Advertising (ad) agencies come in different forms. Although most of their roles and functions are similar, they can be more inclined towards certain industries and takes on different types of functions if seen as a whole.
In Malaysia, the advertising industry is one which is very fast paced and dynamic. This is because apart from the growing need for advertising and promotions among brand owners and businesses, there are thousands of agencies who are competing for the same piece of pie in the market. However, it can be noted that ad agencies at times position themselves as a more focused business in which they are more specialized instead of a more general approach.
Local and international
Malaysia has one of the healthiest advertising industries in the world. This is because it has a very interesting mixture of firms. There are local, international and combined ad agencies in Malaysia. The local ad agencies are those who are fully Malaysian owned and have their own brand and offerings. These are the agencies which promotes themselves as ‘local’ in which they try to sell the idea that in order to advertise in Malaysia, a brand owner needs an agency who knows the local market very well.
On the other hand, there are the international ad agencies. These include the likes of McCann-Erikson and others, in which their names have already been known for decades in the international advertising market. In most circumstances, the international agencies enter the Malaysian market with a reputable portfolio where they continue to service the account which has been awarded to them in the global arena.
And then there are agencies which exist through a combination of local and international expertise. Unlike full international agencies, these are those who have an international persona and want to play a major part in the Malaysian market. Integrated agencies are more focused on the local market where they try to ‘localise’ international brands for its clients.
Full Service Agencies
The most common types of ad agencies are the Full Service firms. These are agencies which are usually large in size as they need to provide all the stages involved in a campaign. There are many departments involved in these agencies that are very specialized in the services they provide like Creative, Account Servicing and Media Planning. Basically, Full Service Agencies are those that offer the entire supply chain of services that start from research, conceptualization, planning, servicing and execution.
Interactive Agencies
Interactive agencies are sometimes referred to as modern agencies. They provide more digital-based advertising campaigns, adopting the use of more modern communication tools like e-mail, SMS and online services. Interactive Agencies produce more interactive and innovative advertisements which is where they are mainly focused in. The internet plays a vital role in the survival of these agencies while they are involved in mobile and other digital forms of marketing as well.
Creative Agencies
Seen at times as a ‘breakaway’ from the conventional ad agency, Creative Agencies are as the name implies perform and carry out creative services (sometimes known as Design Houses). These are agencies which are mainly made up of the Creative team like film directors, copywriters, artists and graphic designers. The main function of these agencies is to create actual ads or to conceptualize and idea.
The main reason why Creative Agencies exists is because they are not exclusively tied to a specific agency. Although they are considered to be outsourced on a specific project, the agency can obtain contracts from other companies as well. They are positioned as the best consultants for creative purposes.
Media Agencies
As the name implies, Media Agencies play a similar role as Creative Agencies except that they are only involved with media. Their main role is plan, buy and ensure that the ads appear at the respective media as scheduled.
This is a new type of agency which has been very popular in recent years. Media Agencies have played more significant roles where they have taken over the function of Account Servicing Departments. This is because they sell media space and carry out the scheduling services for their clients. In terms of creative, they can outsource them to Creative Agencies or Design Houses.
In-House Agencies
An In-House Agency functions very much like a Full-Service Agency where they have all the functions and departments of a typical ad agency. This is usually found in large organisations in which the In-House Agency is a dedicate department aimed at offering such services. They will carry out all the advertising and promotions requirements as needed by the company. The reason why In-House Agencies are used is because the large companies can afford it and it is more cost-effective than engaging an external agency in a long run.
Specialized Agencies
Such agencies are rare although they exist and are most likely found in highly specialized areas and industries like manufacturing, medicine and pharmacy. Such industries are not major spenders of advertising where these agencies help them in terms of other promotions activities like printing of brochures, designing of pamphlets and such.
