It’s been a poorly kept secret, but BMW Group Canada has officially announced its decision to keep Cundari as its agency of record.
BMW’s agency review, which ran from February to August, saw the luxury automaker shortlist five agencies: Cundari, Bensimon Byrne, Leo Burnett, DraftFCB and John St., which partnered with Montreal-based LG2.
(LG2 was incumbent on the Quebec dealer association portion of BMW’s account. That responsibility, however, has now been rolled into the main AOR portfolio.)
Kevin Marcotte, BMW’s director of marketing said Cundari won for “the combination of its strategic thinking, creative capabilities” and its ability to service its many communication stakeholders, including the national brand, regional dealer associations and aftersales divisions.
Cundari has worked on BMW for 15 years, and while regular internal evaluations had taken place, this marked the first time the agency had to defend its AOR position against other agencies.
“We probably had more piled up against us than any other agency,” said Aldo Cundari, agency chairman and CEO. “We had to continue running the daily business while we were pitching, and as the incumbent, obviously we’re under a bigger microscope during that period.”
Cundari credits not only his creative team’s abilities for the win, but the luxury market research the agency conducted in conjunction with the American Marketing Association and the Canadian Marketing Association.
While BMW’s Canadian marketing will continue to use the brand’s global “Ultimate Driving Experience” positioning, Cundari said to expect changes in the work it produces.
“We have a whole slew of new products coming out, and you’ll probably see a shift back to brand [marketing] again,” Cundari said, adding there will likely be a strong focus on new customer acquisitions.
With that new product lineup on the way, Marcotte would not comment on whether BMW would increase its marketing budget for next year, but said that “with the product offensive we’re undertaking in 2011, you can expect to see BMW in-market with considerable weight next year.”
The review is noteworthy for reasons other than the brand’s luxury status in the marketplace. Some agency executives have suggested it was reflective of procurement’s increasing role in steering marketing decisions–driving the business away from creative and strategic value and towards a get-more-for-less-money approach.
Once word spread that Cundari had kept the account, some questioned whether the entire review was simply a way to get better rates from Cundari, which was rumoured to have slashed its hourly fees considerably.
“We’re extremely pleased with the process,” said Marcotte. “We would not have gone through this extensive process if it came down to a matter of fees.”
Cundari did not say if his agency dropped its rates to hold onto BMW, but said he believed he was “not the cheapest by far.” He also said that while procurement is playing an increasing role in agency reviews, BMW asked for information on agency fees before proceeding with creative presentations, indicating the client was genuinely interested in what the contenders could offer.
A source familiar with the review told Marketing that BMW initially said there would only be two rounds of financial negotiations: one at the review’s outset in February, and a second with the review’s winner at its conclusion. However, BMW’s procurement division was involved “early and frequently” throughout the process, the source said, constantly pressuring agencies to lower their rates.
