Follow-up--Advertising Agencies and the Covid 19

Earlier this week, I put up a post on Advertising Agencies and Covid 19. It generated a great many comments from agency principals and senior staffers. Many of the respondents wanted to know why I did not contact them for their opinions, some agreed with the people whom I paraphrased and others weighed in on what was not covered.

So, with a sense of fairness, here are a few issues raised by those whom I did not contact in the first round:

1) “Cole, the pandemic is hitting my business really hard but it is a foreshadowing of what is to come in the workplace. The press is covering the hardship faced by service workers in a variety of fields from food service to uber driving. What they do not seem to grasp is that another shoe will drop months from now. White collars jobs are going to get hit in a big way and many will NEVER come back. My own firm with under 50 employees will survive but will definitely be smaller in 2021. I have found out clearly for the first time who the keepers are in my organization. Some of my employees have surprised me and really “risen to the occasion” and performed very well. Others are not cutting it and complaining to me more than ever about minor issues ignoring that I am trying to live to fight another day. When the smoke clears, we will be leaner, much more efficient and I bet more profitable. My clients are telling me similar things and my network of business contacts echos that sentiment as well.”

2) “Has any good come out of this crisis? Yes, and I did not see it coming. There is very little politics now at the firm. Many are happy to be still drawing a paycheck so there is less bitching about who gets plum assignments. Also, with 80% of the team working at home, I don’t have to listen to the prepubescent B.S. about comparative office square footage or  nice desks or lamps anymore. When we come back, my tolerance for that old nonsense will not be tolerated.”

3) “I see things much more clearly now. To survive, I am going to have to change the inner workings of my shop. That will be a huge challenge. Why? The late Eugene Kleiner, an early player in venture capital in Silicon Valley, once said, “It’s difficult to see the picture when you’re inside the frame”, which is so true. I used to see my team as a family. A lot has come to the surface the last few months. When the new era begins sometime next year (I hope), I will hand pick my team. Each employee will need to be flexible, humble and a team player.”

4) “ I used to float a major media client a lot of money for several years. One year he was in to us for a million dollars and I paid the media as I knew that he was good for it. He asked me to do it again for later this year. I had to say no. He was hurt but I offered to open my books and I did not have the cash cushion to help him and I was not sure that he would ever be able to pay me back. He went to a media buying service and offered a nice fee but wanted them to pay the media first. The buying firm leader called me and I said have the media bill him directly or do not take the business. He passed on the account as he wondered when he would even get his fee. Long standing deals and relationships are unraveling. I am asking for fees upfront and am not wasting time or money on speculative new business pitches at present.

If you would like to contact Don Cole directly, you may reach him at doncolemedia@gmail.com

Advertising Agencies and the Covid 19

This post is in response to the requests of several MR readers regarding the impact of the Covid 19 pandemic on advertising agencies in the United States. As is often the case, I was surprised at the candor of agency principals and management who agreed to weigh in on this very difficult issue.

Before, we go in to specifics, a few caveats:

1) I did not ask anyone from a major holding company ( WPP, Omnicom, Publicis, or Interpublic ) to participate. The people who responded were from independent mid-sized or small shops.

2) Currently, I reside in Towson, Maryland. I deliberately did not call anyone in the Maryland/DC area or local readers would try to figure out who the players were.

3) To further protect sources, I edited their comments partially to avoid repetitive statements, kept real names out of it, sometimes changed genders, and, as a former altar boy, cleaned up a lot of the language when comments were heated.

4) This does not pretend to be a representative sample of the agency universe. I talked to people who trust me and have known me for a long time or who read MR and frequently contact me directly.

Here are some edited verbatims from my sources:

—Fairly large mid-sized company CEO—“this pandemic amazingly has helped me separate the “wheat from the chaff” among my employees. Some people, even the older ones, are doing a great job working remotely. They stay in touch, are on time with everything, and do not need as much hand holding as I expected. Two have told me that they are terrified of being let go so appear to be more conscientious than ever. On the other hand, a few are big disappointments to me. They appear to be spending more time on Netflix and Amazon Prime Video than working. When we return, our company will be smaller as we have lost some business that is not coming back. My lease on office space runs through October and I had a candid talk with my landlord via FaceTime. He will put us in smaller space and understands my situation. I have problems for sure but over the next few years commercial real estate has to be a nightmare.


—Creative Chief, Mid-Sized—“every year I would hire maybe two new creatives fresh from college or art school. This year, only one. The guy says he will stay with us if he can work 100% remotely. It is insane. He is 23! I am a hands on executive. My team has always learned from one another and a coffee in the break room or poking my head in to someone’s office for a minute or two a few times per day helps our product and brings along the rookies. Yes, the kid is tech savvy compared to my two 50+ team members. But, I do not know his work ethic and he needs supervision and how to become a team player.”

—Principal, Small Agency—“I caught two employees doing freelance and late with our client work. The idiots used company e-mail instead of their personal e-mail. I told everyone I would check in daily and sometimes look at all correspondence. They say I cannot stop them from doing freelance. True, but as long as they draw a salary from me, my work comes first and is on time.”

—President, Mid-Sized—“Some people need the structure that an office setting can provide. One of my stars is really struggling at home. He has small kids and loves spending more time with them but his work is weak these days. I have him come in to our empty office two days a week now and it seems to be helping.”

—Principal. Smaller Mid-Sized—“I have a long term employee who has always been a pain in the ass. He managed one of our larger pieces of business and the client loves him. Well, the client told me that she will close her doors by September 1st. I will say adios to the arrogant jerk at that time. His protector will be gone."

"What some of my staffers do not seem to grasp is that we are in a small city. I will have to lay off several staffers and job opportunities will be VERY scarce. Everyone needs to excel right now.”

—Independent, Successful Graphic Designer—“Some people, not I, have terrible issues with child care right now. Trying to juggle little kids and getting assignments done is hard these days. Also, some people are not emotionally equipped to work solo as I am. CEO’s need to understand this. I have been getting extra business during the pandemic as freelance is my game and my turnaround time is very good. Everyone is not able to do it.”


Everyone is nervous about the long haul picture. Not a single person said that things will ever be “normal” pre-March 2020 again. To a person, all said that the pandemic has sped up the decline of conventional media significantly.


If you would like to contact Don Cole directly, you may reach him at doncolemedia@gmail.com or leave a message on the blog.

1% Television

Surprisingly, in recent months, several people have asked me to comment on what they are calling 1% Television. Most of them were academics although a few are happily ensconced in the private sector in advertising or broadcasting. The term is not used particularly widely in lieu of what I and others in the game for years referred to as “Aspirational Television.” It is programming where the protagonists tend to be in the top 1% of wealth or income and often live life on their terms sometimes operating on the edge of the law or societal norms.

The people often asked me why these shows are popular when most Americans (especially during the Covid 19 pandemic) are struggling. They speak of “Billions”, “Empire”, and “Succession” as examples of such programming. To me, this is all more than a bit of a surprise. They act as if it is something new. If you are 30 or under, I can give you a pass. Those of us longer in the tooth have to remember “Dallas”, “Falcon Crest”, and “Dynasty” where the wealthy cavorted illegally or in dodgy transactions via Primetime soap operas that delivered killer Nielsen ratings. Today’s shows, on HBO or Netflix or Amazon Prime Video are far racier given the times but are similar in many ways.

Want to go back farther and have a look? In the 1930’s at the bottom of the Great Depression, Hollywood studios, particularly MGM and Paramount ,were grinding out countless films that depicted life among the uber-wealthy—perhaps .1% of the population. And the films were very popular. I remember asking my father about why people enjoyed them so much. He said that times were really tough for so many Americans that watching a screwball comedy or elegant drama or Thin Man Mystery let one escape from their precarious existence if only for two hours. Smoothies such as Robert Montgomery, Brian Aherne, and, of course, Cary Grant, were on hand in many such films and, if you could not truly aspire to that lifestyle, you could at least dream about it.

So, not much has changed. People want to escape their hum-drum lives and 1% Television can do it and often the programs are very entertaining. There is one area that is lumped with 1% Television by some that I feel is very misplaced. That is programming often shown on PBS. The most famous was “Downton Abbey” which featured the aristocratic Crawley family in the 2nd and 3rd decades of the 20th century. Critics raved when the final episode drew 9.6 million viewers. That was indeed super for PBS but the audience was not not as blue chip as some wanted you to believe. The audience skewed older and certainly intellectually leaning as most PBS “Masterpiece” telecasts do. Yet it did not wildly overachieve against the real 1%, especially the younger upscales. To put it in perspective, “Empire’s” premiere back in 2016 averaged 12.2 viewers and “Billions” premiere scored 6.6 million before hitting its stride as word spread of the exploits of the central character Bobby Axelrod.  

Yes, there have been exceptions. “Roseanne” gave a look at blue collar life in the 1990’s and other sitcoms have followed suit but most, while claiming “everyman” or middle class status, are really upper middle class or top 10%. Do most people want a steady diet of “inequality entertainment”? I do not think so. Americans, especially now, get enough reality in their daily lives. Streaming video provides a much appreciated escape these days.

If you would like to contact Don Cole directly, you may reach him at doncolemedia@gmail.com