30 years, different fears

2025 marks my 30th year working in agencies. Over that time, much has changed, but if I had to pinpoint the most significant shift, it would be the evolving demands of clients. When I started, clients sought full-service advertising partners. Then, for years, the focus was either on creative services or media planning and buying.

Today, however, client needs are far more diverse and rarely limited to just creative or media. At Speed, we are now asked to develop communications architectures, advise on tech stacks, align data strategies, consult on building in-house capabilities, enhance customer experience (CX), and create performance-driven content—all on top of our core competency of media planning and buying.

This trend isn’t unique to us. The best agencies have expanded their service offerings. Take Thinkerbell and Howatson+Company, two of Australia’s most successful agencies. Thinkerbell has evolved from a creative agency to incorporate PR, media, and CX, while Howatson+Company, launched primarily as a CX agency, now excels in creative and media as well.

Beyond big ideas, efficient media 

Looking at the global landscape, it’s no surprise that Publicis is outperforming other holding companies. While still focused on creative and media, they also take on tech consulting and CX briefs through Digitas and Razorfish, performance marketing through Performics, and analytics through Epsilon. The success of their "Power of One" model isn’t just about integration—it’s about solving more client problems than their competitors. This is also why major consulting firms are acquiring agencies—not for the allure of Cannes, but to expand access to their existing services.

Marketing science supports this shift. Byron Sharp’s principle states that growth comes from acquiring new buyers rather than merely retaining or expanding existing ones. The reality is that the number of clients solely seeking a "big idea" or "cost-efficient media" is shrinking. Most brands don’t need new creative campaigns every year, making agency retainers less justifiable. Meanwhile, in a platform-driven media world, data, technology, and agility have become more critical than sheer scale and rate.

For holding companies that still focus solely on creative and media, the pool of potential clients is narrowing. They can maintain growth by cutting costs or leveraging opaque business practices like principal-based buying, but ultimately, they’re squeezing an ever-smaller lemon. Omnicom’s acquisition of IPG, for example, merely doubles down on existing services rather than investing in CX, tech consulting, analytics, or AI—arguably a more forward-thinking strategy.

Caveat: be good at delivery

There is however an important caveat here. Its one thing to be able to offer a service, but its another thing to be proficient at it. Capability, structures and systems need to be built in a new competency so as not compromise core deliverables. To use a cricketing analogy, the most useful players are all-rounders, but they need to be good enough at both batting and bowling to warrant their spot in the team. 

Today’s clients have more choices than ever—whether it’s consulting firms, holding companies, micro-networks, or independent agencies. The debate shouldn’t be about which model is superior, but rather, which agency offers the broadest range of services that align with a client’s evolving needs—and delivers them effectively. 

Therefore, diversity in services is what will drive agency growth. It will expand the agency market and attract new buyers. The future belongs to those who can solve more problems, not just create more ads and buy cheap media.