a company a year ago called Velocity, which is the fourth-largest sports-marketing company in America, and [event and experience marketer] Vivid.
More and more clients are asking us to manage all the consumer touch points. Do you think the marketing plan of the future is going to be simple or more complex than today? To me it's a no-brainer. The marketing plan of tomorrow has to manage an enormous number of touch points. If you want to look at the marketing plan of the future, look at your feet in the shower tomorrow. It's like the tiles of a bathroom floor, lots of little components fitting together holistically into one whole. Lots of tiles. The marketing plan of the future has to have search, it has to have site design and build, it has to have on- and offline, analytics and multicultural, electronic and out of home.
MediaWorks: How do you see the Aegis model working 10 years from now?
Mr. Verklin: It will be more and more integrated. Most agencies are brilliantly synchronized. There is a difference between synchronization and integration. Our educational system has made this differentiation clear to us, you can't have two school houses and call that integrated. Integrated means one building, one structure, one operating schoolhouse, and that's what we've built in Carat and Aegis. We need to move from synchronization to true integration ... and that will continue.
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E4M Our strategy is to target younger audiences through Sports: Rajiv Dubey, Dabur
The Head of Media at Dabur India spoke exclusively to exchange4media on the World Cup, associating with Indian Idol, the company’s digital spending and much more
With quirky campaigns, memes and moment marketing, timed with the ongoing World Cup and particularly the India-Pakistan matches, Dabur India has got considerable consumer attention for its popular brands – Red Paste, Cool King Hair Oil, Chyawanprash, Dabur Vita and the recently launched Bae Fresh Gel toothpaste.
The 140-year-old company is going big on key sporting events, World Television Premiere (WTP) movies and reality shows. It is now gearing up to become the title sponsor of popular talent show ‘Indian Idol’ on Sony TV for the first time, shared Rajiv Dubey, who leads the media strategy at Dabur.
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Swapan Seth's new book 'COOL' is out
The book is a reflection of the author's 'eclectic taste across categories'
Advertising professional and art collector Swapan Seth has announced the launch of his new book COOL. The book is described as "a ready reckoner to the hip and the happening, of the known and the very unknown."
The book is a reflection of the author's "eclectic taste across categories: from boltholes to exotic hideaways."
COOL has been published by Simon & Schuster India and is available on Amazon.
Seth is an ad veteran with a long and illustrious career in the industry. He became the youngest-ever Creative Director at Clarion at age 24. He was VP at 26 at Trikaya Grey. Two years later, he started his agency Equus.
He writes for publications such as The Economic Times, Hindustan Times and India Today. This is his second book and he has previously published THIS IS ALL I HAVE TO SAY.
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Disney Star signs 9 sponsors for Asia Cup PAK
Charged by Thums Up, Nerolac Paint+, Amazon Pay, Jindal Panther, My11Circle, MRF, Samsung Galaxy Z Flip5, Wild Stone and Thums Up come on board
e4m Staff Disney Star has signed nine broadcast and digital streaming sponsors for the upcoming Asia Cup.
Charged by Thums Up, Nerolac Paint+, Amazon Pay, Jindal Panther, My11Circle, MRF, Samsung Galaxy Z Flip5, Wild Stone and Thums Up have come on board for the upcoming tournament.
As reported earlier by exchange4media, Disney Star has sought Rs 26 crore for the co-presenting sponsorship on TV and Rs 30 crore for Disney+ Hotstar.
According to industry sources, the associate sponsorship on Star Sports has been priced at Rs 19.66 crore, whereas for the ‘powered by’ sponsorship on Disney+ Hotstar, the broadcaster is seeking Rs 18 crore.
As per the information available with exchange4media, Disney+ Hotstar has three sponsorship tiers-- co-presenting (Rs 30 crore), powered by (Rs 18 crore) and associate sponsorship (Rs 12 crore). The broadcaster is offering an estimated reach of 120-140 million for co-presenting sponsors, 90-100 million for powered by and 60-70 million for associate sponsorship.
A spot buy for 10 seconds has been priced at Rs 25 lakh for the India vs Pakistan matches, while for the non-India matches, the ad rate for 10 second is Rs 2.3 lakh. The India matches plus the final for ODIs has been priced at Rs 17 lakh per 10 seconds.
Asia Cup is scheduled to be held from 30 August, 2023, to September 17, 2023.
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Sorted 360 wins creative & social media mandate of Reliance Mall
The agency will manage offline and online campaigns for Reliance Mall
Sorted 360, an integrated creative and social media agency, has won the mandate to providing brand solutions for Reliance Malls across India.
“Sorted 360 is set to enhance Reliance Malls' market presence with their unparalleled creative prowess and strategic thinking,” read a press release.
“Sorted 360's commitment to pushing the boundaries of creative communication aligns perfectly with Reliance Malls' ethos. With a pan-India presence spanning across 19 cities and growing, Reliance Malls has consistently captivated customers by offering an array of Reliance brands and third-party fashion & lifestyle brands. The mall has established an unparalleled connection with its patrons through superior quality, a remarkable value proposition, and an unmatched shopping experience,” it read further.
"We are thrilled to welcome Sorted 360 as our trusted partner in advancing our brand presence across the nation," said the Head of Marketing at Relaice Malls. "Their proven expertise in retail, shopping center management, and innovative creative strategies make them the perfect fit for our vision."
"Partnering with Reliance Malls is a testament to our commitment to shaping extraordinary brand experiences," remarked Prerana Anatharam, Co-founder of Sorted 360. "We are excited to leverage our strategic and creative acumen to further elevate Reliance Malls as the epitome of convenience, choice, and excellence."
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KlugKlug onboards Hemang Mehta as Country Manager for Indias
Mehta was most recently Head of Agency Relationships at Network 18 Media & Investments
KlugKlug has appointed Hemang Mehta as its Country Manager for India.
Mehta will play a pivotal role in driving KlugKlug's growth and expansion within the Indian market and be responsible for Sales & GTM Strategy
Prior to that, he has also represented organisations like Exponential (now VDX.tv), India Today Digital and Rediff.com. His expertise spans various domains including digital media sales, mobile marketing, media planning, and buying, social media marketing, and more.
Hemang Mehta expressed his enthusiasm about joining KlugKlug, saying, "I am thrilled to be a part of KlugKlug, a forward-thinking platform that is reshaping the influencer marketing landscape. As much as I look forward to collaborating with the exuberant team at KlugKlug, I am super excited to interact with the brands to deliver powerful data-backed Influencer solutions that will guarantee business outcomes."
Commenting on the appointment, Kalyan Kumar, Co-Founder and CEO of KlugKlug, stated, "We are excited to welcome Hemang Mehta to our team as the Country Manager for India. His extensive experience in digital media sales and marketing will be instrumental in driving our efforts to provide influencer marketing solutions to our clients. We believe Hemang's leadership will be key in scaling our operations and expanding our reach within the Indian market."
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