Adage’s Hottest Digital Agencies Around
Campfire has been sizzling hot these days. As our friends from Advertising Age point out, Campfire does it all- branded entertainment, digital media, social networking, etc. But really, that pales in comparison to the fierce pose Mike is striking for the camera. Bravo to you Mike, bravo.
Meet the digital indies.
Despite waves of consolidation across the ad-agency business, there remains a healthy bunch of independent digital shops doing everything from search optimization to building web interfaces to simply doing damn good creative. Some of these shops are near-acquisitions for digital-hungry giants; others are adamantly opposed to becoming part of something larger, hanging onto the romantic notion of David vs. Goliath.
But there lies the challenge: While many of these agencies are accustomed to scrapping with others that don’t have a lot of resources and scale, today they’re increasingly up against deeper-pocketed shops, thanks to holding companies and private-equity firms that are snapping up once-small rivals.
“There is still enough market demand that most [independent digital shops] are still doing well, but they’re competing against firms that have the creativity of an independent agency but the resources of a holding company or private-equity firm,” said Michael Seidler, CEO of Madison Alley Ventures, a newly formed investment-banking firm focused on helping independent shops.
Buying a digital indie can offer a holding company or traditional shop an instant injection of skilled interactive — and ensure it won’t miss out on that next digital project it might not be able to handle otherwise.
But independence can also be a boon. “We have not been beholden to our P&L,” said AgencyNet founder Richard Lent. “That allows us the freedom to select the best clients and innovate.”
So here’s a look at some of the lesser-known digital independents. (We didn’t include agencies such as AKQA, for example, that, while digital powerhouses and not part of a larger holding company, are relatively well-known). So while this is by no means a comprehensive list — talk to any of the shops on these pages and they’ll be able to rattle off five or six more competitors they admire — it’s intended as a valuable snapshot of some shops that generally fly under the radar.
17. Michael Monello, partner, Campfire
