Mediacom retains Government media buying account under new terms
Mediacom has beaten Feather Brooksbank to the Scottish Government media account, as the Government prepares a review of its creative roster.
Worth between £40m and £60m over three and a half years, the media appointment will see incumbent Mediacom continue to work across the accounts including VisitScotland, Scottish National Health Service and Quality Meat Scotland, as well as two new areas, The Blood Transfusion Service and The Scottish Parliament Corporate Body.
Six agencies initially were on the pitch list, including Feather Brooksbank, Spirit Media, Mediacom, MediaVision and BZO, the joint venture between Barkers and Zenith Optimedia.
The process – led by Roger Williams, head of marketing at the Scottish Government – was delayed in August due to ‘work pressures’.
Williams explained that the new media contract would now be initially for 16 months with two annual extentions available. The reason for the change was to pull the contract into line with the Government’s financial year.
One industry insider said that he believed the main factor between the two media agencies was price.
However, another insider said that if the criteria for the tender was mainly down to cost – and future pitches were to be run again with a similar focus – “the Government would be in danger of creating a monopoly with only the same two or three agencies being able to conceivably service the account.”
Meanwhile, the Government is to review its creative roster, along with its PR and digital services in January.
Although no official announcement has been made, it is understood that the procurement process is underway.
The Drum has been informed that the Government is looking to ‘broaden the roster out’ and look to extend the specialties offered by the agencies, which may mean that far-reaching changes are planned.
Agencies currently on the creative roster are Barkers, IAS Smarts, Newhaven, Leith, The Union, 1576 and Family.