Steady as she goes for Omnicom, IPA Bellwether downgrades UK ad growth

You rarely get firewoks from Omnicom and it reported solid Q3 2022 progress with organic revenue growth of 7.5%, upgrading its full year guidance to 8-8.5%. Omnicom seems to have been hit harder in Europe than its rivals in pulling out of Russia, where it had a substantial third party business.

Omnicom grew 7.7% in the US, 11.5% in the UK, 6% in Europe, 4.4% in Asia Pacific, 13.1% in Latin America and 12.2% in the Middle East and Africa.

CEO John Wren says: “Omnicom delivered 7.5% organic revenue growth in the quarter with double-digit organic growth in precision marketing, public relations, and commerce and brand consulting, and solid results across our portfolio broadly. Profitability also remained strong, and our experience with challenging economic environments leaves us confident that we can navigate through current business uncertainty.

“One thing remains certain – the path from marketer to consumer is becoming exceedingly complex, and Omnicom has the talent and capabilities to be the trusted advisor to drive success for our clients.”

Meanwhile the IPA’s eagerly-watched quarterly Bellwether survey in the UK showed a net balance of just 2.2% of marketers increasing their budgets in Q3, way down on more optimistic expectations recorded earlier in the year. Digital kept the survey’s head above water with other disciplines including market research and PR well down.

For once the survey seems out of date already. Liz Truss and Kwasi Kwarteng’s disastrous mini-budget had yet to unravel fully and the outlook has almost certainly worsened since.

Report author S&P’s Joe Hayes says: “Bellwether survey data suggests that UK companies were able to squeeze out another round of marketing budget growth in the third quarter, although momentum has faded quite significantly since the first half of 2022 as the broader economic picture has darkened. Budget cuts are being seen across the majority of the monitored segments of marketing spend as companies move into retrenchment mode due to soaring costs and slowing demand.”