The ad agency model is in trouble. In the last year alone, the world’s biggest ad conglomerate WPP has seen a 42% drop in its share price. 

At the same time Facebook and Google’s share of the ad market has been growing while management consultancies have been acquiring ad agencies (Accenture acquired 10 agencies in 2017.)

Most in the ad agency world agree that  the dominance of the TV ad as the key unit of advertising is coming to an end.

I would argue that the idea of a full service agency may be dying with it.

Digital has made the media world  too fragmented and diverse for clients to believe that one ad giant has all the answers.

Instead there are an increasing number of bespoke set ups that will break off a particular piece of the professional services/agency pie and specialize in it, giving clients a chance to mix and match to their specific needs rather than buy the whole package offered by the swollen ad giants.

Here are some interesting examples. This is not meant to be an endorsement, by the way,  just food for thought.

Conversion.com will improve your conversion
Bullish will accelerate your growth
Gin Lane will launch a Digital Native Vertical Brand

Wonder provide great consulting-style research, with no frills
Catalant help build a ‘flexible bench’ of ex-consulting talent

Made By Many drive change by making new products
Adaptive Lab build beta business
KBS Albion work with teams to build a new future for their business

In each case, by working alongside clients’ teams, they’re effectively building their client’s capability rather than fostering a dependency on an external agency.

And that is pretty interesting.