WPP and Omnicom bag Amazon's media account after marathon global review
Amazon had shortlisted the incumbent IPG Mediabrands, WPP's GroupM and Omnicom Media Group for the global pitch.
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It was described as the Global Media Pitch of the Decade. Amazon's mammoth global media planning and buying account went up for review in late 2023 and finally the winners have emerged. WPP and Omnicom Media Group (OMG) have bagged the media business, edging out the incumbent - IPG's Initiative. WPP will handle Amazon's media business in APAC and EMEA. Omnicom gets the Americas.
Sources tell Storyboard18 the agencies' global teams have informed their regional offices, including India.
Amazon had shortlisted IPG Mediabrands, WPP's GroupM and Omnicom Media Group for the pitch, as previously reported. Local briefs went out earlier this year for key global markets including India. The process took over six months.
IPG Mediabrands’ initiative is the incumbent agency, after it won the Amazon media account in 2013 and defended it in 2017. IPG will continue to service Amazon Web Services, Amazon Business and Amazon Ads as the global media partner.
Prior to 2013, Publicis Groupe handled Amazon’s media account. Amazon’s annual advertising and promotion spends in 2022 were around $20.6 billion, which is more than the $16.9 billion it spent in 2021 and $10.9 billion it spent in 2020.
As is the case with a raft of new big global wins this year, firms have proposed a bespoke solution comprising teams across a group or the establishment of a bespoke global team.
WPP's bespoke solution OpenMind won Nestle’s media business in EMEA earlier this year. Publicis Groupe created a bespoke unit called OneVibe for Spotify's global media business, which it won earlier this year. Storyboard18 broke the global exclusive story and was the first to report on the pitch's conclusion, the winning ad firm and details of the pitch finalists on February 1.
Amazon last reviewed its global media account in 2017.
The e-commerce-to-streaming conglomerate ad revenue was up by 20% in Q2 of 2024. Amazon reported ad sales of $12.77 billion. Overall, the global e-commerce giant revenue was up by 10% to $148 billion in the second quarter compared with $134.4 billion in Q2 2023. International segment sales increased 7% year-over-year to $31.7 billion, while the AWS segment sales increased 19% year-over-year to $26.3 billion.
In 2023, Amazon's worldwide advertising and promotional expenses stood at over $20 billion.
