TrinityP3 for FIVE: Who takes the media agencyland crown? | Six Death Stars of media/tech | Missing: the women of senior adland - October 13

Welcome to TrinityP3 for FIVE. A curated newsletter of the five things the TrinityP3 team thinks you need to read this week.?

Our goal with TrinityP3 for FIVE is that in five minutes of reading on a Sunday you can get up to speed, feel more informed, or even get a head start on your week by looking ahead.?

In the week since we launched we’ve had a tonne of great feedback (adland likes AI pop art!) and more than 500 of you signed up in week one for either the email or the LinkedIn editions!

This week’s curator is Nathan Hodges , Trinity P3’s Managing Director ANZ.

October 13, 2024

THE FIVE?

1. OMG! HORGAN STEPS DOWN – WHO WILL BE NEXT KING/QUEEN OF MEDIA AGENCYLAND?

OMG this week stood for, oh my god, Peter Horgan , “Horgs”, (the media buyer responsible for more buying than anyone else) is stepping down as CEO of Omnicom Group, which has $1.3 billion in media billings. Plaudits have flowed from peers and competitors, while TIM BURROWES in Unmade nailed the significance.

Why it matters (NH):

The focus (at least of the trade media) will now turn to who replaces Horgs as CEO of Omnicom Group which has major brands like Coles, Qantas and Telstra in its stable and has been the dominant group for the past decade. Among the names floating around include some really interesting potential contenders such as: Mat Baxter , Kurt Burnette , Kristiaan Kroon to name a few. The decision will potentially have impacts across adland.

2. LINKEDIN: STEVE WALLS AND JON EVANS ON SYSTEM1 AND AD EFFECTIVENESS

Too often LinkedIn can feel like a self-congratulatory circle, but this post by Steve Walls on LinkedIn questioning claims by the global marketing research and effectiveness company System1 led to a fascinating discussion, especially when Jon Evans, System1's chief customer officer, joined the fray.??

Why it matters (NH):?

This helped restore some of my faith in LinkedIn. Walls is always whip-smart and on the money, and here he articulates exactly (but politely) the problem with recent claims by the team at System1 (easily the best of the pre-testing outfits).?

But the great thing is that Jon Evans replies in kind and with data, addressing the question and conceding where required. The result is an actual conversation between two people with expertise of interest and use - you know, like marketers are supposed to have with each other. No one was “humbled”. Nobody “endorsed” anything. No one claimed to “love this”. I miss this stuff.

3. LINKEDIN/DESIGN ASSEMBLY: WHERE ARE THE WOMEN IN SENIOR ADLAND?

This story felt like it deserved more attention this week. In a LinkedIn post, the CEO of NZ agency Run Aotearoa, Laura Cibilich , called out the lack of women in senior prominent creative roles in adland. She linked to this great piece by Billy Baxter in Design Assembly, where Billy Baxter shares her observations of being the oldest woman in many creative industry spaces, raising questions about gender representation and ageism.?

Cibilich also called out one particular trade (ahem, Campaign Brief), which recently ran a two-page spread of 20 top creatives (number of men featured: 20; number of women featured: nil). Leading recruiter Esther Clerehan then shared the post, which is worth reading for both the posts and the comment thread.??

Why it matters (NH):?

This is an important conversation, but I’m going to follow the advice and hand it over to my colleague Kylie Ridler-Dutton, who has some valuable perspectives on this issue.

Kylie Ridler-Dutton – Senior Global Consultant, TrinityP3

Why it matters (KRD):?

I love this statement by Billy: “It’s not just about having a seat at the table – it’s about redesigning that table to be truly inclusive.” In my career agency side I was often told speak up, speak louder and be heard, which is exhausting, shouldn’t be the way into being inclusive, and is distracting. It isn’t always the loudest voice with the big idea, it is often the person listening who takes it all in and is assessing the idea that adds value. My experience now, seeing agencies for a living, is that there are more women at the table who are brilliant, so it’s a concern that we don’t see enough of them in the media and more prominent roles.

Postscript: Sunday 9.30pm October 13: Today this issue gained a wider traction on across LinkedIn.

We'd suggest you have a read the contributions and thoughts of:

• Jet Swain Link to her post here.
• Jasmin Bedir Link to her post here.
• Cindy Gallop Link to her posts (Cindy did a few) here.
• In response to the protest of the women from the above group, Margie Reid , CEO of Thinkerbell explains some of the important actions her agency is taking. But the question remains, where are the men of the industry on this issue?

4. THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER: SHAPIRO ON THE SIX TRILLION DOLLAR MEDIA/TECH DEATH STARS

When you think of media Death Stars you probably only think Meta and Google. Evan Shapiro highlighted this week how there are actually six.?

Why it matters (NH):?

Shapiro’s point with the Death Star analogy (which he admits he uses mainly to grab attention) is that these six commercial behemoths are driven primarily by algorithms rather than boards or leaders, and as such can assimilate and destroy their competition with a lot less fuss and bother. In other words, to mix sci-fi genres, resistance is futile. You can agree with him or not, but it’s worth understanding what he’s saying.?

5. CAPITAL BRIEF: AUSSIE PUBLISHERS EYE NZ NERVOUSLY – AS GOOGLE LOOKS TO KILL A KIWI MEDIA CODE

Capital Brief’s John Buckley is one of the really great media reporters in Australia. He had a story on the weekend that flew under the radar (paywall). Google has warned that it may stop linking to news content and withdraw its commercial agreements with New Zealand publishers if the government proceeds with a new media bargaining bill similar to Australia’s Code.?

If New Zealand enacts the law, Google said it would be forced to stop linking to news content and reconsider its investments in local publishing. Interestingly, Buckley also reveals that in Australia, Google has already cut deals with some local publishers by up to 40% and pushed for shorter contract durations.?

Why it matters (NH):

The total value of Google/Meta deals is estimated at some $200 million, and we know Meta represents around $70 million, so there’s at least $130 million on the table here. It’s far more than just an esoteric commercial discussion. Yet again, at issue is the vital question of who sets the market rules for a healthy and free media in a democracy – a massive global tech player or a locally elected government.

THINGS THAT CAUGHT OUR ATTENTION

Nick Hand – Senior Consultant, TrinityP3?

I’m a big fan of the substack newsletter, Madison & Wall, which aims to explain the business of advertising from a corporate/financial markets perspective. Unfortunately, much of the writing is now behind a paywall (good for the creators I suppose), but they recently introduced a podcast named M&W, which I think is worth a listen.

Anton Buchner – Senior Consultant, TrinityP3?

Earlier this month, Experian completed its $820 million acquisition of Illion. Checking your credit score and accessing better debt repayment options are becoming more and more front of mind as the market continues to tighten. So getting a stronger alternative picture to the market leader, Equifax, is a win-win.

Lydia Feely – General Manager, TrinityP3?

I think we called it last week. We suggested that Crumbl cookies would be likely to launch in Australia, and lo and behold guess who announced this week that they are launching Down Under…

Darren Woolley – Global CEO, TrinityP3

Who is the most popular source of news on TikTok? It is not one of the news networks but individual creators – The Economist this year did a feature referring to them as “pocket Cronkites” – reading and also curating the news for their sometimes very large audiences.

Kylie Ridler-Dutton – Senior Global Consultant, TrinityP3

?I needed a fix of Logan Roy and this is a great use of his evil in a positive advertising way, and apt on World Mental Health Day. Post-COVID we seem to be able to speak openly about this for the first time.

Nic Christensen - Senior Consultant, TrinityP3

I’m often having convos about why agencies/media need to care about their own brand as much as their clients’. So this piece on PR by Little Black Book founder Matt Cooper on how you can and should make noise in trade really stood out to me.

Nathan Hodges – Managing Director ANZ, TrinityP3??

Professional success comes in all shapes and sizes. Nic Jones this week provided living proof that it’s never too late to turn your hand to something completely new, and transform your quality of life along the way.

Former SCA CMO Nikki Clarkson was on the Mumbrellacast last week together with Mumbrella's Neil Griffiths . There were lots of lessons and insights from more than a decade of leading the marketing for one of Australia’s most prominent media companies. Well worth a listen.

WHAT WE’VE BEEN UP TO

Many of us know the metaphor of two runners being chased by the lion. One turns to the other and says, “I don’t have to outrun the lion, I just have to outrun you.” This week in Campaign Asia (paywall), Darren Woolley asks if this story holds true for media/adland and raises questions about whether we are moving forward or backward as an industry.

WHAT MADE US LAUGH

Former B&T reporter, now Deputy Editor of Travel Weekly Sofia Geraghty , brilliantly highlights the issue of men speaking over women in meetings, in a clever and funny way. Men take note!?

AND FINALLY?

We would love your feedback on the TrinityP3 for FIVE. Please email [email protected].