News

Ad agency Clemenger BBDO Sydney and PR agency Porter Novelli to launch joint social media venture

Andy Pontin

Pontin: Social media wild west

Clemenger BBDO Sydney is joining forces with sister public relations agency Porter Novelli to launch a new social media venture that will combine the strengths of advertising with the communications skills of PR.

The yet unnamed venture, to be launched in the coming weeks, aims to address client needs by providing a single social media service, said Andy Pontin, CEO of Clemenger BBDO Sydney.

“Where social is at at the moment, it is still the Wild West,” Pontin said. “The industry hasn’t settled down in terms of who does what bits of the social mix and I think that’s true of both the agency side and the client side.” Clemenger is forming the new collaborative effort in response to client uncertainty about whether social media is the demand of marketing, corporate affairs or client services.

“It’s still a work in progress but we see a really great opportunity to take the best of what creative can bring to the social space and partner that with the best of what a PR agency can bring and generate something that’s very different from what’s currently out there,” said Pontin.

“We’re still in the throes of what it looks and tastes and feels like, but I think we’ve got a fairly good handle on how we can answer the client’s problems in a more wholesome way than we, and maybe the way the industry, currently is.”

Although Clemenger is currently managing social media accounts for Hungry Jacks and the online community for Wrigley’s 5 gum, the new division will deliver a wider offering.

“It’s a matter of turbocharging the capabilities that the company has and identifying the right complementary one so that the sum of parts is greater than the individual areas,” said Pontin.

“And on a broader level it’s just indicative of how the whole industry is having to change. You can’t stand still in today’s world. If an agency stands still it’s going to be out of business in five years time. So every agency, no matter their size or scale or ambition – unless you’re going to dare to be different – it’s a game of diminishing returns.”

Megan Reynolds

Encore issue 35This piece first appeared in EncoreDownload it now on iPad, iPhone and Android tablet devices.

  

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