17536: OOH WPP VML ODN WTF.

The social media post depicted above from Outdoor Nation unintentionally underscores how Adland is a messy cesspool.

 

First, WPP Creative White advertising agency VML hatched the Wendy’s creative campaign to run in Indianapolis. Um, localized messaging is hardly groundbreaking—and this concept doesn’t even qualify as mediocre.

 

Next, Outdoor Nation boasting about its strategic media plan is pathetic too. Surely the strategizing, planning, and execution could have been handled via AI or any entry-level media wonk who wasn’t replaced by AI.

 

Additionally, WPP has been positioning itself as a single White operating company, offering simplicity, efficacy, and efficiency to clients. Yet Outdoor Nation is an independent vendor. So, why did VML partner with the Tennessee-based firm versus tapping WPP Media—given the global unit supposedly won the Wendy’s media account earlier this year?

 

Finally, the social media post and associated PR make no mention of Black-owned media involvement, which is outrageous given Blacks represent nearly 28% of Indianapolis’ population.

 

In summation, the OOH from VML, WPP, and ODN warrants WTF. 

17535: DIY Multicultural Marketing From The Home Depot…?

ModernRetail at Digiday reported The Home Depot recognizes Latinos comprise a major revenue-generating opportunity, prompting World Cup promotional activities to reach the audience—because Latinos love soccer.

 

The Home Depot evicted BBDO as its White advertising agency earlier this year, moving marketing duties to in-house resources.

 

Plus, the retailer is among corporations that bowed to political pressures, quietly abandoning DEIBA+ dedication in 2025.

 

Is The Home Depot tapping internal or external experts to verify Latino-targeted messages are relevant, authentic, and culturally competent?

 

Are the multicultural initiatives receiving fair marketing budgets—or crumbs?

 

Are in-house resources such as Orange Apron Media and Studio Orange predominately White?

 

Don’t expect official statements—delivered in English or Spanish—anytime soon.

 

Hispanic shoppers and pro customers are key to The Home Depot’s World Cup retail media strategy

 

By Mitchell Parton

 

While The Home Depot is not a sports equipment or sports apparel retailer, its consumer base has given it ample reason to develop a comprehensive retail media strategy around the World Cup.

 

Customers often come to The Home Depot and other home improvement retailers to solve a problem or take on a project — especially working professionals like remodelers, painters, electricians, plumbers and other contractors.

Taryn Dominie, senior director and head of industry for Orange Apron Media — The Home Depot’s retail media network — said the diversity of the growing soccer fan base mirrors that of its customer base, especially among its pro customers. “A good majority of our pro customers are multicultural, and [The World Cup] just gives us a way to really connect in a deeper, more meaningful way with those pro customers,” she said.

 

Hispanics make up around 30% of the construction workforce in the U.S, and U.S. Hispanic consumers surveyed by Nielsen in 2024 or 2025 were 87% more likely to say they had watched a World Cup qualifier match in the past 12 months, according to a 2025 Nielsen report. Hispanic individuals are also 39% more likely than the total population to be avid Major League Soccer fans, Nielsen found.

 

Molly Battin, svp and CMO of The Home Depot, told the Hispanic Marketing Council last month that the company expects “multicultural” customers — led by Latinos — to make up more than 40% of the home improvement category by 2040. “We see the Hispanic market and the Latino community as a huge growth opportunity for The Home Depot,” she said.

 

For Orange Apron, sports marketing in general has also been an opportunity to drive deeper partnerships with supplier partners through big cultural moments. The company has done College Game Day partnerships over the years as well as deals with MLS, the U.S. men’s national soccer team, March Madness and NCAA, Dominie said. “We’re talking about partnerships that extend beyond our traditional media, whether it be digital or linear, to real, grassroots fan engagement opportunities.”

 

Orange Apron’s involvement in the World Cup has included in-person events and in-store activations, primarily featuring the paint brand Behr and the power tools manufacturer Makita. Centering its activations around just a couple of brands has allowed Orange Apron to co-create more interactive and tailored experiences, Dominie said.

 

The Home Depot has hosted interactive houses called “Beckham’s Backyard” at official FIFA Fan Festivals that featured Behr and Makita, allowing them to have a presence at official FIFA events in cities such as Atlanta without being official FIFA sponsors. The activations are named after former soccer player and club owner David Beckham, who also has appeared in national commercials and digital content for The Home Depot during the World Cup.

 

The activations included a Behr-sponsored digital target-practice game where fans kicked soccer balls, as well as a Makita-hosted station where guests could decorate paper fans, according to Sports Business Journal.

 

The retailer also collaborated with soccer media network Men In Blazers on a bus that doubles as a studio for Men In Blazers. It has been traveling to World Cup host cities, with signage featuring Behr and Makita. In stores, The Home Depot offered a custom FIFA scarf to customers who bought certain Makita power tools. Outside of the advertising business, on the enterprise level, The Home Depot was doing in-store integrations around the World Cup with sweepstakes components and ticket giveaway opportunities.

 

“We really went into this knowing that we wanted an integrated, fully omnichannel experience that we were creating for our customers and in partnership with our brands,” Dominie said.

 

The Home Depot is also having a bus going around to different cities in the U.S. for watch parties where fans and pro customers can participate in events such as T-shirt giveaways and cornhole tournaments, also presented by Behr and Makita. “We want it to be more fun, because it’s a watch party, essentially, but still an opportunity for Behr to engage their top pros, engage the traditional DIY fan base, and talk about what makes Behr and Makita special and relevant — and do it in kind of a fun way, with giveaways and some engaging activities during those fan fests.”

 

Dominie said The Home Depot has not yet measured the success of the World Cup partnerships, as it is still ongoing, but plans to look at brand lift and purchase intent. She added, however, that the company has found co-branded sports sponsorship programs can increase purchase intent by as much as 40%.

 

“It’s truly a partnership where we align on common goals, and we co-create opportunities to create value for our customers and [clients’] customers, and create meaningful moments that are unique to what only we can do together,” Dominie said. “It goes beyond sponsorship, and it’s about partnership.”

 

Andrew Lipsman, a retail media industry analyst at Media, Ads + Commerce, said that because advertising has moved toward digital performance media, it can be easy to forget that good advertising works through cultural relevance and high-quality content reaching wide audiences — such as through experiential marketing and national TV advertising.

 

“When you can reach the right audiences … and show that there is that alignment around common events or common cultural moments, it creates brand affinity,” Lipsman said. “That brand affinity doesn’t have to translate into a sale at the store at that moment; it just makes you slightly more inclined to visit that store and slightly more inclined to purchase a brand over time.”

 

Ace Hardware has also found that a high share of its customers are interested in sports such as soccer and baseball, according to Tyler Lusebrink, head of brand partnerships at RedVest Media, Ace Hardware’s retail media division that launched last year.

 

“Our focus generally has been: How can we partner with our brand partners to really take advantage of capturing some of that engagement from customers during this big cultural moment?” Lusebrink said. Brands wanting to take advantage of the World Cup are executing full-funnel campaigns with “a heavy lean into off-site programmatic, broad awareness-type tactics that can engage with customers throughout their journey,” he added.

 

These aren’t necessarily campaigns with creative themed around the World Cup — Ace Hardware is not an official sponsor — but they may amplify national messaging that brands are already pushing to reach customers who may be watching the World Cup and related content. ACE Hardware has a media partnership with Epsilon to deploy assets across websites across the web.

 

“We see the World Cup in cultural moments like this as an opportunity for brands to engage with the customer directly in a high-intent mindset,” Lusebrink said. “They’re online, they’re doing research, they’re looking at game recaps and highlights, and brands know that they can get in front of consumers and engage with them to drive them into their brand.”

17534: FYI ICYMI IPA BS.

More About Advertising spotlighted a survey from the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising (IPA) showing clients want White advertising agencies to “stretch, grow, and challenge” them.

 

Yeah, right. Regardless of anything the collected data might claim, here’s a clear interpretation of the client requests based on reality:

 

STRETCH insufficient budgets

 

GROW timelines via scope creep

 

CHALLENGE assumptions and briefs—but execute to assumptions and briefs anyway

 

Clients want agencies to ‘stretch, grow and challenge’ them says IPA

 

By Emma Hall

 

The IPA has got some advice for agencies about what clients value from agencies, and it doesn’t seem to be a “core creative idea,” which was joint 10^th on the list with 73% saying it’s important. AI, however, is right at the top, with 90% of marketers saying AI skills are either critical or very important in both creative and media agencies.

 

Out of 200 clients surveyed, 83% want “stretch and growth thinking,” but only 48% think agencies are delivering it. There was also a gap between the clients who wanted to have their briefs and assumptions challenged (77%) and the 43% who said their agencies dare to do this.

 

What else are marketers looking for? These clients were not admitting to prioritising faster and cheaper; instead say they want strategic expertise (80%), quality production (83%) and specialist knowledge of key channels (79%). Conversely the growth of in-housing is, they said, about cost, speed, control and integration.

 

When it comes to remuneration, agencies will be pleased to hear that two thirds of clients think they are undervaluing themselves. The top preferred alternative (at 54%) is an outcome-based model – one that agencies have long been calling for but find it hard to put into practice. Clients (82%) also want agencies to help them “get the customer heard at board level” which is quite an ask.

 

The study (with Tracksuit) surveyed clients in charge of marketing budgets of between £1m and £250m. There are five recommendations for agencies:

 

1. Create better stories to reframe agency value

 

2. Promote the power of creative expertise

 

3. Package and promote critical thinking

 

4. Influence board level decision making

 

5. Orientate the agency and refocus remuneration around that value

 

Marcos Angelides, chair of the IPA commercial leadership group and Publicis Media’s MD of L’Oréal Lab & head of AI, said: “Clients want agencies to push their thinking further, challenge assumptions and bring new perspectives to the table. To do that effectively, agencies need to combine creativity and expertise with robust data and insight that guarantees competitive advantage.”

 

Ed Palmer, IPA director of value, says: “Agencies should take heart in the value marketers attach to the creativity, challenge and strategic rigour that agencies are uniquely placed to deliver. But there’s work to be done to ensure that agencies deliver what clients truly value in them, and that that value is recognised and compensated accordingly.”

17533: Thank God It’s French Court Day.

 

MediaPost reported an appeals court in Paris ruled Vincent Bolloré did not control Vivendi when the company split into four separate enterprises. No, Bolloré probably delegated control to his sons and privileged kin.

 

French Court Rules Vivendi Not Controlled By Bollore

 

By Steve McClellan

 

Vincent Bollore dodged a $9 billion-plus bullet earlier this week when an appeals court in Paris ruled that he did not exercise control over media conglomerate Vivendi during the period when the company divided itself into four separate companies. They included a newly independent Havas, now publicly traded on the Euronext Amsterdam Exchange. 

 

The news was reported by several European outlets including Reuters. One investor group, CIAM, said it would appeal to the French Supreme Court, reports indicated. 

 

The issue of Bollore’s control of the company has been the subject of minority shareholder lawsuits and appeals to regulatory bodies since the company split apart in 2024. Each side has won a couple of rounds.  

 

It’s not clear when the legal battle will end, but if it is determined that Bollore did exercise control, French laws would require Bollore Group to make a tender offer for outstanding minority shares of Vivendi and its spin-off companies. Analysts peg the value of that tender at between $9 and $10 billion.  

 

Vivendi issued a statement confirming the Appeals Court decision, saying it “fully confirms” an earlier court analysis that Bollore did not control the company. Bollore did not issue a comment.

17532: On Exclusivity, The Omnicom Inclusion Breakfast, And Less.

 

Reflecting Adland, Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity displayed declining DEIBA+ dedication.

 

The Omnicom Inclusion Breakfast was an exclusive affair with registration-only admission. Social media posts feature performative propaganda starring equality advocates—a literal minority group—spouting clichéd cultural commentary.

 

The DEIBA+ conversation has not evolved at all, pushing political and professional platforms that have proven ineffective.

 

PRovoke Media Editorial Director Maja Pawinska Sims provided the following perspective:

 

The conversations that became quieter

Sometimes the biggest story at Cannes is what nobody is talking about. Only a few years ago, DEI and sustainability were impossible to avoid. This year, both were noticeably less prominent across the official programme and the wider festival.

That doesn’t mean those issues have disappeared, nor that organisations have stopped caring about them. But the centre of gravity has undoubtedly shifted, which made spaces such as Propeller’s Empower Lounge feel all the more valuable. Away from some of the louder conversations around AI and commercial transformation, it continued to provide a platform for thoughtful discussions about inclusion, leadership, wellbeing and the broader purpose of communications.

It was also encouraging to see The Female Quotient expand onto the beachfront for the first time, although many delegates lamented the disappearance of Inkwell Beach, and of course the immensely popular IPG Women’s Breakfast/Diversity Breakfast, is no more after the Omnicom acquisition. 

 

If DEIBA+ were an awards category, Cannes Lions could not legitimately identify a single winner, as any submitted work would constitute a scam entry.

17531: On Solving WPP Enterprise Solutions.

 

More About Advertising wondered about WPP Enterprise Solutions, a unit in the global flaming dumpster, newly launched with self-promotional hype full of technobabble and straight-up bullshit.

 

Much of the pitch appears to be lifted from recent Harvard Business Review articles. Is it AI-generated content or blatant plagiarism?

 

Clients should avoid seeking solutions from an enterprise seemingly incapable of solving its own problems—or clearly articulating its offerings, benefits, and value in original style.

 

That’s Advertising 101. Ask anyone at WPP White advertising agency Ogilvy, named Network of the Year at Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity.

 

Just saying.

 

WPP launches Enterprise Solutions – in Nerdish

 

By MAA Staff

 

WPP is launching its new Enterprise Solutions suite, one of the pillars of Cindy Rose’s new WPP. At least that’s what we think it is. One thing we’re learning about techies is that they protect their cult with a private language which only they understand and which excludes most of us.

 

This is what Enterprise Solutions does (is the nomenclature like water solutions for plumbers?)

 

AI Transformation Consulting – Helping organisations realise AI value through strategic advisory, architecture and agentic systems.

Agentic Commerce – Converting brand equity and product truth into machine-readable signals that shape how AI agents discover, evaluate and recommend brands.

Owned Intelligence – Converting client-owned data into strategic, AI-ready competitive assets that fuel brand-specific and commercially-attributable results.

Adaptive, Real-time Relationships – Pairing first-party data with AI to anticipate and personalise every interaction, deepening loyalty and growing lifetime value.

Intelligent Content – A closed-loop operating system that plans, produces and activates content using intelligent automation.

 

Does anyone know what, if anything this means? Translator please.

17530: How Coke Can Differentiate Publicis Groupe And WPP.

Digiday opined on The Coca-Cola Company’s global media, data, and technology review staging a Publicis Groupe versus WPP faceoff.

 

In Digiday’s perspective, it will boil down to Coke choosing a White holding company or single White operating company for their respective positions regarding data.

 

If the decision is focused instead on performance and trust, Publicis Groupe has the advantage, based on its self-promotional hype.

 

As for global flaming dumpster WPP, well…

 

Besides, there’s plenty of data to prove awarding the business will be determined by which contender best appeases the client with exaggerated promises, lavish presents, and underhanded proposals.

 

‘One of our core areas’: Ahead of global agency review, Coca-Cola’s CFO focuses on data matching

 

By Seb Joseph

 

One of Coca-Cola’s core focuses these days is data — specifically how it matches its own data against what its partners hold.

 

John Murphy, the advertiser’s president and CFO, made the point at the DBAccess Global Consumer Conference on Thursday. 

 

He added: “Today, one of our core areas, how do we take the, let’s say, first-party data that we own — it’s proprietary, it’s ours — and how do we marry that with the customer data that these proprietors who are bottlers, given the amount of engagement they have with millions of customers every day. Or how do we work with some of our partners, whether it’s in the U.S. with Publicis or WPP in other parts of the world, to bring that together and then to create a sort of a new intelligence.” 

 

While it’s hardly a fresh observation, it is a timely one. Coca-Cola is about to kick off a global agency review covering media, data and technology, triggering a tussle between Publicis Groupe and WPP, as Ad Age first reported. It will exclude North America, where the advertiser already works with Publicis as well as Japen and Korea where it works with Dentsu, the company said in an emailed statement. Moreover, it will not include global creative and PR disciplines, which will remain with WPP.

 

The review, which is being managed by Mediasense, will begin in July, with the decision expected to be announced in the fall. When it lands, it will settle (at least for now) which of the two prevailing holdco views on data a major advertiser buys into. Publicis has spent years building a proprietary data stack across Epsilon, Lotame, LiveRamp and its CoreAI operating system, and will no doubt pitch itself as a tech company that also does media. WPP, on the other hand, will do the opposite. Rather than owning the data, it acquired InfoSum to connect data sources across the ecosystem without centralizing them, a privacy-safe collaboration model it has since folded into GroupM and WPP Open. 

 

Put another way, one holdco bets on owning the database, the other on owning the connective tissue. The Coca-Cola review therefore is about as direct a test of those two philosophies as it gets, and one of the more consequential. A Publicis win would be a timely endorsement of its data stack bet, arriving just as it moves to close the LiveRamp acquisition. A WPP win would be a crucial jolt for a holdco that has been searching for consistent momentum after sluggish growth and too many false dawns.

 

“The Coca-Cola Company is evolving its digital-first marketing operating system for future growth,” reads its statement on the matter. “This includes a shift in mindset from traditional media planning to the emerging ways we need to reach consumers through technology, including agentic tools.”

 

Whatever it signals about the holdco model, the review could just as easily expose the trap both companies risk walking into. They’ll lead with AI and data because that’s what clients want to hear. But turning combined first-party data into something that actually drives decisions is ultimately a people problem as much as a technology one. The hard question is whether either agency will have the senior talent capable of interpreting what the tools produce.

 

“To unlock real value from AI, you’ve got to use your own data as a base,” said Robert Webster, founder of AI marketing consultancy TAU. “The real battleground is how you show Coca-Cola how your data, your approach and the AI it plugs into actually matters. Publicis has won a lot of business in Europe, but has been — in my opinion — less AI-focused than perception might suggest. WPP, meanwhile, has very much focused on larger clients, with EssenceMediacom particularly strong on CPG, which again is relevant here. On Europe and the U.K. I’d give WPP a slight edge, on Asia definitely Publicis. But crucially, what a client really wants is to make sure they own their data and their method to execute against it — and neither of them properly delivers that yet. On data ownership, LiveRamp gets Publicis closer.”

 

That’s the real issue for the largest companies. A Bain & Company survey of 951 companies found the top reason AI programs underperform is that companies still can’t reliably reach their own data after a decade and hundreds of billions spent on modernisation. MIT found the same wall from a different angle: 95% of corporate GenAI pilots stalled, mostly on tools that integrate badly. Through that lens the Coca-Cola review becomes a test of which holdco can actually solve a plumbing problem most enterprises haven’t cracked. 

 

“For advertisers there are valid reasons to want an agency plugged deep into their data to do AI work, but they also need to keep architectural sovereignty and the freedom to switch,” said Tim Norris-Wiles, head of go-to-market at data startup Neuralift AI. “Those goals are at odds. It gets harder still for any brand running a single global architecture but with different agencies across markets, where every integration is also a dependency they have to maintain and be able to unwind. The holdcos that win long-term therefore won’t be the ones that lock clients in hard, they’ll be the ones that can deliver value while leaving the client’s architecture portable.”