Last week, Wrigley decided to drop behemoth digital agencies Tribal DDB, Digitas, and Agency.com in favor of a stable of small, scrappy digital agencies like Big Spaceship, Firstborn, and EVB. An interesting strategy for a big brand, to say the least, Wrigley's move could be the start of a digital agency sea change, according to Ad Age.
Big agencies regularly employ boutique shops and service vendors to build digital campaigns for their clients, but now larger brands like Pepsi, Microsoft, and adidas are starting to cut out the middlemen and employ the little guys themselves. Indeed, a panel at ad:tech New York earlier this month was unanimous is in its assertion that agencies aren't fit to innovate right now, and the panelists advised digital vendors to bring new technologies to brands, rather than agencies.
There are several reasons for employing a smaller agency, the primary ones being cost and communication. It's far easier to communicate with a 50-person agency where projects won't get stuck in silos.
But while it seems David is getting the best of Goliath right now, things could rapidly change when smaller agencies are asked to go outside their comfort zones. David can kill a giant, but he can't fight an entire army.
"If you want a company to do banner ads and microsites, there are agencies that can do that and well," said Bob Lord, CEO of Razorfish, one of the largest digital agencies. "But if you want a comprehensive experience, to bring your brand to life in digital -- it could be retail -- you want a company like Razorfish."
