AAAAgent of Change, Part I Q&A with Burtch Drake

Nov 19, 2007

In a career spanning nearly five decades, O. Burtch Drake has seen the advertising industry go from multi-martini lunches to multiplatform plays. He's left and returned to two agencies, jumped from the media department to account management to new business, jumped across the pond for a stint on the client side, and led the American Association of Advertising Agencies into a new millennium. His time and travels in the business have given him a unique perspective, and after being toasted and roasted during his last Advertising Week as AAAA's leader, he sat down to talk about how things have changed, where they're going, and what he's most proud of.

When you first started in the ad agency business in the early '60s, the majority of the big shops were independent. Today, holding companies rule the roost. What impact do you think this incredible consolidation has had on the ad agency industry over the past few decades?

DRAKE: I'm not a big fan of consolidation. On the other hand, why should our business be immune from it, since it certainly has happened in a number of other service industries? Unfortunately, for whatever reason, it's the way of the world today. That said, because of these consolidations, I've seen an awful lot of senior agency people take the money, essentially, and run from the buyouts, leaving behind a bit of a mess. And I also think it's taken a lot of time in many instances for that mess to be cleaned up. In my judgment, it has made the agency business somewhat less attractive than it used to be as a career, and not as much fun. There's constant pressure on the people working for the holding companies to increase margins, and I think as a result they burn out faster than they did in the past. But consolidation is the way of the world, and they're certainly not going to put that genie back in the bottle.

Years ago the AAAA membership almost exclusively included full-service agencies that emphasized the creative product. But now media agencies, promo shops, direct marketing agencies, and even PR firms can join the AAAA. How has this development changed the organization, and what kind of programs have you instituted that reflect this change?

DRAKE: When I joined the AAAA back in 1989, you had to essentially be a full-service advertising agency, as it was defined at that time. In the actual language that we had in our constitution and bylaws, you had to create and place advertising. I got that changed in 1998 to a wording that says, "create and/or place marketing communications." It sounds like a subtle difference, but I can tell you it was a fairly significant change at the time. Of course, what it did was open the door to media agencies to come into the AAAA on their own. It was controversial at the time, but clearly needed, in my mind, if we were going to keep those agencies in the fold. There was a threat that they would go out and form their own trade association, and I didn't think that would be great for the business.

What are your thoughts on the unbundling of media services?

DRAKE: I understand why it happened and I think there are a lot of good reasons for it. I started in the media department myself, and later, when I was running an agency, I frequently cut the media guys off when we were running short in a new business presentation. So I fully understand why the media professionals wanted to spin out. And I also think that in terms of elevating the stature of that profession, it's been wonderful. I frankly never had a big problem with the buying going out. But I never thought moving the planning out of the general-market agency made a lot of sense. Again, I know why it happened. But, frankly, I believe planners should be sitting in the general-market agency with the creative folks on a constant basis. And remember, there are still a lot of independent agencies that maintain a viable media operation. They may farm out the buying, but they keep the planning in-house. I think that actually makes them very competitive when it comes to new-business pitches.

That leads to the next question. Is the full-service ad agency a thing of the past, or is it coming back?

DRAKE: I think it's coming back and I think a lot of the start-up agencies that you see today have some form of a media component. They probably don't have the buying part, because that's very specialized and the research that's involved is very expensive. I think the buying would probably remain outside, but strategic planning, media planning— whatever you want to call it—I see a trend to bring that back in. I certainly think a lot of the big agencies weren't at all happy when it was pulled out to begin with.

Salute to Burtch Drake Welcome Note
Q&A with Burtch Drake Part I
More Q&A with OBD part II
More Q&A with OBD part III
What's the O For?
Ahead of the Curve Part I
Ahead of the Curve Part II
OBD Camera Ready
Jerry McGee's Last Word