The Business of an Advertising Company

A company that provides advertising services to clients in order to help them promote their products or brands. Advertising agencies can range in size from a one-person office to London-based WPP, the world’s largest ad agency with annual earnings of $20.8 billion.

The business of an ad company depends on its creative departments, which include talented art directors, designers, copywriters and other professionals. Using market research, these teams brainstorm ways to grab consumer attention and differentiate their clients’ products in the marketplace.

An ad company’s strategy team determines how an ad campaign will be presented to the target audience, including the type of media to use, when and where. It also sets measurable objectives for the project and assigns responsibilities to individuals. This helps keep projects on track during execution.

Before ad campaigns are created, the ad company needs to build a stable of media contacts. This involves collecting media kits, which list advertising rates, demographics and specifications. Once the ad company has the information, it can start pitching to potential clients. The hit TV show “Mad Men” gave viewers a look at how ad companies pitch their ideas to clients. Modern ad agencies are less melodramatic, and use data analytics, market comparisons and sales projections to make their case.

Once an ad company has secured a client, the production team begins work on creatives to create ads that will resonate with the target audience. Often, the final product will be very different from the initial concept.