Very early on, Publicis embarked on a major transformation to offer its clients ever more adapted, innovative and effective solutions and whose relevance is now enhanced. Since 2006, the Groupe has focused on developing its digital business, notably with the Digitas, Razorfish, Rosetta and LBi acquisitions.
In 2014, the acquisition of Sapient positions the Groupe as the ideal partner for companies in their digital transformation, placing consumer needs and the client experience front and center.
Then in 2019, the acquisition of Epsilon, a technology company specializing in data in marketing activities, was a pivotal point for the Groupe. By making Epsilon the data experts of the Groupe, Publicis draws on this wealth of resources for all its business activities, turning it into a key, differentiating advantage. This is the case for its iconic creative brands, which can create even more relevant campaigns for clients. But also for the Groupe’s Media offering, which has seen its leadership position strengthened thanks to Epsilon’s data to improve the creation of individualized profiles and campaign performance. The same goes for Publicis Sapient, for which Epsilon optimizes consumer knowledge to offer customers relevant solutions to develop their business model, particularly in terms of Direct-to-Consumer.
In 2021, the Groupe continued to strengthen its differentiation through partnerships, acquisitions or the launch of new products, building on this solid base of data and technology assets. A first concrete example is the launch of PMX Lift in the United States. This solution addressing exponential demand in the connected television segment is the result of the collaboration between Publicis Media and Epsilon. Another concrete example is the acquisition of CitrusAd, a leader in retail media. The combination of CitrusAd and Epsilon will enable the Groupe to become the leader in retail media solutions based on individual profiles. Ultimately, the Groupe has signed strategic partnerships with The Trade Desk, Adobe and Salesforce to strengthen the scale and interoperability of its data and identity expertise in the digital ecosystem.
But that’s not all: Publicis is reshaping its organization over time to meet the needs of clients for streamlined and efficient access to the range of expertise in the Groupe. Over the years, the Groupe has thus moved from being a holding company to that of a real platform.
The Power of One strategy, initiated in 2016 as an integrated working model providing even more benefits to clients, has been fully up and running since early 2020. Through the Groupe Client Leader (account manager dedicated to a specific client), clients are offered a tailored service and direct access to the Groupe’s entire range of expertise to help them to constantly innovate and grow their sales, while controlling costs.
Publicis Groupe has realigned its operations, organizing them by country to leverage synergies between areas of expertise and to discover novel solutions at local level. This country-based organization is based on global services, which bring greater efficiency and innovation to our customers and are unique in the industry. This is notably the case for the Groupe’s support functions, notably with the Global Delivery Centers, but also shared services such as Re:Sources and Marcel. These resources secure our efficiency, as evidenced by our financial ratios, which are the highest in the sector, while allowing us to continue to invest in the talent and expertise of tomorrow.
Publicis Groupe supports its clients across the entire marketing value chain to help them win in a world of platforms and create a personalized experience at scale. The Groupe thus offers to meet four of its clients’ requirements thanks to its diverse expertise: dynamic and disruptive creativity, targeted and high-performance media on a large scale, data and technology skills enabling clients to build in-depth consumer knowledge and to create their own digital ecosystems. The Groupe also has expertise in Healthcare, its specialized practice being one of the largest in the world.
The primary mission of advertising agencies and networks is to find ideas that are both universal enough to cross borders, while resonating with each consumer, who must be able to easily and effectively identify with the message and recognize themselves personally.
While our clients’ brands are becoming more and more global, the personalization of content, adapted to each consumer, is becoming necessary in an increasingly digital world.
Creativity must both establish the reputation of the brand, but also be dynamic. The Groupe advises its clients on their brand strategy, their repositioning and their identity, while creating dynamic content and activating it digitally.
The Groupe’s creative businesses are structured around big iconic brands, like Publicis Worldwide, Saatchi & Saatchi, and Leo Burnett, as well as Marcel, Fallon and BBH.
