Ad agencies have a lot to contend with these days: A pitching process that many describe as broken, concerns over how AI might change their jobs, and competition from in-house teams, just to name a few. That’s not to mention broader workforce trends that can affect things like recruitment and retention.

The Blueprint, an executive search firm specializing in agencies, recently asked several agency staffers how they’re thinking through some of these challenges and what sort of impact they’ve had on employees and company culture. It surveyed 1,349 “senior agency talent” across the UK and US in addition to conducting more than 25 interviews with leaders at Wongdoody, Ogilvy, BBDO, and more.

Among several findings, its research found that millennials often act as a “generational bridge” between Gen Z newcomers and Gen X leadership. Jules Brenton, director of growth and an associate partner at The Blueprint, said millennials might’ve not had much of a work-life balance until the pandemic, which “really put a spotlight on people wanting to separate work and life.”

On the other hand, work-life balance is “expected” from Gen Z, she said. “In the report, we say millennials are the bridge because I think they’re learning a lot from Gen Z and how they kind of put their foot down.”

These generational differences have had an impact on other aspects of work within agencies, according to the report. Some workers have questioned more traditional agency practices, like pitching. Gen Z employees “don’t feel the same compulsion to be hands-on with pitching at all hours of the day” and can see it as an obstacle to work-life balance “on top of their already full schedule of current client work,” the report said.

Continue reading here.—JS

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Programmatic ad spend is growing, but it’s coming largely from one place: video.

Yes, the pivot to video is happening. More than 96% of programmatic ad spending growth will stem from video this year, according to research from Insider Intelligence.

The shudder-inducing phrase—which, amazingly, has its own Wikipedia entry—became media vernacular around 2015, when newsrooms adopted strategies to make ad revenue from video traffic generated by companies like Facebook. Video content would be rewarded, the platforms said. Turns out, Facebook was overstating how much time people spent watching video ads. Then, layoffs followed.

Years later, largely juiced by a pandemic-induced rush to streaming, advertisers are now chasing video inventory, neglecting the “bread and butter” of banner and display ads many publishers rely on, Max Willens, a senior analyst at Insider Intelligence, wrote in a post on LinkedIn.

How serious is it? Between 2021 and 2025, programmatic display ad spend is projected to grow from $60 billion to $72 billion, while spend on programmatic video inventory will grow from $55 billion to $97 billion.

“As bad as it is, it almost undersells how bad it is if you’re a web publisher,” Willens told Marketing Brew, pointing out that some display dollars are also going to the ever-growing retail media network category. “A not insignificant and fast-growing portion of that non-video display is going to retail media. If you’re in web publishing, your prospects of even getting crumbs off of that pie are not great.”

Publishers with access to a “very influential audience” (see: the New York Times, Bloomberg) will probably be fine, Willens said. But, “if you’re a website that doesn’t have a direct sales team and you make your money by making every impression available via 16 different SSPs, [publishers] like this are going to feel this most intensely.”—RB

There’s money in them thar rideshares.

Uber’s ad network gained approximately 55,000 advertisers this quarter, bringing its total to around 400,000. The “vast majority” are small and medium-sized businesses, Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi said during an earnings call.

• Its ad platform currently has a “revenue run rate,” or expected annual revenue, of more than $650 million—the company had projected more than $500 million in Q4 2022, but didn’t share a figure in Q1.
• “This is very, very healthy spend that is significantly profitable,” Khosrowshahi said. The company thinks it could be a billion-dollar business by 2024.
• Uber’s revenue grew 14% year over year to $9.2 billion, with gross bookings up 16%. It was also the first time the company turned an operating profit.

The rideshare platform has high ambitions for its advertising business, which runs ads within a suite of ride-sharing and delivery apps, like Drizly and Uber Eats. It also offers out-of-home inventory in cities like New York and Phoenix, as well as ads on tablets installed in drivers’ cars.

The company is now investing in ad products that’ll help enterprise and CPG advertisers target audiences, Khosrowshahi said. Earlier this year, Uber announced a partnership with Omnicom Media Group and with the ad-tech company Criteo.

In prepared remarks, Khosrowshahi said “dozens of leading CPG brands” were using Uber’s ad products, and that the rollout of full-length video ads across its platform is “unlocking connected TV advertising budgets.” Because what’s more premium inventory than the back of an Uber?—RB

There are a lot of bad marketing tips out there. These aren’t those.

Yes, chef: What creatives can learn from watching The Bear.

Start of something new: Mobile marketing analyst Eric Seufert breaks down Meta’s Threads debut.

Whoa, meta: Tips on how ad agencies can market themselves.

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Stat: At least $5 million. That’s what one class-action lawsuit is seeking from Taco Bell, claiming that the company’s Crunchwrap and Mexican Pizza products do not include as much beef and other ingredients as shown in their advertisements.

Quote: “Hi Sophie, it’s your neighbor right across the street with the silver car and little dog…Anyway, just wanted to let you know everyone in the neighborhood can see when you walk around your house in your underwear all day.”—An email clothing brand Feat sent to customers, some of whom were not pleased, according to the Wall Street Journal

Read: “Fortune cookies, the Sphere and more: How advertisers are taking OOH beyond billboards” (Digiday)