Cathay Pacific cuts ties with McCann as Publicis and VCCP are handed social, media and creative duties
McCann Worldwide has lost the Cathay Pacific business after 25 years, with the airline switching to Publicis Group and VCCP for its creative, media and social duties.
The pitch was the first conducted by the carrier in those 25 years.
“We were impressed with the quality of thinking and passion for Cathay from all the agencies that took part in this review,” Cathay Pacific general manager, brand, insights and marketing communication Edward Bell said in a statement.
“Among a very strong competitive set, both Publicis Groupe and VCCP stood out in terms of strategy, use of technology and disruptive mindset.”
Bell, who joined the airline last August, also paid tribute to McCann who he said “produced some great work and have maintained a strong commitment throughout”.
The statement also quoted Publicis Group CEO Tom Kao as being “extremely honoured and privileged” to work with Cathay.
VCCP chief executive Cliff Hall added that it was “ready to challenge the market with them on their journey to becoming the world’s best airline”.
Losing such an iconic brand will be a blow to McCann which has held the account since 1993.
Observers said the writing had been on the wall for McCann as soon as Bell joined the carrier, and the agency review was triggered.
Wow. Add this to the number of clients Spencer may take with him to M&C, there will be a lot of nervous folk over at Hysan Place.
Well done Ed Bell for shaking things up. Much needed.
One would hope this will result in some CX work that goes beyond the generic stuff we have endured for years. But that will need Publicis to somehow get through the layers of bureaucracy that suffocates the airline. Not going to be easy.
ReplyMy heart goes out to the team at McCann. A new kid on the block joins CX just over a year ago and throws a 25+ year relationship under a bus.
As much as many of us hated that CX was in lock down with McCann, you had to respect the mutual commitment and relationship over the years.
Tough times for CX, but surely all that time and investment put into an agency review could have been better spent focusing on the immediate challenges for the airline…. such as addressing the clear customer feedback on loyalty program (we never asked for that chestnut of an “upgrade”), and customer experience (billions spent on the new brand design – via Eight Partnership – that no one was complaining about). Your marketing was fine CX… no one was complaining or demanding a “transformation” of your marketing approach. Can you please just focus on the product!
No doubt like most CMO’s – this new guy will move on in 12 months and then CX is going to be stuck with a fancy new agency, and no one that actually understands the brand. And of course – none of the actual customer feedback / concerns addressed. Good job guys!
Replywe need another freezer here.
ReplyAgree that CX is in [Edited under Mumbrella’s community guidelines] financially, and it’s customer experience appears to [Edited under Mumbrella’s community guidelines] each year. No amount of rebranding will make Cathay Dragon acceptable, or will return dismayed MP members. Hope this isn’t a case of putting in a new door while the rest of the house is burning down.
But disagree that the work was “fine”. It wasn’t. And the market is getting increasingly competitive, particularly on short haul routes. McCann’s work was [Edited under Mumbrella’s community guidelines] and there was a perception that the agency had become too complacent.
I think 20+ years is loyalty enough.
(However, as anyone who has worked with CX would I am sure agree, it is dangerous to put all the blame solely at the door of McCann. This is not an easy client. It is not an enjoyable business to work on. Neither Bell nor Publicis will automatically resolve this legacy issue.)
ReplyA little disruption is good for the soul.
I don’t think the agency created any special image for the brand.
However this seems more like a local HK win that probably won’t impact other markets.
So will Pub withdraw from the SIA pitch now?
ReplyMuch more than a “local win”
Arguably HK’s only truly global brand (now HSBC is HQ’d in London). It’s huge. A massive piece of McCann’s global revenue has gone. It will most definitely impact other markets.
The local implication will be a lot of people being shown the door as a result of poor senior hires/replacements. That is sad. As mentioned, this will be compounded by Spencer’s departure, as he held the key to many of the lucrative HK client businesses.
ReplyHeard through the grapevine that the Cathay business is not even worth 25 Million USD globally. Barely a player anymore…what happened?
ReplyWho told you that? Someone from McCann maybe? It is possible that was the chunk McCann got. But it was worth much more to IPG. Here’s what they said just two years ago:
“The team assigned to the account has developed beyond just McCann and drawn in the Interpublic Group to build a full-service agency in miniature. Today, the Cathay Pacific Central Team sits across 34 markets comprising an integrated mix from McCann, UM and MRM.”
ReplyWell the AdAge article states the business is worth 5million to McCann and that R3 confirmed the media spend was $50mil globally. Agency fee normally no more than 10% of media so that seems legit. Classic PR manoeuvre to inflate the value of a newly won business.
ReplyWhat local win’ means is….it tends to financially benefit the office that is creating the work…eg. the office that benefits the most from the creative account for SIA is Singapore….not Warsaw or London or Dubai…they might earn a small fee for co-ordination.
Same for CX…I guess HK office makes the most money for creative, the others are just co-ordinating, maybe doing the occasional tactical ads if lucky.
ReplyGood luck to publicis getting anything remotely creative (not that they’d [Edited under Mumbrella’s community guidelines] ) through the doors. Cathay Pacific may be the most unrewarding win going.
ReplyYes agree CX needs an image change but that change is not a broken image created by a marketing agency .The image has been broken internally by [Edited under Mumbrella’s community guidelines] simply hate and left in droves . CRD and The Club are inundated with [Edited under Mumbrella’s community guidelines] regarding the changes .
ReplyLoyalty is waning for the airline. A new image created by a new agency will not reap the benefits that the reversal of atrocious [Edited under Mumbrella’s community guidelines] will bring.
Reading all the comments makes me shake my head in disappointment. The sheer negativity and Schadenfreude spewed by the armchair experts here are what’s really wrong with the ad industry. “Oh, the agency did crap work so they deserved to lose the account, the clients were a nightmare and run/ran their business like idiots so they deserved to be in this mess, the winning agency is inheriting a mess and they probably will churn out more crap like before, etc etc etc.” I am paraphrasing of course but those are the sentiments in a nutshell. I speak from an inside position (whether that’s from the client or agency side is none of your business) so I can tell you with certainty that most of the comments here are full of shit. Cathay Pacific is an iconic brand for a reason, and McCann has done some great work over the years. That’s all I have to say.
ReplyAmen to that.
ReplyDon’t just say it. Show it. Show some of that great work.
You do that and I’ll hit back with some of the generic crap they roll out. I bet I’ll have more to show.
As for CX as a client. well we all have our own interpretations of working with them, but mine were very negative. Won’t go into detail as this is not the forum. By the way, [Edited under Mumbrella’s community guidelines].
ReplyYou are correct about one thing though, Cathay was an iconic brand (past tense – these days I’m not so sure). But I would argue that very little of that had to do with marketing. Instead it came from one thing: the experience. CX was just a better experience than most other airlines. This was how its reputation was built.
And even if marketing did play a role, you could also argue that the real heyday of the CX brand predated McCann.
ReplyIs Asia miles the same as Marco polo point?
I am so confused.
Seriously can someone tell me?
ReplyNot sure McCann set itself up for success… the team was [Edited under Mumbrella’s community guidelines]? Doesn’t show for an agency that has it together for the day to day grind isn’t it?
ReplyHave your say