Ogilvy

France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Spain

There have been times in the not too distant past when Ogilvy PR struggled to escape the shadow of its iconic parent company, to forge its own identity as a dynamic public relations firm, rather than as a business unit of an advertising agency. But Ogilvy picked up our UK Consultancy of the Year award last year, and this year the resurgence extended into several key markets across the EMEA region, as the firm turned in double-digit growth, with the influence practice turning in particularly strong performance. Performance was strong across Europe—with Spain a particular standout, up by better than 35%—with new assignments from Coca-Cola, Google (France and Germany); L’Oréal (Greece, Romania); Skyscanner (France, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands); Nestle (France, Spain, Italy); Vacheron (EMEA work led out of France); and Kenvue (hubbed in Spain with work across Southern Europe).  

Last year saw the introduction of the firms new “Immersive Communications” approach, exemplified by the Cannes Gold Lion-winning “Michael CeraVe” campaign and also by some of the firm’s stellar work for Coca-Cola as part of the WPP Open X team. Immersive campaigns are earned-first, evolve over several weeks or even months, and provide multiple touchpoints and moments of consumer interaction, giving consumers opportunities to participate, interact with, shape, and amplify the story. On the influence front, the firm expanded its specialist Business Influence, iCommerce, and AI Influence capabilities, launched a specialized Health Influence offer, and introduced Influence Shield, a proprietary tool for managing the reputation risk that occasionally accompanies influencer work.

The firm’s influencer and social teams have also come together for a Creator Studio, which produces content at scale: the firm works with 30,000 creators global for client L’Oreal, for example. Other exciting work from across the continent included a Spanish campaign that brought together Max and Starbucks to celebrate the second season of “House of the Dragon”; in he Czech Republic it created a “Bohemian Auction” for lager brand Bohém and brewer Krušovice; in France “The Other Side of the Medal” campaign for Olympic sponsor Allianz partnered with athletes to draw attention to cyberbullying; and in Greece, the firm worked with Eurobank on a new employee engagement platform.

The EMEA region leadership team includes president Matt Buchanan; executive strategy and creative director Charlie Coney; head of growth Nick Bedford; and head of influence John Harding-Easson, with local market leaders including Claire Mariat in France, Elvis Santos in Spain, Sharon Murphy in Ireland, and Katja Berghoff in Germany. To support the new “immersive” approach—and the increased demand for Ogilvy PR to be at the Celine of clients’ creative wok, the firm’s creative strategy grew by 150%. Meanwhile, the once distinct earned, social, and influence teams are working more closely together than ever. The firm has also been living its values: Do the Right Thing; Do the Best Work of Our Lives; Do It Together, all while celebrating an inclusive culture with initiatives across the content.—PH