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NEW YORK and WASHINGTON D.C. – Sept. 15, 2022 – Stagwell today launched a new business unit to deliver bipartisan, multidisciplinary political and communications expertise to chief executive officers, chief communicators officers and chief marketing officers navigating emerging policy, political and social issues.

The new Stagwell Risk and Reputation Unit aligns political and financial strategists from Democratic strategic communications firm SKDK, Republican digital agency Targeted Victory, financial communications firm Sloane & Company and Stagwell’s corporate reputation and strategic experts. The offering will help business leaders audit the societal and political issues most important to stakeholders, develop proactive and reactive strategies and narratives, and monitor and measure the impact of a company’s position on business reputation and overall performance.

“Today’s CEOs are under more pressure than ever to mix business and politics – yet one misstep can wipe out a year of marketing and corporate reputation building and billions in shareholder value,” said Mark Penn, chairman and CEO, Stagwell. “Too often, businesses rely only on expertise from one side of the aisle or without considering the financial implications of their public positions. Our team goes beyond the purpose-marketing units in today’s landscape to bring true, bipartisan political insights and tested business acumen closer to the war room.”

Ray Day, Stagwell vice chair and a longtime chief communications officer, added: “Leaders have minutes to make the right decision once a societal or political issue takes over their company’s narrative. Too often, they tend to make choices based on internal information with little outside perspective,” Day said. “We’re providing the guidance leaders need to respond in the heat of the moment, while also helping them see around corners and anticipate what’s to come to protect reputation.”

The new consultancy includes experienced strategists who have supported and served in executive leadership at Microsoft, Ford, IBM and many other Fortune 500 companies, as well as campaign strategists for 12 presidential races, 95 Senate races and 175 House races.

“Stagwell excels at connecting the best of the best to unleash transformative results for our clients. With this unit, we’ve connected two of the leading political firms in the country alongside our financial and corporate communications experts to help business leaders solve one of their biggest post-COVID challenges: balancing product with purpose,” said Alexis Williams, chief brand officer, North America, Stagwell.

To inquire about the Risk and Reputation Unit, please reach out to hello@stagwellglobal.com

About Stagwell

Stagwell is the challenger network built to transform marketing. We deliver scaled creative performance for the world’s most ambitious brands, connecting culture-moving creativity with leading-edge technology to harmonize the art and science of marketing. Led by entrepreneurs, our 13,000+ specialists in 34+ countries are unified under a single purpose: to drive effectiveness and improve business results for their clients. Join us at www.stagwellglobal.com.

About SKDK

SKDK is a top national communications and political consulting firm bringing unparalleled strategic communications experience to Fortune 500 companies, nonprofits, philanthropic organizations and labor unions, as well as political committees and candidates. With offices in Washington, New York, Los Angeles and Albany, SKDK offers strategic support to managing a crisis, protecting a brand, advocating an issue or winning an election. In 2020, SKDK was a key adviser to the Biden for President campaign and helped to make history by electing Joe Biden as President of The United States and Kamala Harris, the nation’s first Black, Asian-American and woman, as Vice President. To learn more about SKDK, visit our website at www.skdknick.com.

About Targeted Victory

Targeted Victory is a digital-first political and communications agency.  Born out of campaigns, we bring speed and scale to our work on behalf of Fortune 500 companies.  Our roster of presidential-level campaign operatives, former House and Senate chiefs of staff, former television producers and global public relations and marketing professionals provide strategic guidance to our clients. Our decades of experience running political and corporate campaigns has taught us utilizing both national messaging and outreach, along with activating hyperlocal engagements, is the most effective way to tell a client’s story.

About Sloane & Company

Founded in 1998, Sloane & Company is an industry-leading strategic communications firm focused on Corporate Communications, Media Relations, Investor Relations, Crisis Communications and Issue Management, Activism Defense and Proxy Contests, Transaction Support and Public Affairs. Sloane & Company has previously been recognized by The Holmes Report as Global Corporate Agency of the Year; and Crisis Agency of the Year, and in 2019 was ranked by Bloomberg #2 among communications firms for shareholder activism support, based on total number of campaigns.

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Kendra Clark
The Drum

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The global network is bringing together financial experts and political strategists from both sides of the aisle to help brands nail their messaging on oft-controversial topics.

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Jason Nottee
AdWeek

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A Ted Lasso star and a sports journalist showcase athletes without a brand mention in sight

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Jack Neff
AdAge

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Rebranding effort is first work by 72andSunny for Zoom, with VaynerMedia handling global media push

Zoom is launching a new visual identity with help from a new agency, Stagwell Group’s 72andSunny, as the brand looks to go from ubiquitous video app to full-fledged business communications and collaboration platform.

The campaign, which launched Sept. 12, is the first for the brand from 72andSunny, which is working on a project basis. It will be running across digital, out-of-home (including Times Square), social media and streaming services in North America and globally. VaynerMedia is handling the media buy.

It backs Zoom’s new visual identity and push for broader business communications relevance—including Zoom Chat, now officially re-dubbed Zoom Team Chat.

Certainly Zoom doesn’t have an awareness problem since it became woven into the cultural fabric of work during the pandemic starting more than two years ago. Just one more reminder of its status as an “essential business tool” came Thursday when a service outage hit tens of thousands of users who were suddenly deprived of their video workplace tether.  Zoom quickly restored the service.

But the new identity and creative are meant to show that Zoom is more than the video grid of co-workers that’s become an everyday virtual workspace for millions, even as more people spend more time in the office.

“Partnering with Zoom at this time of evolution is the kind of challenge we love, with the kind of partner we love,” said Carlo Cavallone, global chief creative officer of 72andSunny in a statement. “We had a very collaborative process to get to the design concept at the core of the platform. We’re excited because it’s a clear, powerful creative idea that opens a lot of new possibilities for the brand.”

The ads pile extra o’s into the Zoom name to point out that the company is also about phone, Team Chat, rooms, events, team whiteboards, contact centers and other services.

“What started as a video meeting app quickly moved into broadcast webinars, connected conference rooms, and more, and it continues to evolve and expand,” Zoom Chief Marketing Officer Janine Pelosi said in a blog post.

A big part of the new branding is to focus on the Zoom Team Chat collaboration and messaging hub as the company looks to broaden its involvement in a work tool space where Slack, Microsoft Teams and Miro, among others, compete.

“We’ve already made significant investments in Zoom Team Chat’s capabilities, and we’ll unveil even more enhancements later this month,” Pelosi said.

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The Society of Presidential Pollsters Founder Will Discuss “American Government in the 21^st Century” Annual Poll Results

WASHINGTON D.C. – Sept. 7, 2022 – Stagwell (STGW) Chairman and CEO Mark Penn will be a featured speaker at The George Washington (GW) University’s “Reinvigorating Democracy” event next Wednesday, Sept. 14, 2022. The GW Graduate School of Political Management (GSPM) Society of Presidential Pollsters will reveal the results of the latest “American Government in the 21st Century” annual survey, that takes the pulse of the American people on a wide range of issues related to how elected officials and public institutions are serving them.

As the society’s founder, Penn will discuss his analysis in conversation with GSPM Founding Dean Christopher Arterton, followed by a question-and-answer session. The panel is part of the GSPM’s “Reinvigorating Democracy” one-day event on the future of politics from practitioners on the Hill.

The panel will take place 12:30-1:40 p.m. at the Milken Institute School of Public Health. Interested attendees can register here.

To hear more on the latest in political insights, please visit the “Harvard Harris Poll Debrief with Mark Penn and Bob Cusack” podcast, in which Penn and The Hill Editor-in-Chief Bob Cusack discuss the latest Harvard CAPS / Harris Poll (Harvard’s Center for American Political Studies and Harris Insights and Analytics), released monthly.

About Stagwell

Stagwell is the challenger network built to transform marketing. We deliver scaled creative performance for the world’s most ambitious brands, connecting culture-moving creativity with leading-edge technology to harmonize the art and science of marketing. Led by entrepreneurs, our 13,000+ specialists in 34+ countries are unified under a single purpose: to drive effectiveness and improve business results for their clients. Join us at www.stagwellglobal.com. 

 Media Contact:
Sarah Arvizo
pr@stagwellglobal.com

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NEW YORK and KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, Sept. 1, 2022 — Stagwell (NASDAQ: STGW), the challenger network built to transform marketing, has expanded its presence in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region with the opening of its newest global office, Stagwell Malaysia. Stagwell opened its regional headquarters in Singapore in November 2021. Stagwell’s travel content and media brand, Ink, and Assembly, a global omnichannel media agency delivering media and more, will collaborate in the new location.

As part of the office opening, Ink has grown its partnership with Malaysia Airlines to offer sponsorship and advertising opportunities online and offline at the airport, onboard flights, and at home. Ink is actively hiring to support the expansion.

Assembly, which recently won recognition from two of the most prestigious local marketing award bodies, Marketing Excellence Malaysia and MARKies Malaysia, for its leading work in the market across media, will expand its staff to support the growth ambitions of local Malaysian brands and continue to support global businesses in the market.

“As Malaysia celebrates its Independence Day, we are excited to establish our newest global entity in Kuala Lumpur,” said Randy Duax, managing director, Asia-Pacific, Stagwell. “Malaysia’s GDP grew 9% last quarter and e-commerce transactions are expected to grow 25% per year over the next few years. For the kinds of innovative and disruptive clients our network serves and the kind of talent we have in our portfolio, we’re uniquely positioned to amplify brands into, out of, and within Malaysia.”

Stagwell boasts nearly 2,000 employees in the APAC region at agencies including creative network 72andSunny, communications firm Allison+Partners, creative agency Anomaly, global omnichannel media agency Assembly (named the 2021 Media Agency of the Year for Asia-Pacific by The Drum), digital transformation agency Code and Theory, creative collective Forsman & Bodenfors, (named top creative agency in Singapore by Campaign Brief), travel content and media brand INK, multilingual content agency Locaria, path-to-purchase shop MMI Agency, and consumer research agency National Research Group. 

In addition, Stagwell’s innovative affiliate network now boasts 70 active and independent agency brands. In APAC, Stagwell’s affiliate partners include Beyond Media Global (Guangzhou, Hong Kong, Sydney, Taipei), creative agency Enormous (Gurgaon, Mumbai), influencer agency Metric Design Studio (Shanghai), and digital and content full-service agency Serviceplan (Kuala Lumpur, Shanghai, Seoul).

Stagwell is the challenger network built to transform marketing. We deliver scaled creative performance for the world’s most ambitious brands, connecting culture-moving creativity with leading-edge technology to harmonize the art and science of marketing. Led by entrepreneurs, our 13,000+ specialists in 34+ countries are unified under a single purpose: to drive effectiveness and improve business results for their clients. Join us at www.stagwellglobal.com. 

Media Contact:
Sarah Arvizo
pr@stagwellglobal.com

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NEW YORK and LONDON, Aug. 12, 2022 – Stagwell (NASDAQ: STGW), the challenger network built to transform marketing, today announced exclusive sponsorship of the fourth annual Creative Equals Business, which launched in 2018 to support the development of female leaders in creative industries across the U.K.

Creative Equals Business is a six-month program comprised of 8 modules that frame inclusion as a driver of organizational transformation, impacting creativity and profitability. Through hybrid in-person and virtual sessions, program participants receive invaluable executive leadership development and networking with other cohort members and industry-leading experts on creativity, leadership, and inclusion.

“Tackling gender equity at the highest levels of our organization is a high priority for us,” said Stagwell Chief People Officer Stephanie Howley. “With CPB London Managing Director Helen James at the helm, Creative Equals Business has proven to be a force multiplier in the push to improve C-suite representation. We’re proud to continue our support of the programme and to have mentors such as Anomaly Global CEO Karina Wilsher helping to diversify marketing leadership for the better.”

Creative Equals Business is a subsidiary of Creative Equals, a global consultancy that helps workplace cultures grow through innovation, stronger customer relationships, authentic marketing, and business resilience through volatile times.

“Making progress in business requires that our thinking, the ways we strategize, and how we execute within our organizations are progressive, too – that means having a leadership makeup that’s reflective of the communities we communicate to daily,” said CPB London MD and Creative Equals Joint Founder Helen James. “Stagwell’s continued support helps ensure that women leave our programme armed with the tools they need to adapt and excel as leaders in creative industries that are constantly changing.”

Applications for Creative Equals Business are open through August 31, 2022 to senior women, non-binary and gender non-conforming people stepping into leadership positions. Apply here.

To date, the program has supported the growth and leadership development of over 200 women.

About Stagwell

Stagwell is the challenger holding company built to transform marketing. We deliver scaled creative performance for the world’s most ambitious brands, connecting culture-moving creativity with leading-edge technology to harmonize the art and science of marketing. Led by entrepreneurs, our 13,000+ specialists in 34+ countries are unified under a single purpose: to drive effectiveness and improve business results for our clients. Join us at www.stagwellglobal.com.

Originally released on

Other key findings (Click here for Executive Summary and here for Presentation) include:

 CLBP Has Significant Impact on Mobility and Long-term Negative Impact on Life

• More than half (53%) say CLBP has had a major or moderate negative impact on their quality of life
• More than one third of CLBP sufferers (36%) report their CLBP is “severe”, “very severe”, or the “worst pain possible”
• 44% report that they’ve been experiencing CLBP for 5 years or more
• New Mobility Index, based on survey data, shows significant drop (~20 points on a scale of 0 to 100) in CLBP sufferers’ ability to move, with the highest drop seen among those in their 50s

Lack of Knowledge About CLBP Causes and Need for Better Treatment Options and Hope

• More than one-third of CLBP sufferers (37%) have never been told by a healthcare professional what causes their CLBP, despite 86% strongly or somewhat agreeing that it is important to know the specific cause so their CLBP can be managed effectively
• Only 2 in 5 (39%) have ever been told that CLBP can be caused by lumbar spinal stenosis (LSS), a condition often caused by an enlarged ligament compressing spinal nerves⁸
• Four out of 5 CLBP sufferers (82%) experience at least one symptom consistent with LSS, yet nearly 4 out of 5 (78%) do not know an enlarged ligament can cause CLBP
• The vast majority (84%) say they wish there were better treatment options for their CLBP
• 78% have accepted CLBP as part of their life, despite treatment advances that might help address the cause of CLBP 

“These survey results demonstrate that people with chronic low back pain are suffering greatly over long periods of time, and many have resigned themselves to living in a debilitated state,” said Kathy Steinberg, Vice President of Media and Communications Research at The Harris Poll. “The fact that more than a third are not being told what is causing their pain, such as LSS or an enlarged ligament, makes it more difficult to treat that pain. It is also alarming that opioid use is still high in people with back pain while other treatments such as minimally invasive procedures are not playing more of a role given the latest treatment guidelines.⁷ Taken together, these findings suggest more awareness is needed to help people determine the cause of their pain and an appropriate treatment regimen to help them find relief.”

Mobility Index and Findings
The landmark survey data was also used to generate a Mobility Index, based on survey participants’ ratings of their overall mobility; ability to do specific physical activities; and level of agreement with statements about mobility, pain, physical limitations, and ability to complete everyday tasks. The scores on the individual items were combined so that the Mobility Index ranged from zero (no mobility) to 100 (the highest level of mobility).

The overall results show that the average Mobility Index is 57.0 for CLBP sufferers vs. 76.4 for adults without CLBP. This approximate 20-point difference is consistent across most decade age groups, with the highest drop among those in their 50s, underscoring that this debilitating disease progresses with age and the importance of early intervention. Further, Harris Poll ran step-wise regression to isolate the individual impacts of nearly a dozen common chronic diseases (e.g., obesity, diabetes, osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, and stroke), and CLBP was the leading cause of reduced mobility (see chart above; See also Full Report here). As indicated in the chart above, individuals with CLBP have their Mobility Index score reduced by almost 15 points solely due to their chronic low back pain, meaning that, of the 20-point gap in Mobility Index between those with CLBP and those without CLBP, nearly 15 points is due to CLBP alone.

“As people age, it can be difficult to assess what mobility challenges are a normal part of aging or a condition that may be treatable, such as chronic low back pain,” said Peter Pryzbylkowski, MD, a contributor to the Mobility Matters Survey and Board Certified Pain Specialist and Anesthesiologist from Relievus Pain Management. “People with CLBP can visit knowyourbackstory.com to learn more about their condition and the Mobility Index. An especially important step is to see a spine health physician to decide on a treatment plan and get moving again.”

Methodology for Mobility Matters: Chronic Low Back Pain in America and the First-Ever Mobility Index
The Mobility Matters: Landmark Survey on Chronic Low Back Pain in America and Mobility Index was conducted online in the United States by The Harris Poll on behalf of Vertos Medical among 5,020 adults ages 18+, including 1,521 adults who currently experience chronic low back pain and/or sciatic pain, i.e., back pain that runs into the hips and legs (“CLBP sufferers”). The survey was conducted May 12 – May 20, 2022.  Data were weighted where necessary by age, gender, race/ethnicity, region, education, household income, household size, and marital status to bring them in line with their actual proportions in the U.S. adult population, allowing estimates of the prevalence and magnitude of survey responses to be extrapolated to this population.

Respondents for this survey were selected from among those who have agreed to participate in our surveys. The sampling precision of Harris online polls is measured by using a Bayesian credible interval. For this study, the sample data are accurate to within +/- 1.7 percentage points using a 95% confidence level for the total sample of U.S. adults, and +/- 3.0 percentage points using a 95% confidence level for CLBP sufferers. This credible interval will be wider among subsets of the surveyed population of interest. All sample surveys and polls, whether or not they use probability sampling, are subject to other multiple sources of error which are most often not possible to quantify or estimate, including, but not limited to coverage error, error associated with nonresponse, error associated with question wording and response options, and post-survey weighting and adjustments. Due to weighting, computer rounding and/or the acceptance of multiple responses, percentages may not add to 100%.

About The Harris Poll
The Harris Poll is a global consulting and market research firm that strives to reveal the authentic values of modern society to inspire leaders to create a better tomorrow. It works with clients in three primary areas: building twenty-first-century corporate reputation, crafting brand strategy and performance tracking, and earning organic media through public relations research. One of the longest-running surveys in the U.S., The Harris Poll has tracked public opinion, motivations and social sentiment since 1963, and is now part of Stagwell, the challenger holding company built to transform marketing.

About Stagwell
Stagwell is the challenger network built to transform marketing. We deliver scaled creative performance for the world’s most ambitious brands, connecting culture-moving creativity with leading-edge technology to harmonize the art and science of marketing. Led by entrepreneurs, our 13,000+ specialists in 34+ countries are unified under a single purpose: to drive effectiveness and improve business results for their clients. Join us at www.stagwellglobal.com.

About Vertos Medical, Inc.
Vertos Medical Inc. is a medical device company committed to developing innovative, minimally invasive treatments for lumbar spinal stenosis (LSS). mild®, its proprietary technology, is a safe and minimally invasive outpatient procedure designed to restore space in the spinal canal through an incision smaller than the size of a baby aspirin. Learn more at www.Vertosmed.com.

References

¹ Meucci RD, Fassa AG, Faria NM. Prevalence of chronic low back pain : systematic review. Rev Saude Publica. 2015;49:1. doi:10.1590/S0034-8910.2015049005874
² Shmagel A, Foley R, Ibrahim H. Epidemiology of Chronic Low Back Pain in US Adults: Data From the 2009-2010 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Arthritis Care Res (Hoboken). 2016;68(11):1688-1694. doi:10.1002/acr.22890
³ Barbour KE, Helmick CG, Boring M, Brady TJ. Vital Signs: Prevalence of Doctor-Diagnosed Arthritis and Arthritis-Attributable Activity Limitation—United States, 2013–2015. Morb Mortal Wkly Rep 2017;66:246–253. doi: 10.15585/mmwr.mm6609e1.
⁴ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. National Diabetes Statistics Report. Available: https://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/data/statistics-report/index.html. Accessed June 18, 2022.
⁵ HealthLine. Heart Disease: Facts, Statistics, and You. Available: https://www.healthline.com/health/heart-disease/statistics#Who-is-at-risk?. Accessed June 18, 2022.
⁶ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Acute low back pain. Available: https://www.cdc.gov/acute-pain/low-back-pain/index.html. Accessed July 21, 2022.
⁷ Deer TR, Grider JS, Pope JE, et al. Best Practices for Minimally Invasive Lumbar Spinal Stenosis Treatment 2.0 (MIST): Consensus Guidance from the American Society of Pain and Neuroscience (ASPN). J Pain Res. 2022;15:1325-1354. Published 2022 May 5. doi:10.2147/JPR.S355285
⁸ Hansson T, Suzuki N, Hebelka H, Gaulitz A. The narrowing of the lumbar spinal canal during loaded MRI: the effects of the disc and ligamentum flavum. Eur Spine J. 2009;18(5): 679-686. Doi:10.1007/s00586-009-0919-7.

CONTACT:
Sarah Arvizo
pr@stagwellglobal.com

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By YML 

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Twitter recently announced the launch of its new privacy policy with an innovative online game called “Twitter Data Dash,” conceived and directed by YML, and designed by Momo Pixel. The interactive, 8-bit style game was built to educate and engage Twitter’s global audience of 330M users around the importance of one’s privacy on the platform.

YML’s innovative approach has so far earned press from The Washington Post, The Verge, TechCrunch, Adweek, and an array of other publications.

“Few topics are as relevant today as privacy for both businesses and consumers alike, which is why we leapt at the opportunity to partner with Twitter and disrupt the category,” shared Ashish Toshniwal, YML’s CEO and co-founder.

When Twitter first reached out to us, Twitter’s Privacy and Design team was underway rethinking and rewriting their privacy policy so it presented itself to people as something other than a massive, relentless sledgehammer of text. They began by thoughtfully breaking it down. Structurally. Visually. Linguistically crafting in a way that no longer required you to acquire a Harvard law degree to understand.

Twitter brought in YML to deliver product innovation, and in less than three months, “Twitter Data Dash” was born, built, and launched.

“We quickly gravitated toward the idea of turning privacy — something people go out of their way to avoid — into something you’d be genuinely excited to look at, interact with, and share,” added Craig Kind, the YML Creative Director who led the project.

Formatted for mobile and browser, we spearheaded “Twitter Data Dash” from definition right through to final artwork, development and design. A feat that included both customizing in-game artwork and regionalizing the experience for 9 major languages.

The game itself brings the Twitterverse to life in 8-bit style. From a building in the form of a hashtag to a boat under water with a mast featuring the Twitter bird icon to stylized Internet trolls, we dove deep into the nuance and culture of Twitter and reflected it in “Twitter Data Dash.”

The game pays meticulous detail to accessibility, globalization, and characters with diverse backgrounds. That narrative was woven into the foundation of the game when we partnered with Momo Pixel, a visionary 8-bit artist, game developer, and designer whose work has already changed the industry, using the medium to comment on the black female experience in “Hair Nah”.

Momo Pixel, the artist who designed the game, shared, “Games are a great way to facilitate learning, so when Twitter and YML approached me with the opportunity to build a video game that can help make their privacy policy easier to understand, it was a no-brainer — I absolutely said yes!”

“Twitter Data Dash” is hosted on a website built by YML’s engineering team, which facilitated the technical architecture across YML, Twitter and Momo Pixel over the three month project. YML consistently ran usability and testing, QA, responded to daily changes of the experience, and ensured the experience was consistently fast and reliable across platforms.

Twitter’s business objective — our goal— was to design an experience that tackled a massive global problem in a way nobody ever had before. Launched less than a month ago, the game—and the subject of privacy—have been featured in countless major publications worldwide, and played by millions of people around the globe. Game over. Job done.

See more YML work here. Or get in touch to discuss your next project.

By

Alison Weissbrot
Editor, Campaign US
This piece originally appeared in Campaign US

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The holding company grew 16% organically in Q2 thanks largely to digital services and integration between creative and media.

Stagwell is further integrating media into its creative agencies as the new holding company kid on the block looks to sustain growth over legacy industry peers.

On its second quarter 2022 earnings call on Thursday, Stagwell leadership spoke about a growth in integrated client opportunities across the network, specifically in accessing media and digital services through its creative agencies.

As a result, CFO Frank Lanuto disclosed that the holding company – formally created one year ago by the combination of Stagwell Marketing Group Holdings and MDC Partners – has reorganized its reporting segments “to more closely bring together media and creative.”

Stagwell will shift creative agencies Crispin Porter + Bogusky, Forsman & Bodenfors, Observatory and Vitro under the Stagwell Media Network. Observatory CEO Jae Goodman stepped down from his role shortly before the change. 

Additionally, the holding company is standing up Stagwell Media Studio capabilities in all of its creative agencies, allowing them to tap into the network’s media capabilities more easily and at scale.

Stagwell’s other creative agencies are split across different networks at the holding company that aim to bring digital closer to creative. 72andSunny, for instance, is part of the Constellation Network, which includes digital agency Instrument and research company The Harris Poll. The Doner Partners Network combines the creative agency with PR and influencer marketing shops such as Veritas and HL Group. 

“After years of procurement separating media from creative, the demands of the digital world are bringing them together again and we are responding to these trends,” CEO Mark Penn told investors on the earnings call.

The Stagwell Media Network, which launched one year ago and includes agencies Assembly and ForwardPMX, grew 28% in Q2 to $36 million, thanks in part to a few $10 million-plus contract wins.

Performance media and data, which makes up 19% of Stagwell’s business, grew 17% organically year over year. Digital services grew 37% organically year over year and contributed to 57% of net revenues in the quarter.

Strong performance in the media business is driving growth in pure creative services, which are growing inline with GDP at 3% to 5% annually. Integrated assignments, on the other hand, are growing 10% to 15% year over year, Penn said.

“That is a way to spearhead the growth of creative: integrate it more closely with [media] and consumer online experiences,” he added.

Overall Stagwell grew 16% organically in Q2, bringing in $556 million in net revenue. That’s on top of 29% growth in Q2 2021, bringing its “two-year growth stack” to 45%, Penn said.

As Stagwell leans into integration, its average client size grew 30% year over year, from $4.5 million to $6 million, the result of a “land and expand” strategy that is helping extend its services with existing clients. Johnson & Johnson, for instance, grew its remit with Stagwell from four to 12 brands over the past year. Stagwell’s top 25 clients work on average with five agencies across the network.

“We’re seeing a spillover effect,” Penn said. “People are also pitching more jointly across services, which, two or three years ago, they didn’t do at all.”

Unlike its legacy peers in the category which increased their projections, Stagwell reaffirmed its outlook for the quarter, projecting 18% to 22% organic growth for the year.

No recession here

Amid concerns about inflation and an impending recession, and a slowdown in the ad businesses of the largest tech platforms, Penn said Stagwell is seeing strong appetite from clients and “a flood of new business pitches.”

The holding company is also benefiting from the travel industry rebound this summer.  Business with travel brands nearly doubled in Q2, contributing to growth in the media network.

“We’re seeing a very strong travel and entertainment summer rebound and what looks like it’s going to be a market competitive holiday season,” Penn said. “If and when I see something different, I’ll report it. It’s just not what we’re seeing in terms of how clients are acting.”

Penn pointed to more competition in the media space, from players such as TikTok and Netflix, as a contributor to Big Tech’s slowing ad businesses.

“People have more than two choices now in their placements,” he said. “The market will be increasingly spread out and harder to read.”

But if the economy does take a turn for the worse, Penn said Stagwell’s focus on digital and performance media will insulate it from client cutbacks.

“It’s less likely that companies are going to cut revenue producing media,” he said.

By Alison Weissbrot. Published August 04,2022