| To say that the last two years have been turbulent is an understatement. The world, our country and our industry have been turned upside down. As an agency we too have had to navigate significant challenges including: * Adapting to a new way of working remotely * Staffing transitions for our clients and at the agency * Constant monitoring of the shifting media consumption habits of audiences * Sustained spending reductions from important industries like Travel & Tourism and Attractions These challenges have required us to improve as an agency in ways we could not have imagined at the beginning of 2020. We know there are still many challenges ahead for all of us in the weeks, months and years to come, and remaining in a constant state of change and improvement is paramount. However, we are excited for what 2022 holds, and as we approach the agency's 25th Anniversary this March, we know that the challenges of the last two years have made us stronger. Some of the things that are making us so optimistic include a new look and branding, several new hires that have elevated the talent at the agency and an industry ripe with new opportunities in an ever-evolving landscape. |
| We spent a good portion of 2021 taking a look inward, and with the help of our friends at Hanlon Creative, we refreshed our look to better reflect the agency's brand. We were excited to launch a new website at the end of 2021, and you can expect a new look and feel to our communication in 2022. Our new site and new branding is designed to focus on how we have evolved and innovated over the years, while still maintaining the core identity established during our 25 years in business, which is an agency focused on best-in-class client service, superior strategy, and constant transparency. Take a look at the new site and drop us a line to let us know what you think. |
| As many companies have experienced over the last year, we have gone through a period of transition. Throughout this time, we have brought on several new staff members, and we could not be more excited about our current team. We added colleagues that we long admired, such as Shelly Hammon our new Senior VP, Media & Client Services, adding to her illustrious career in the Philadelphia advertising industry. The new remote and hybrid workplace allowed us to expand our recruitment to different markets. This included bringing back a past MayoSeitz Media All-Star, Erin Bernethy, returning as Director of Integrated Media Strategy. Our Digital Ad Operations and Insights departments expanded over the past year, adding many talented newcomers who have already made significant contributions in helping advance the agency's goals surrounding superior strategy, execution, and measurement. We have also added talented planning staff as Senior Strategists, Integrated Planners, and Media Assistants, all of whom are strengthening our strategy and account service teams. |
| MayoSeitz Media remains solely focused on evolving and innovating our clients' media campaigns in order to drive business results. That holds true for long-standing clients such as Penn Medicine, now entering our 20th year of partnership, and new clients such as Ameriprise Financial, having just wrapped up our first year of working together. This challenging and evolving landscape is what makes this industry so vibrant and exciting. In an industry that changes as rapidly as ours, making predictions for the year ahead can seem fruitless at times. However, here are just a few of the things we anticipate will impact the work we do for our client partners in the year ahead. 1) Streaming Consolidation: Streaming TV has been one of the largest growth areas for spend among our clients over the past two years. It is a platform combining the powerful sight, sound, and motion of TV, with the targeting capabilities of digital. However, it is a heavily fragmented landscape. Many are predicting a consolidation of offerings in the space. Whether those deals happen in 2022, or in the years beyond, consolidation is coming. 2) Expanded Paid Social Competition: A lion's share of the spend in paid social media goes to Facebook/Instagram, but more and more clients are moving paid social dollars to the likes of TikTok and Snapchat, especially when targeting younger audiences. Engagement levels are high with these emerging social platforms and they provide ample opportunity. How the newly formed Meta Platforms, Inc. responds and what that means for VR and AR opportunities will have a major impact on 2022 and beyond. 3) First Party Data and Deprecation of Cookies: Another moving timeline, but an inevitable change to the industry is the deprecation of cookies. Clients are testing alternative identity solutions now to get ahead of establishing new baseline metrics when third party cookies go away. We know it will mean more focus on first party data, contextual placements, and geo-based targeting. While it will likely cause some headaches in the beginning, it is ultimately a change that should make the industry better and open up new opportunities. |
| So, it seems we have a lot to look forward to in the year to come and we are poised to take advantage of what lies ahead. We wish all the same to our clients, agency partners, vendor partners, and friends. Here's to another 25 years! |