Media Meltdown.With urban marketing so hot, black-owned ad agencies are prime targets for aquisitions and mergers IN THE 1970s THEY WERE BRAND-NEW, IN THE '80s THEY WERE novel, by the '90s they had forged a niche and come into their own. Now, in 2000, they're being snatched up like gold: they're America's black-owned advertising agencies. "There's no `irrational exuberance' to be found among those aggressively pursuing African American African American Multiculture A person having origins in any of the black racial groups of Africa. See Race. ad agencies and the consumers they represent," says Ken Smikle, president of Chicago-based Target Market News, a marketing research firm that tracks the trends of black consumers, in quoting Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan Alan Greenspan Dr. Greenspan is Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. Dr. Greenspan also serves as Chairman of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), the Fed's principal monetary policymaking body. . "The trends of 1998 have continued, and the landscape, while it hasn't grown much in acreage, has certainly gotten a lot greener." Like a Siren at sea, the urban market lured marketers with the thumping sound and in-your-face attitude of hip-hop culture. This phenomenon changed the face of mainstream advertising, having a major influence not only on the youth market but also on society as a whole. General-market agencies now sought to capture this business by aligning with black-owned agencies with their fingers on this pulse. And last year proved to be the year of the alliance, with the top three African American-owned agencies talking merger with the behemoth behemoth (bē`hĭmŏth, bĭhē`–) [Heb.,=plural of beast], large, fanciful primeval monster, like Leviathan, evoking the hippopotamus mentioned in the Book of Job. general-market firms. Two of them actually aligned. Overall, business was good for the industry. Chalk that up to a bullish Bullish Word used to describe an investor's attitude. Bullish refers to an optimistic outlook, while bearish means a pessimistic outlook. bullish economy that continues to foster an increase in all advertising, especially on the Internet. Total U.S. advertising revenues for 1999 were $215.2 billion, according to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. Robert J. Coen, senior vice president and forecasting director at Universal McCann in New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of , the media arm of McCann-Erickson Worldwide--a 6.8% increase over 1998's $201.6 billion. Of that" $1.1 billion was targeted to the African American market, with some 30% pocketed by black-owned ad agencies, according to Target Market News. Last year, billings of the 20 black-owned ad agencies on the BE ADVERTISING AGENCIES list increased 21.3% from 1998. "It was a spectacular year for both general-market and multicultural agencies, and great work correlates with great years," notes Michael Donahue, executive vice president of member services at the American Association of Advertising Agencies The American Association of Advertising Agencies (AAAA) is an American advertising trade association. Founded in 1917, their website states that AAAA membership "produces approximately 80 percent of the total advertising volume placed by agencies nationwide. (AAAA AAAA American Association of Advertising Agencies AAAA American Association for Affirmative Action AAAA Army Aviation Association of America AAAA Battery Size AAAA American Association of Amateur Astronomers ) in New York. "Contributing to that growth is the fact that the total dotcom business was so large that it had an impact on the revenue stream of any agency doing dotcom business." A RUSH FOR BLACK GOLD There's no mistaking it. In the past, black-owned agencies faced the problem of convincing major advertisers to take the ethnic market seriously. No longer is this the case. With the multibillion-dollar urban market so hard to ignore, mainstream advertising agencies and marketers alike can't harvest the talent and resources required to capitalize on Cap´i`tal`ize on` v. t. 1. To turn (an opportunity) to one's advantage; to take advantage of (a situation); to profit from; as, to capitalize on an opponent's mistakes s>. it fast enough. Fashioning their own boutique agencies--specialized smaller agencies within an agency--they still foundered as they tried to keep pace with the market's volume, demand and nuances. Finally, the big boys decided that they needed more than input from the agencies; they needed the agencies themselves. "Clients realized that there was great opportunity in this market and didn't want to lose the profitability [so they opted to] extend the reach of their marketing dollars," says Greg Head, president of HeadFirst head·first also head·fore·most adv. 1. With the head leading; headlong: went headfirst down the stairs. 2. Impetuously; brashly. Market Research in Stone Mountain, Georgia Stone Mountain is a city in DeKalb County and Gwinnett County, Georgia, United States. The population was 7,145 at the 2000 census. Geography The town is named for Stone Mountain, the largest exposed granite dome in North America. . General-market agencies were then challenged to market to this audience, partner with an African American agency or lose this business altogether. Hence, in 1998, smaller, urban market-focused agencies such as New York's Spike/DDB, headed by movie director Spike Lee Noun 1. Spike Lee - United States filmmaker whose works explore the richness of black culture in America (born in 1957) Lee, Shelton Jackson Lee , Vigilante vigilante n. someone who takes the law into his/her own hands by trying and/or punishing another person without any legal authority. In the 1800s groups of vigilantes dispensed "frontier justice" by holding trials of accused horse-thieves, rustlers and shooters, and and Chicago's Stedman Graham Stedman Graham (born March 6, 1951 in Whitesboro, New Jersey) is an American educator, author, businessman, speaker and served in the United States Army, although he is mainly known as the partner of media mogul Oprah Winfrey. & Partners were formed under the leadership of advertising giants DDB DDB - device independent bitmap Needham, Leo Burnett For the company, see . Leo Burnett (October 21, 1891 - June 7, 1971) was an advertising executive famous for creating such icons as the Jolly Green Giant, the Marlboro Man, Toucan Sam, Charlie the Tuna, Morris the Cat, the Pillsbury Doughboy, the 7up "Spot", and Tony the and True North Communications, respectively. Not to be outdone out·do tr.v. out·did , out·done , out·do·ing, out·does To do more or better than in performance or action. See Synonyms at excel. , the old guard began making deals of their own. "I find it interesting that many people in the industry attacked my integrity, calling me a setup guy and saying that the white conglomerate was exploiting me, and that now everyone is collaborating with them," says Lee, president of Spike/DDB (No. 16 on the BE ADVERTISING AGENCIES list, with billings of $9.8 million). Spike/DDB lists the clothing maker Ecko, State Farm Insurance, ABC Television ABC Television may refer to:
The first African American agency to bail was Chicago-based Burrell Communications Group (No. 3 on the BE ADVERTISING AGENCIES list with billings of $175.2 millions), whose clients include Coca-Cola, Kellogg, McDonald's, Exxon Mobil, Procter & Gamble and Sears, Roebuck. Last June, Burrell sold a 49% share of its business to the giant French agency Publicis. Following suit, Southfield, Michigan-based Don Coleman Don Coleman (born May 4, 1928) was an American football player. He was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame in 1975. Advertising (DCA (1) (Document Content Architecture) IBM file formats for text documents. DCA/RFT (Revisable-Form Text) is the primary format and can be edited. DCA/FFT (Final-Form Text) has been formatted for a particular output device and cannot be changed. ) (No. 2 on the BE ADVERTISING AGENCIES list, with $202 million in billings), joined forces with True North Communications Inc. in September. Under the deal, Don Coleman, president of DCA, became CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. and chairman of True North's multicultural marketing division--New American Strategies Group--which also includes ethnic agency Stedman Graham & Partners. If nothing else, these alliances certainly haven't hurt business. In March, after an extensive, nationwide agency review, the nation's No. 2 commercial air carrier, American Airlines American Airlines Major U.S. airline. American was created through a merger of several smaller U.S. airlines and incorporated in 1934. It continued to buy the routes of other airlines, becoming an international carrier in the 1970s; its routes include South America, the , gave DCA its much-coveted African American business. This made DCA the first African American agency of record for a major airline. With Timerlin McClain--a True North entity--as the airline's general-marketing agency, the alliance has the makings of every mainstream agency's dream: nesting almost all of a client's business under one roof. Industry insiders say the merger, while good for Coleman, may have sparked the unexpected exit of former DCA partner, executive vice president and ethnic marketing guru Chuck Morrison, who left for UniWorld in January. The access to resources was also the primary impetus behind the Burrell merger. "The partnership with Publicis offers us several advantages--access to human, financial and technology resources," says CEO Thomas Burrell. "We are now able to offer clients a broader range of marketing communication services. "Of the partnering choices we had, Publicis made the most sense. First, the personal chemistry was great. We shared a common vision for the future; with Publicis just starting to mount a major expansion into the U.S. market, we were able to play a more major role in that development than would be provided by the more `overcrowded' alternatives. "Lastly, we were conflict free. As a matter of fact, we already shared a relationship with the Coca-Cola Co., and have since gained the agency of record assignment of Soft Sheen, a division of Publicis' client, L'Oreal." Will the tag team tag team n. A team of two or more wrestlers who take turns competing against one of the wrestlers on another team, with the idle teammates waiting outside the ring until one of them is tagged by their competing teammate. effort spell big business for Burrell? Heide Gardner, vice president of diversity and strategic programs at the American Advertising Federation The American Advertising Federation (AAF), headquartered in Washington, D.C., acts as the "Unifying Voice for Advertising." The AAF is the oldest national advertising trade association, representing 50,000 professionals in the advertising industry. Foundation (AAFF AAFF Ann Arbor Film Festival (Ann Arbor, MI) AAFF Asian American Federation of Florida ), a national trade organization based in Washington, D.C., predicts high marks, and says, "I expect to see a lot of business from Burrell as it continues to aggressively leverage its relationship with Publicis." While the terms of these two deals were not disclosed, it is generally believed that agencies can go for 1.5 times their revenue. In Burrell's case, that could amount to $32.7 million, according to Advertising Age. "These mergers are good because they recognize the sweat equity Sweat Equity The equity that is created in a company or some other asset as a direct result of hard work by the owner(s). Notes: For example, rebuilding the engine on your 1968 Mustang to increase its value. that multicultural agencies have put into the business," says the AAAA's Donahue. Nonetheless, there are still some skeptics. "Despite being minority owned, you certainly cannot deny the fact that the large company is going to influence the culture and take some control out of African American hands," says Gene Morris, president of Chicago-based E. Morris Communications (No. 8 on the BE ADVERTISING AGENCIES list, with billings of $27.1 million), which recently added Ralston Purina to its client list. E. Morris, which also has McDonald's (regional), Wal-mart and Oldsmobile accounts, was scoped out by general-market agencies as well. PENDING CONFLICTS Despite the boon for black-owned agencies, a downside Downside The dollar amount by which the market or a stock has the potential to fall. Notes: You might hear someone say that the downside on stock XYZ is $10. What that means is that the stock could fall by this amount if things got bad. hovers: sibling rivalry sibling rivalry Psychology The intense, emotional competition among siblings–brothers and/or sisters that pits one against the other to obtain parental affection, approval, attention, and love. See Cain complex. Cf Oy child, Sibling relational problem. . "General-market agencies are conglomerates, and there is a threat that conflicts and competition could breed among black agencies under the same corporate umbrella. The question is: will they be seen as separate when they go after business in a category in which their ethnic counterpart already has an account?" warns Smikle, referring to the True North/Coleman/ Stedman Graham & Partners marriage. For example, to avoid a conflict of interest, an agency can only have one account in any given category, so if one has a fast-food client, then it can't go after another one. While a strong concern, "these conflicts are nothing new for the general-market agencies located under one roof that are forced to compete," says Head. "For the holding company it is a way to pitch for all existing soft drink or automobile accounts and, if successful, garnering a larger portion of a category's business in their pocket." Another thorny thorn·y adj. thorn·i·er, thorn·i·est 1. Full of or covered with thorns. 2. Spiny. 3. Painfully controversial; vexatious: a thorny situation; thorny issues. issue is the National Minority Supplier Development Council's (NMSDC NMSDC National Minority Supplier Development Council, Inc. ) move this past February. Under a new guideline, an agency certified See certification. as minority controlled can sell up to a 70% ownership stake as long as 51% of voting stock Voting stock The shares in a corporation that entitle the shareholder to vote. voting stock Stock for which the holder has the right to vote in the election of directors, in the appointment of auditors, or in other matters brought up at the , daily management control and the majority of board seats remain in the hands of minorities. "To say that 51% of a voting stock will remain with African Americans is not a reality. Why would someone buy 70% of a business and allow it to remain in the hands of 30% of the owners?" notes Morris, who is also chairman of the AAAA. "This will only lead to even more front companies and create an abuse of the system." However, adds Gardner, "Advertisers don't want controversy and may want to deal with black-owned agencies where there is a minority interest. This kind of political consideration is definitely going to be a factor. This will be especially true as the federal government looks to open doors for black agencies to compete directly with general-market firms for prime contracts and general-market business." EVERYBODY GETS TO PLAY Despite the rumbling at the top, the spoils have not only gone to the larger black agencies. In other deals, Omnicom Group
The Omnicom Group (NYSE: OMC) is the world's largest advertising agency holding company in terms of revenue (and one of the big six Partners, which has holdings in ad leaders DDB Needham Worldwide and BBDO BBDO Batten, Barton, Durstine & Osborn BBDO Bringing Biogeographic Data Online Worldwide, took a 49% stake in start-up Footsteps, a New York-based black agency. Created in January 2000 with Alvin Gay, a former executive at UniWorld, and Verdia Johnson, formerly with Stedman Graham & Partners, Footsteps landed Mercedes-Benz as its first and, at press time, only client. "Marketing has dramatically changed for black advertisers," says Johnson, Footsteps' president and a former advertising director at BLACK ENTERPRISE magazine. "In the past, it wasn't about business. It was about a handout and a way to appease ap·pease tr.v. ap·peased, ap·peas·ing, ap·peas·es 1. To bring peace, quiet, or calm to; soothe. 2. To satisfy or relieve: appease one's thirst. 3. the [minority advertisers] that were calling. Today, it is truly about business. Our account planning "Account Planning is the discipline that brings the consumer into the process of developing advertising. To be truly effective, advertising must be both distinctive and relevant, and planning helps on both counts. is what sets us apart from other black agencies, and African American marketing has not been taken to the extent that we're going to take it." Gay, the agency's managing partner, says that Footsteps will go beyond the traditional consumer barometers of focus groups and surveys, and "talk to people about who they are and what they want to grasp." Other movers include Russell Simmons Russell Simmons (born October 4 ,1957 in Queens, New York), is an American entrepreneur, the co-founder, with Rick Rubin, of the pioneering hip-hop label Def Jam, founder of another label, Russell Simmons Music Group, and creator of the clothing fashion line Phat Farm. of Rush Media, who recently formed a joint venture with West Coast-based Deutsch Inc. to form dRush, an agency that will target urban youth. SLOW MOVEMENT ON THE WEB With more than $1.8 billion in Internet advertising Delivering ads to Internet users via Web sites, e-mail, ad-supported software and Internet-enabled cellphones. Also called an "ad network," Internet advertising organizations act as a middleman between the advertiser and the Web sites and software publishers that display the ads. in 1999, the field is ripe for ethnic agencies. The Internet promises one-to-one, real-time marketing, but it has yet to really spread its wings. "I see more black agency activity in this area, especially with the media mix and a proliferation proliferation /pro·lif·er·a·tion/ (pro-lif?er-a´shun) the reproduction or multiplication of similar forms, especially of cells.prolif´erativeprolif´erous pro·lif·er·a·tion n. of Afrocentric dotcoms," says AAFF's Gardner. "However, it is still a challenge to sell to advertisers because of the misconception mis·con·cep·tion n. A mistaken thought, idea, or notion; a misunderstanding: had many misconceptions about the new tax program. that black America isn't wired and doesn't have income and education levels that call for dotcom ads." It's a misconception indeed. In fact, the 4.9 million African Americans surfing the Web are younger, wealthier and more educated than those not currently online, according to a recent survey conducted by Cyber Dialogue, a leading Internet customer relationship management company. The survey revealed that nearly half were under age 30, with an average income of $58,000; more than one-third have graduated from college. "The last three clients who've walked through my door have been dotcom companies," says Charlotte Roy, president of Atlanta-based Roy Communications, which, in March, merged with the Hispanic agency Vargas Flores Flores, town, Guatemala Flores (flōrəs), town (1990 est. pop. 2,200), capital of Petén department, N Guatemala. Flores was built on an island in the southern part of Lake Petén Itzá and on the site of the & Amigos AMIGOS Advanced Mobile Integration in General Operating Systems of Atlanta. "Over the years, clients have asked if I could handle the Hispanic market and I never felt comfortable saying yes. I worked with Dan Vargas and Tony Flores for years, and the union just made sense," recalls Roy, whose client list includes Procter & Gamble, Johnson & Johnson and General Mills  This article or section may contain a proseline.Please help [ convert this timeline] into prose or, if necessary, a . . "Dotcom companies want us to help them bring business to their sites, not only through the Web but with traditional media to drive the bulk of the traffic," she adds. The alliance also includes a partnership with Chicago-based Pinnacle Associates Group, headed by Suzanne Fuller, which offers marketing and community-relations expertise. The new company will adopt the Pinnacle name. GOING IT ALONE Of the top five, UniWorld, Oakland, California-based Carol H. Williams Advertising (CHWA) (No. 6 on the BE ADVERTISING AGENCIES list) and The Chisholm-Mingo Group Inc. (No. 4 on the BE ADVERTISING AGENCIES list, with billings of more than $100.5 million) of New York are still holding their own, for now absent a deep-pocketed, big brother general- market agency. UniWorld, which boasts AT&T, Burger King and Ford among its clients, had a great year, with billings jumping from $160.4 million in 1998 to $230 million in 1999, putting it in the No. 1 spot on the BE ADVERTISING AGENCIES list. CHWA, BE's 1999 Advertising Agency of the Year, had a gangbuster gang·bus·ter n. Slang A law enforcement officer who works to break up organized criminal groups. adj. also gangbusters Extremely successful: year with $61 million in billings, superlative creative for established clients such as Coors and Nissan, and by nabbing new accounts with Silicon Graphics, San Francisco International Airport “SFO” redirects here. For other uses, see SFO (disambiguation). For the television series, see . , Census 2000 and BP Amoco--formerly a Vince Cullers Advertising account (Cullers is No. 15 on the BE ADVERTISING AGENCIES list, with billings of $10 million). Adds Williams, "This niche was created to give African American agencies an opportunity to share in the revenues of this industry and compete without consistently being knocked out by the long arm of big mass-marketing agencies. These acquisitions and alliances are creating a highly different environment, where media-impacted dollars are used to purchase relationships that cannot be forged by agencies like mine. It definitely makes it more difficult." As the alliance virus continues to spread throughout the industry, the question still lurks: is it opportunistic opportunistic /op·por·tu·nis·tic/ (op?er-tldbomacn-is´tik) 1. denoting a microorganism which does not ordinarily cause disease but becomes pathogenic under certain circumstances. 2. to remain independent? "If your creative is great and a client sees your dedication to the business, then an agency can stand alone," says Lee. However, Williams, who, in speaking for herself may also express the sentiments of many other minority agencies, says, "Only if you're a real warrior with true grit, [you don't] mind seeing your blood, smelling your sweat and tasting your tears, can you stay." 2000 TOP 20 BLACK-OWNED ADVERTISING AGENCIES 1998 1999 % CHANGE NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES 779 811 4.11% BILLINGS(*) $886.514 $1075.61 21.33% (*) In millions of dollars, to the nearest thousand. As of December 31,1999. Prepared by B.E. Research. Reviewed by Mitchell & Titus L.L.P. B.E. ADVERTISING AGENCIES B.E. 100s POWERHOUSE OF THE NEW ECONOMY
THIS LAST
YEAR YEAR COMPANY LOCATION
1 2 UNIWORLD GROUP INC. New York,
New York
2 3 DON COLEMAN ADVERTISING Southfield,
Michigan
3 1 BURRELL COMMUNICATIONS Chicago,
GROUP L.L.C. Illinois
4 4 THE CHISHOLM-MINGO GROUP INC. New York,
New York
5 6 MUSE CREATIVE HOLDINGS L.L.C. Los Angeles,
California
6 5 CAROL H. WILLIAMS ADVERTISING Oakland,
California
7 7 THE WIMBLEY GROUP INC. Itasca,
Illinois
8 10 E. MORRIS COMMUNICATIONS INC. Chicago,
Illinois
9 8 SYKES COMMUNICATIONS INC. Houston,
Texas
10 9 R. J. DALE ADVERTISING Chicago,
& PUBLIC RELATIONS Illinois
11 12 ANDERSON COMMUNICATIONS Atlanta,
Georgia
12 15 CAROLINE JONES INC. New York,
New York
13 14 CIRCULATION EXPERTI LTD. Hartsdale,
New York
14 - WASHINGTON-DANIEL Chicago,
ADVERTISING INC. Illinois
15 13 VINCE CULLERS ADVERTISING Chicago,
Illinois
16 11 SPIKE/DDB New York,
New York
17 16 THE KING GROUP INC. Dallas,
Texas
18 19 IMAGES USA Atlanta,
Georgia
19 18 CRAWLEY HASKINS & RODGERS Philadelphia,
PUBLIC RELATIONS & ADVERTISING Pennsylvania
20 - VISIONS USA INC. Atlanta,
Georgia
CHIEF YEAR
COMPANY EXECUTIVE STARTED
UNIWORLD GROUP INC. Byron E. Lewis Sr. 1969
DON COLEMAN ADVERTISING Donald A. Coleman 1988
BURRELL COMMUNICATIONS Thomas J. Burrell 1971
GROUP L.L.C.
THE CHISHOLM-MINGO GROUP INC. Samuel J. Chisholm 1977
MUSE CREATIVE HOLDINGS L.L.C. J. Melvin Muse 1986
CAROL H. WILLIAMS ADVERTISING Carol H. Williams 1986
THE WIMBLEY GROUP INC. Charles L. Wimbley Sr. 1987
E. MORRIS COMMUNICATIONS INC. Eugene Morris 1987
SYKES COMMUNICATIONS INC. Ray A. Sykes III 1985
R. J. DALE ADVERTISING Robert J. Dale 1979
& PUBLIC RELATIONS
ANDERSON COMMUNICATIONS Al Anderson 1971
CAROLINE JONES INC. Caroline R. Jones 1994
CIRCULATION EXPERTI LTD. W. Garrison Jackson 1968
WASHINGTON-DANIEL Bernie Washington 1986
ADVERTISING INC.
VINCE CULLERS ADVERTISING Vince Cullers 1956
SPIKE/DDB Spike Lee 1997
THE KING GROUP INC. Johnnie King Jr. 1987
IMAGES USA Robert L. McNeil Jr. 1989
CRAWLEY HASKINS & RODGERS A. Bruce Crawley 1989
PUBLIC RELATIONS & ADVERTISING
VISIONS USA INC. Cyrus W. Daniels II 1988
1999 1999
COMPANY STAFF BILLINGS(*)
UNIWORLD GROUP INC. 138 $230.001
DON COLEMAN ADVERTISING 141 202.000
BURRELL COMMUNICATIONS 125 175.200
GROUP L.L.C.
THE CHISHOLM-MINGO GROUP INC. 65 100.533
MUSE CREATIVE HOLDINGS L.L.C. 45 73.736
CAROL H. WILLIAMS ADVERTISING 35 61.000
THE WIMBLEY GROUP INC. 25 50.300
E. MORRIS COMMUNICATIONS INC. 30 27.146
SYKES COMMUNICATIONS INC. 30 25.068
R. J. DALE ADVERTISING 22 24.727
& PUBLIC RELATIONS
ANDERSON COMMUNICATIONS 14 16.500
CAROLINE JONES INC. 15 15.200
CIRCULATION EXPERTI LTD. 15 12.500
WASHINGTON-DANIEL 14 12.000
ADVERTISING INC.
VINCE CULLERS ADVERTISING 15 10.000
SPIKE/DDB 25 9.800
THE KING GROUP INC. 9 9.210
IMAGES USA 25 8.500
CRAWLEY HASKINS & RODGERS 15 6.389
PUBLIC RELATIONS & ADVERTISING
VISIONS USA INC. 8 5.800
(*) In millions of dollars, to the nearest thousand. As of December 31, 1999. Prepared by B.E. Research. Reviewed by Mitchell & Titus, L.L.P. RELATED ARTICLE: HOW WE SELECTED THE TOP AGENCIES We canvassed the Standard Directory of Advertising Agencies, combed comb n. 1. a. A thin toothed strip, as of plastic, used to smooth, arrange, or fasten the hair. b. An implement, such as a card for dressing and cleansing wool or other fiber, that resembles a hair comb in shape or industry publications and made inquires in the field to compile a list of full-service advertising agencies in the U.S. that are 51% black owned. Surveys were sent to these agencies. Those that responded and met the criteria were placed into our ranking. To qualify as a full-service advertising agency, the company has to make media placements--that is, purchase time and/or space for its clients' advertising. Companies that only provide consulting services Noun 1. consulting service - service provided by a professional advisor (e.g., a lawyer or doctor or CPA etc.) service - work done by one person or group that benefits another; "budget separately for goods and services" , or only create or produce advertising or only do media placements do not qualify as full-service agencies. We elected to list only the 20 highest-earning agencies, based on 1999 performance, on the assumption that these firms were most likely to have at least one national account and a minimum of $2 million in billings. An agency's financial status is measured in terms of billings, monies allocated by an advertiser to its agency to buy time on television and/or radio, or space in publications and other print media. These media outlets then pay a commission back to the agency in the form of a discount in the 15%-22% range, which the agency counts as revenue. Other sources of revenue for an agency include production fees that the agency charges the client to produce the advertising, and fees for adjunct services such as public relations public relations, activities and policies used to create public interest in a person, idea, product, institution, or business establishment. By its nature, public relations is devoted to serving particular interests by presenting them to the public in the most , consulting and promotional work. Our ranking is based on a combined total of actualized ac·tu·al·ize v. ac·tu·al·ized, ac·tu·al·iz·ing, ac·tu·al·iz·es v.tr. 1. To realize in action or make real: "More flexible life patterns could . . . billings plus capitalized billings (where commissions have not yet been paid, but the media buys were completed) and other agency fees reported as revenues, an accepted industry practice for reporting earnings status. In most all cases, this accounts for the differences between Red Book figures and agency-reported figures. |
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