You don’t lose the DNA of an agency
Camila M. Costa was one of the first Brazilian executives to notice the power of the digital medium. “Ten years ago, we already believed in what we see today”, confirms the partner and CEO of iD\TBWA, an Omnicom Group agency. Certainty came even earlier. “In 2006, with Orkut, I realized that digital would be the future”, he recalls. Camila immersed herself in the world of the internet, when the market still had no idea that this medium would turn advertising upside down. “In 2014, we decided to bring a little more business”, he says. Today, she leads an operation equipped with data, innovation and creativity, which is witnessing a new cycle of evolution, imposed by artificial intelligence. “The creative look, the understanding of culture, only we have. Machines don’t move anyone. She fakes emotion, but doesn’t feel it”, he warns.
Como define a iD\TBWA?
The agency was created in 2007 and, in the same year, was purchased by TBWA. Today, it is part of the Omnicom group, within the TBWA network. I enter in 2014, a time when digital was being incorporated by traditional agencies and was differentiating itself as a new strategy. When I was called to preside over the agency, ten years ago, completed in August, Luiz Lara, chairman of the group, asked me what the next expansion cycle would be. We understand that it would be important to continue an independent path, and to strengthen ourselves in digital because ten years ago we already believed in what we see today. You don’t lose the DNA of an agency. We began a path of data, innovation and creativity, with these integrated ends, since 2007. Today, our competitive advantage lies at this root. iD\TBWA grows on average 35% to 40% per year, a result that brings strong integration with the global network.
How was this turnaround?
In 2014, we decided to bring a little more business. The agency was already recognized for combining creativity and digital media. But when I arrived, we brought a more strategic vision. I really believed in the online shopping and performance movement. This way, we get closer to our clients’ business results. We were able to prove what all this could bring to brands. In digital, everything is measured, and that is very good. But if you don’t have focus and strategy, you won’t know where to go, and the numbers will get lost.
What is the leadership structure?
Today we have a management body made up of two C-Levels, in addition to me. Marco Sinatura is the C-Level of strategy and innovation, who also takes care of content and influencers. He is very involved in the day-to-day life of the agency, with me. Thiago Fernandes is the C-Level of media and data, who is unifying these two areas and forming Intelecta. Priscila Sanita, executive director of data and BI, works with him. The team includes Alessandra Santana, executive business director; Sthefan Ko, executive creative director; and Thiago Carneiro, executive director of operations and technology. There are around 150 people. We are one of Scopen’s clients’ favorite agencies. For digital customers, we are second best. And of all the agencies on the market, we are the fifth largest. It is the best agency in the Omnicom group according to customers and people who have been with us for a long time. This is synonymous with success and consistency.
Read the full interview in the issue of propmark October 7, 2024
