‘We are still winning’: Publicis ups guidance thanks to major media account gains

Publicis is increasing its guidance again for 2024, despite uncertainties around the economy, high inflation and the upcoming U.S. presidential election. 

The holding company now expects 5.5% growth this year. It had forecast 4% to 5% growth at the top of the year, and predicted a 5% increase in July. 

“There is a lack of confidence going into Q4, and we are coming strong saying, ‘We can raise our guidance,’” Arthur Sadoun, CEO of Publicis Groupe, told ADWEEK. 

This confidence comes after a strong Q3, in which the holding company posted an organic revenue increase of 5.8% to $3.72 billion. 

Growing strength in media

Publicis’ growth comes in part from new business wins, particularly in its media agencies, after winning multimillion dollar accounts from companies Pfizer, Hershey’s, and others. 

Combined services from media and its data unit Epsilon grew 10% year over year to make up 65% of overall revenue. 

But Publicis hasn’t been a player in every big pitch, Sadoun said.

For instance, Amazon’s media business was up for grabs, and eventually went to rival holdcos Omnicom and WPP.

Sadoun seemed unfazed. “We are still doing double the revenue in terms of new business than [our competitors],” he said. “And despite that, we are still winning.”

Sadoun also noted that very little of Publicis’ business comes from taking a principal on media, a controversial practice that is once again taking hold in the U.S.

Sadoun said less than 1% of Publicis’ total U.S. media revenues come from such activities. 

“We don’t operate a black box at all,” he said. 

Big expectations in commerce and influencer marketing

Publicis made two huge acquisitions this year industry growth areas: influencer marketing firm Influential in July, and retail media agency Mars United Commerce in September. These purchases, which cost roughly $1 billion, gave the holdco access to 3.5 million creators and 1,000 commerce experts, respectively. 

According to Talia Raviv, global CEO of Publicis Media, the holding company is integrating the technology from both firms into Epsilon and linking it with consumer identities.  

Integrating data with tech has helped Publicis win market share, Sadoun said.

And unlike other holdcos, this type of investment has not hurt Publicis’ margin, which grew from 17.3% in Q2 to 18% in Q3. 

From creative to ‘intelligent content’

Publicis’ next big goal is bringing its creative agencies and production studios together with AI and data — with the end goal of being able to personalize messages. Publicis calls this “intelligent content.”

But it isn’t where it needs to be yet. “Our ability to fuel this connecting media ecosystem with great work that is personalized is still a challenge,” Sadoun said, describing this area as having “huge margin for improvement.”