Publicis is a world leader in marketing, communications and digital business transformation, established in 1926 when Marcel Bleustein‑Blanchet created what was essentially a start‑up.
The passion that Marcel felt for communications and the creation of strong relations between brand names and consumers transformed this new business into a prosperous and respected profession. The Groupe has never stood still, continuing to grow, innovate and transform for nearly 100 years. The core values dear to its founder’s heart have continued to define everything we do: respect, honest products, client satisfaction, quality and creativity, together with a pioneering spirit, unwavering conviction and the ethical values inherited from his legendary fighting spirit.
In 2023, the Groupe operates in more than 100 countries, has more than 103,000 employees and has become the second largest group in the global communications sector (1).
The Groupe has always placed client needs at the heart of its model. In an increasingly personalized world, Publicis is positioning itself as a privileged partner in their transformation, whether in marketing or digital.
Publicis supports its clients from consulting to execution thanks to its expertise grouped within four main activities: Communication, Media, Data and Technology, with a unified and fluid organization.
To this end, the Groupe has continuously invested in its offer and organization over the years.
First, because of structural changes that make our clients’ media and marketing context increasingly complex and fragmented, creating huge challenges but also many opportunities, especially in commerce.
In just a few years, mobile and digital technologies have greatly strengthened the power of consumers, disrupting balances and facilitating the emergence of new competitors for our clients. Their relationship with their own customers has been transformed by the explosion of social platforms and networks, creating new advertising ecosystems such as Google, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and TikTok, to name just a few. Consumption habits have also changed drastically with the emergence of e‑commerce platforms, as customers are now accustomed to having one‑click access to all products at any time. In fact, Direct‑to‑Consumer brands, born on the Internet, have created the need for established brands to build a direct relationship with their consumers in order to get to know them better while respecting the rules of confidentiality and data protection. As third‑party cookies are set to disappear by 2024, advertisers can capitalize on their in‑depth knowledge of their customers and benefit from the strong development of new advertising channels such as Retail Media and connected television. In addition, brands are gradually transforming their own model in order to be equipped for a world that is increasingly personalized, fragmented and focused on the commercial experience.
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, 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 clients relevant solutions to develop their business model, particularly in terms of Direct‑to‑Consumer.
Since then, the Groupe has continued to strengthen its differentiation by investing in new data and technological assets in high‑growth segments, such as connected television, with the launch of Publicis Media Exchange Lift in the United States and Retail Media with the acquisition of CitrusAd in 2021, then commerce, with the acquisition of the Profitero platform in 2022.
At the same time as it is transforming its offering, 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 clients 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.
