Here in Albany, NY, the New York Capital District, an old line PR firm was gobbled up by a cross-state rival. The acquiring firm has gone from around 40 employees to over 250 in just a couple of years – vaulting into the top 50 nationally.

This follows a trend going on in the communications industry. A May article on Adage.com exclaimed that if you’re acquisition minded, it’s a great time to be in the ad agency business. So this trend shows no signs of slowing. Big advertisers want to consolidate agencies, and big agencies are buying up rivals to keep up with client desires.

So where does that leave over 95% of those who aren’t the biggest clients? It leaves them with rising prices, and if they’re smart, with smaller agencies that are a better fit. (see more on this here)

When companies get bigger and achieve scale, their own cost of doing business usually drops. But in the image conscious communications biz – a bigger name means bigger prices for their clients. And it’s likely that only “A” list clients will benefit from their agency’s newfound clout.

Posted by: Steve Banis