The Top Advertising & Marketing Groups Worldwide

British giant WPP overtook Omnicom in 2008 to become the world's biggest marketing group, but recently it has been beset by problems, not least the sudden departure in 2018 of its founder Sir Martin Sorrell. It owns four major advertising agencies in Ogilvy, VMLY&R, Wunderman Thompson and Grey as well as media networks Mindshare, Mediacom and Wavemaker, and more than 100 other diversified marketing agencies.

Omnicom is the #2 marketing services group, with an extensive collection of different businesses led by the global networks of BBDO, DDB and TBWA, each with an unequalled reputation for creative excellence. Its main media buying network is OMD. The group also manages the largest portfolio of diversified marketing services companies of any global group. Plans to overtake WPP for the top spot through a merger with Publicis were abandoned in 2014.

Publicis Groupe of France forced its way into the upper ranks with a string of canny acquisitions, including Saatchi & Saatchi and Leo Burnett. It also took control of BBH, and acquired a string of digital specialists including Digitas, Razorfish and Sapient. In 2016 its media networks Starcom MediaVest and Zenith Optimedia were split into four separate units. A bold plan to merge with Omnicom to create a new global giant collapsed in 2014.

Interpublic is still one of the big four marketing groups but it struggled in the early 2000s with a series of challenges in different parts of its portfolio. Its lead advertising network is McCann Worldgroup, one of the original pioneers in global marketing, supported by integrated network FCB, and a diverse collection of other shops including creative agencies Mullen Lowe and Deutsch, PR giant Weber Shandwick and digital specialist R/GA. Media networks include UM and Initiative

No advertising agency dominates its home market as completely as Dentsu of Japan. Until recently its profile outside Asia was very limited, but Dentsu began to change that imbalance with carefully selected acquisitions. The first big break-through came with the purchase of New York agency McGarry Bowen. That was topped by the bolt-on of what is now Dentsu Aegis Network, owner of global media networks Carat and Vizeum.

Now a division of French media group Vivendi, Havas is the last of what was once a sizeable second tier of mid-sized global marketing groups. It controls advertising network Havas Worldwide (known as Euro RSCG until 2012) and media network Havas Media, as well as small collection of other agencies, of which the best known is Arnold Worldwide. The former flagship of Euro RSCG in Paris has also established a separate identity under the name BETC.