Diana Marszalek 20 Jul 2022 // 11:40AM GMT
NEW YORK — Omnicom PR agency revenue was up 15.8% in the second quarter of 2022, marking the fifth consecutive quarterly lift since the height of the Covid pandemic.
In its Q2 earnings report, the holding company reported Omnicom as a whole saw worldwide revenue in the three months ending June 30 increase 11.3% on an organic basis to nearly $3.6 billion.
Components of the change include a 6.7%, or $239.8 million, decrease in acquisition revenue, reflecting dispositions in the advertising & media discipline in the second quarter of 2021 and the disposition of Omnicom businesses in Russia in the first quarter of 2022. The impact of foreign currency translation was a decrease of $168.4 million, or 4.7%. Reported total revenue in the second quarter of 2022 decreased $4.4 million, or 0.1%, Omnicom said in its report.
During Q2 2022, Omnicom PR Group — which includes FleishmanHillard, Ketchum and Porter Novelli — fared better than four other disciplines including execution & support (up 9.3%), healthcare (9.2%), advertising and media (8.2%), commerce & brand consulting (11%). Precision marketing, however, was up 21% and experiential was up 36.6%.
Organic growth in the second quarter of 2022 compared to the second quarter of 2021 increased 10.7% for the US, and 12.5% for the rest of North America; 15.1% for the Euro markets & other Europe, 12% for the UK, 4.7% for Asia Pacific, 14.0% for Latin America and 28.3% for the Middle East & Africa. Growth in Asia Pacific was negatively impacted by Covid-19 lockdowns in China, Omnicom said.
“We performed well on every metric this quarter, led again by double-digit organic revenue growth,” said Chairman and CEO John Wren. “The changes we have made in our portfolio are delivering better results for our clients as we are uniquely qualified to help them digitally transform their business, navigate complexity, and expand in high-growth areas like retail media and e-commerce. As we enter the second half of the year, we are in a strong financial position, and our company is well-prepared to manage through economic headwinds.”
With Q2 2022 up, Omnicom has had five consecutive quarters of PR growth, having seen a 14% increase in the first quarter of this year, a 4.4% increase in Q4 2021, a 10.5%. increase in revenue during Q3 and 15.1% growth in revenue during the second quarter of the year — a turnaround from the 3.5% decline the PR group experienced in the first quarter of 2021.
That had followed the positive turn Omnicom’s PR agencies saw in Q4 2020, when the group’s revenue rose 0.2%, the first reported uptick in business since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic in March 2020. The group saw revenue drop 3.4% in Q3 of 2020 and 13.5% during Q2, the height of the pandemic shutdown.
All of which occurred against the backdrop of Omnicom and its agencies, including its PR firms, implementing layoffs and furloughs around the world in response to business drying up.
The report also comes just over a year since Omnicom hired Chris Foster as CEO of its $1.3 billion PR agency unit, and close to two years after Karen van Bergen relinquished the role.