Wavemaker is the top media agency, and GroupM the top group, for new business this year, according to the latest COMvergence global study, New Business Barometer for Q1-Q3 2020.
Among agencies, Wavemaker recorded total new business value of $US1.1 billion, including $US370 million of retentions, in the first nine months of 2020.
This is largely due to strong performances in China and the US.
MediaCom ranked second with $US1.004 billion, including $US213 million of retentions, followed closely by Mindshare.
GroupM landed first position among global media agency groups with more than $US4 billion in new business, well ahead of its closest rival, Publicis Media.
The WPP media agency group’s showed positive overall results in most markets, and scored the highest retention rate among the six groups (66%, with $1.2 billion of retained billings).
The group performed particularly well in China ($1.8B of new client wins & retentions) and US (+$800M of new client wins).
Publicis Media ranked second in terms of overall New Business Value (despite recording no incremental billings, but succeeded in defending $1.4B from existing client billings.
Dentsu was third.
Looking at the pitches in the third quarter only, Mediabrands and Initiative performed the best, adding respectively $504 million and $442 million of net new business billings.
In Q1-Q3 2020, COMvergence assessed 1,915 media account moves and retentions across 45 countries totalling about $13.8 billion, $4 billion lower than in the same period last year. The total represents about 7% of the global agency billings ($203 billion) studied by COMvergence.
The US dominated the media pitch activity in Q1-Q3 2020 in terms of spend volume ($4.5 billion), representing 33% of the total spend put in review. China followed with nearly $3 billion in concluded moves and pitches.
Together, China and the US represent more than half of the total spend volume reviewed between January and September 2020.
The average retention rate is 30% (vs. 24% in Q1-Q3 2109).
The 23 largest global and multi-country reviews resulted in $2.3 billion while local reviews represented just over $10.7 billion, or 77%.
The 10 largest local pitches ($2.5 billionin total) were recorded either in China: Unilever, PepsiCo, Master Kong, Shanghai GM, Daimler; or the US: Novo Nordisk, Gilead Sciences, RB (Reckitt Benckiser), Clorox and Kroger.
$5.1 billion(or 37% of the total media spend reviewed during Q1-Q3 2020 were not previously handled by the international agency networks/groups. While $1.1B (or 8%) went to independents or non-international network agencies.
This includes Horizon Media ($340 million) in the US; Madison Media ($148 million) in India; Pilot ($111 million) in Germany, Heroiks Media ($55 million) in France.
Have something to say on this? Share your views in the comments section below. Or if you have a news story or tip-off, drop us a line at adnews@yaffa.com.au
Sign up to the AdNews newsletter, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter for breaking stories and campaigns throughout the day.