As brands look for measurable market share, they cannot continue to use fragmentation within vendor relationships to develop disconnected messages, fragmented data and lost revenue.
This guide will help you understand the various operating models, pricing models and verified performance evidence from the leading integrated marketing agencies built to centralize your marketing strategy.
The Modern Integrated Marketing Agency Landscape
Finding a single full-service agency partner is not a simple task. Clients prefer to reduce the headache of managing multiple vendors, e.g. SEO, paid media, creative vendors and so forth, and want one accountable vendor to manage all of their media/advertising strategies.
However, the agency marketplace is full of competing firms that offer "one-stop-shop" capabilities. Many also use nearly identical language to promote near-identical products (data-driven, cross-channel success) without making clear the ways in which their operations support those claims.
A complete integrated system does not imply just offering several services through one company. The significant difference is how an integrated marketing agency connects those services. True integration occurs when an agency develops a single shared strategic brief that is used by all its departments.
Your campaign planning, audience modeling, and measurement definitions would all come from a single centralized source. If the public relations team does not have shared commercial KPIs with the paid media buyers, then the agency is simply a collection of silos. A buyer's decision must be based on evidence when separating types of agencies.
In addition to verifying the respective agencies' outcomes, understanding their pricing structures and requesting proof of each agency's capabilities, it is essential to consider how an agency ties together data, technology, and creative execution as a means to support pipeline growth.
The Top 24 Omnichannel Growth Partners
The market can be categorized by client type, budget, and strategic focus. The following companies represent the market's segmentation, from global enterprise networks to highly-focused performance shops.
1. Ogilvy
Ogilvy is a global model that provides advertising, PR and digital transformation solutions.
Highly suitable for large companies like IBM and Unilever with complex and geographically-diverse business needs, public sources show that engagements start around $150,000 but final costs depend on the scope of the project.
2. Wieden+Kennedy
A recognized name with independent culturally relevant creative campaigns, Wieden+Kennedy integrates traditional broadcast with digital channels and has worked with leading brands such as Nike and Coca-Cola.
W+K typically begins engagements at budgets greater than $100,000. The agency focuses more on building massive brand awareness rather than generating small levels of demand for products and services.
3. AKQA
AKQA is defined by a digital-first mindset. The company has expertise in product development, design and user experience.
AKQA typically engages with technology-rich enterprise brands, including companies such as Google and Audi, and projects begin around $125,000. A primary focus is technology supporting the customer journey to the target company.
4. R/GA
R/GA’s business transformation model comprises a blend of product development and brand experience and includes customer engagement programs.
R/GA's ideal client is enterprise operations, such as Verizon and Samsung, and projects start at $100,000, focusing on extensive transformation to the structural elements of a company’s customer relationship to its target.
5. Publicis Groupe
Utilizing a “Power of One” approach to integrate creative strategy, marketing, data, and technology, Publicis serves major multinational brands such as L'Oréal and Walmart, which require high levels of international collaboration through unified marketing resource management across multiple locations.
The starting price for services offered by these firms is typically $150,000 and above. They are designed for scalability, as well as to allow for large amounts of media purchasing.
6. Merkle
Merkle's focus is on the development of data-driven CRM, personalized marketing, and automated marketing workflows.
They work with large enterprises that require large amounts of data, like Dell and Allstate. Their minimum budget starts at $100,000. The best of Merkle's solutions allow companies to create personalized customer experiences based on first-party data.
7. VML
VML develops integrated brand experiences that connect ecommerce, media, and technology.
They primarily service large consumer goods, retail, and automotive brands like Ford and Wendy's. Project budget minimums begin around $80,000. VML excels at connecting a brand's story to a digital marketplace.
8. Digitas
Digitas combines creative thinking informed by the use of data with the use of sophisticated marketing technologies and customer relationship management (CRM) solutions.
They have worked with brands like American Express and Delta Air Lines, and their baseline budget starts at about $85,000. Digital marketing brands that place high priority on building connected digital ecosystems should strongly consider Digitas.
9. Droga5
Droga5 positions itself as a creative-first agency dedicated to creating culturally relevant campaigns, combined with the design of user experiences. Their clients include companies such as The New York Times and Chase.
Typical project budgets begin around $150,000. They have a strong focus on developing creative assets that can be adapted for digital execution, and they focus heavily on creating a positive impact with their work.
10. Momentum
Momentum delivers a holistic model for providing brands with "total brand experiences" that integrate live events, the creation of retail immersion experiences, and digital content.
They work with companies like Coca-Cola and AT&T. Momentum programs typically begin around $75,000. Brands that need to tie their experiential marketing efforts to digital tracking should consider this agency.
11. Havas
Havas has a "Village" model that helps to break down the traditional barriers between creative, media, and digital teams.
Havas has extensive experience working with brands based on purpose and the health care industry (i.e. Danone). Engagements are priced in the $90,000 range. Havas centralized offices are designed for the purpose of enabling greater collaboration across all forms of media.
12. MullenLowe
MullenLowe offers full-service integrated advertising, analytics, and social media programs to challenger brands.
MullenLowe onboards clients such as JetBlue, and Acura and projects generally start at $80,000. MullenLowe is well-positioned for brands looking to challenge established market leaders by delivering a single, aggressive message.
13. Haworth Marketing & Media
Haworth focuses on multicultural marketing and the development of specific audience strategies for brands such as Target and General Mills.
Engagements typically begin around $60,000, and Haworth provides the cultural context that ties into broader media buying and creative execution.
14. Walker Sands
Walker Sands is a B2B-focused marketing agency that combines account-based marketing (ABM), public relations, and demand generation.
Pricing varies, but they boast a success rate that is a testament to the high-quality work they provide. One of their verified campaigns produced a 67% increase in organic search traffic in 9 weeks and hundreds of paid media conversions.
15. Adams & Knight
Adams & Knight utilizes its proprietary "5 Ms" framework in its work, which focuses on motivation, metrics, markets, messaging, and methods.
Their pricing is not publicly available, however, their case studies from the tourism industry indicate the scale of their work, with one campaign producing a 27% increase in new website visitors and billions of public relations impressions for a state.
16. Altitude Marketing
Altitude Marketing is dedicated to B2B organizations in its focus on B2B positioning, SEO, media buying, and thought leadership.
One software client reported that their average number of organic conversions increased by more than 740% in an average month through their method of connecting high-level marketing research to lead generation.
17. FabCom
FabCom takes a very different approach to advertising. FabCom employs an array of marketing techniques, collectively coined “neuromarketology”, which is a blend of audience segmentation on deep levels, and the use of the tools and strategies available to connect with your audience on the internet.
Fee schedules are customized per project, but FabCom's average fee is said to be $125-$175 for a standard project. For one of their published case studies on a retail acquiree, FabCom noted a growth in market share and sales of more than 500% over a four-year period.
18. Bailey Lauerman
Bailey Lauerman is an advertising agency specializing in mid-sized companies. Bailey Lauerman charges their clients an average fee of $175 per hour, with minimum budgets ranging from $25,000-$50,000 for projects.
A prominent insurance advertising campaign yielded click-through rates of more than 200% higher than the national industry average.
19. WebTek
WebTek uses an extensive multi-channel approach to advertising to reach small business owners as well as to deliver their national SEO programs.
WebTek does not maintain minimum budgets that exceed $1,000, so this company is an excellent choice for those with limited budgets. In one of WebTek's showcase campaigns, they were able to reach 48 states, generate over 3,500 leads and achieve a total increase of 362% in the overall volume of leads generated.
20. Matter Communications
Matter Communications provides multi-channel digital advertising through the channels of video, search engine marketing (SEM), PR, and connected TV.
Pricing for Matter Communications advertisements requires direct inquiry, but through a successful rebranding effort through Matter Communications, one of their clients saw an increase in site visits of over 300%, as well as gained considerable search visibility across the internet in just six weeks.
21. Intero Digital
Intero Digital combines SEO, paid media, and their proprietary bot tool with a "full funnel" approach to marketing.
Intero Digital primarily focuses on organizations with a customer journey mapping need that have minimum project budgets of $1,000-$10,000. One of Intero Digital's clients reported increased open rates of emails by more than 100%, and multiplied engagement rates before being acquired.
22. Web Tonic
Performance marketing is the main focus of Web Tonic. The combination of paid media, analytics, customer data platforms (CDPs), and user-generated content is used to help them reach their clients.
Web Tonic is suitable for mid-market to enterprise clients, including international retail and finance applications, with retainers from $3,000 per month.
23. Madison Taylor Marketing
Madison Taylor Marketing specializes in centralizing website optimization, brand alignment and sales alignment.
Madison Taylor Marketing is in high demand from growth stage companies within the financial services sector. Madison Taylor Marketing recently achieved a 489% increase in website conversion rates along with a 72% drop in customer acquisition costs.
24. Wpromote
Wpromote is a performance agency that focuses on cross-channel media buying, testing and learning optimization, and direct-buying strategies.
The agency has significant experience servicing large consumer and e-commerce brands. While typical pricing varies by project, the agency claims to have helped an eyewear brand achieve 51 million dollars in sales along with a phenomenal increase in revenue.
How to Evaluate Integrated Marketing Agencies
To properly evaluate the capabilities of an integrated marketing agency, be cautious of relying solely on numbers. Credible case studies should detail the entire process from start to finish, what time period the project occurred, what media was used, and who the target audiences were.
It is important to differentiate between incremental results and agencies taking credit for simply leveraging existing brand search volumes. Price is not the first indicator of capability; understanding the level of integration that can be achieved per fee level is more useful.
A low retainer is likely to provide access to only very few channels, whereas a high project fee usually provides only for the creative launch and does not include paid media, SEO, CRM management, and/or conversion rate optimization.
Agencies must each itemize their financials digitally and include items related to the following: strategy, creativity and production. Each media spend must be separated from the agency's fee. In the event that the relationship ends, be sure to clarify who owns the assets, data and ad accounts. Agencies with the strongest capabilities should demonstrate the correlation between marketing metrics and real CRM outcomes through the use of first-party data and a process called marketing mix modelling (MMM).
The 90-Day Transition Plan
Transitioning from a group of different vendors to one unified vendor will significantly change how you do business. The real problem for the person searching for a vendor, in most cases, is how to coordinate among all the different vendors.
You will likely have too many handoffs as well as competing campaign priorities and fragmented reporting among vendors. Having a structured onboarding process ensures that the vendor's objectives align with the client's commercial objectives before funds are spent.
30 Days After Engagement: The agency must conduct an audit of the client's existing channels, analytics, CRM configuration, and creative assets, confirm the client's audience positioning and provide strict definitions of KPIs and identify any gaps in tracking for the client's campaign objectives.
30-60 Days After Engagement: The agency will begin building the campaign's centralized architecture. The agency will identify each channel's role in the campaign, video, display etc., create reusable content modules and build dashboards to track pipeline metrics, as well as clicks.
60-90 Days After Engagement: This period is for execution. The agency will commence implementation of multifaceted and coordinated campaign launch efforts, conduct landing page tests, and conduct an initial evaluation of incoming leads from the new campaign. Total re-allocation of the budget continues based on factual evidence and revenue feedback as they come in.
Final Thoughts on Vendor Consolidation
The integration of marketing is not about how many services an agency provides, but rather how the agency’s strategic function, creative function, media channels, data management and commercial measurement integrate and function together as one system.
The current landscape is rife with directories that offer up global networks side-by-side with small boutique shops. Therefore, you need to look beyond a label such as "full-service" when selecting integrated marketing agencies and instead force the agency to explain how its team works in an integrated manner.
You must understand whether or not all the specialist functions are working together under one accountable lead and if they can validate their value to you through running incrementality tests. The strongest partners will have an established process for taking a single strategy and evolving it across all the various touch points to maintain brand integrity and operational efficiency with your spend.
Common Questions About Making the Switch
How do you measure success when combining channels?
To measure incrementality when consolidating channels under one roof, it is critical to have a clear understanding of how the agency will set the baseline for their metric identification process. Without this baseline, the agency may take credit for a single sale from multiple channels (paid social, organic search, emails) and the risk of duplicate attribution increases.
To prevent this, you must require the agency to define their baseline before commencing with campaign activity. Use a combination of both holdout groups and marketing mix modelling to identify the true incremental lift. You need to ensure the agency will prove that all of its collective efforts will create new revenues that would not have occurred but for its involvement in the process.
What is the most common failure point in the first 60 days?
The single largest bottleneck during the first 60 days of integration is always a lack of access and alignment between the tracking capabilities or platforms being utilized. Agencies frequently build a complex set of campaign architectures based on media channels only to find that the client’s CRM tracking is either messy or broken at the server level.
If the agency is not able to provide a clear path or line of sight back to the first click through closed deal in the CRM, then the model is destined to fail. It is critical to identify all critical tracking gaps prior to the launching of any new media within the first two weeks of the integration project.
Should media spending remain separate from the main management fee?
You should always keep your media spending separate from your agency's management costs and your creative production costs. Bundling media spending in with your agency management costs creates a conflict of interest and therefore hides the true cost of delivery for you.
You want total transparency regarding how much money goes to the media channels, and how much money the agency charges to manage the media spending you are allocating to it.
If we decide to terminate our agreement with the agency, who owns the data and accounts?
This must be articulated in your contract from the outset of your agreement with the agency. Many agencies will use their proprietary accounts to build campaigns, and therefore the loss of the campaign history, audience lists and ad performance history upon termination will occur.
You must require that all of your ad accounts, analytics properties, and CRM integrations be owned by you at all times and that your agency is given access as an administrator.