There are two types of ad agencies operating in the market. There are network agencies, which are part of the global networks and there are independent agencies.

Advertising agencies will have to share business accountability, since producing content is today a democratic activity — anyone can generate content at home. It diminishes the value of ads per se. Organisations and marketers are in search of agencies which bring to the table something beyond advertising. The agencies can cater to a few clients to rise to the occasion, and develop high-value relationships with the clients. The nature of the relationship expands — it is not restricted to advertising and marketing, but goes beyond and becomes a business relationship.

Independent agencies have ownership which has personal skin in the game. The relationships matter them. In addition, there is a diversion of talent from network agencies to independent agencies, since these provide a lot of autonomy and foster a sense of independence. The manpower has the freedom to do what they want to do in independent agencies.

Clients treat agencies as vendors. There is a pitch for every project. Multiple agencies vie with each other for a pitch. Clients choose a script they like and produce that. It is a transactional way of doing business. This model is highly aggressive. There is frequent pitching for one project. This model may not be suitable for all the agencies.

In this age of digital advertising, digital contributes more to business than creativity. Clients survive through e-commerce, performance marketing or SEO, Creativity has limitations. In digital, there is a dive into mechanics, into numbers and understanding the consumer behaviour on these platforms. Digital agencies arrive at a more solution-based approach.

There should be a swing back to quality of content. Today, the content is churned out just to remain visible. There could be a shift in content where quality starts to matter again. Digital is anti-craft and anti-quality. We can witness a comeback of craft and quality.

Agencies will not be just producers of advertising, but will elevate to the role of business partners. They will have to play a larger role.

All across the world, the network agencies are struggling, and so there is a larger role for independent agencies.