Top 10 Advertising Agencies in NYC

A lot of people say that New York City is the center of the world, and as far as the advertising industry is concerned, the top 10 advertising agencies in NYC can attest to that adage.

Culturally speaking, one of America’s biggest exports to the world is its entertainment juggernaut. And indeed, few other U.S industries can brag about their worldwide reach and influence as much as the media industry can. Almost all of the top companies in the world, especially those that sell products directly to the public, recognize that power. That’s why these industry titans are willing to spend billions of dollars to get some airtime and publicity wherever media is shown, whether in the U.S or elsewhere. Hence, it’s no wonder that the U.S advertising industry is a global powerhouse, given the strong presence of media in the country. Out of the top 50 ad agencies in the world, 28 are located in the U.S according to Advertising Age, a renowned magazine that covers the advertising industry and related areas.

Speaking of ad agencies in the U.S, Insider Monkey has also compiled a list of the 10 biggest advertising agencies in the US, based on worldwide revenue; check it out.

As for New York City, the metropolis is undoubtedly home to the best of these ad agencies. In fact, of those 28 American ad agencies on the list of the top 50 ad agencies in the world, 12 are headquartered in New York City, including two of the top five and seven of the top 20.

The list of New York City advertising agencies that performed the best includes: Accenture Interactive, owned by Accenture Plc (NYSE:ACN); Deloitte Digital, owned by Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu; Experian Marketing Services, owned by Experian plc (LON:EXPN); Horizon Media; iCrossing, owned by Hearst Corp.; Interpublic Group of Companies Inc (NYSE:IPG); inVentiv Health;  MDC Partners Inc (NASDAQ:MDCA); Omnicom Group Inc. (NYSE:OMC); and PwC Digital Services, owned by PricewaterhouseCoopers. Together, they have combined worldwide revenue of $31.5 billion and U.S revenue of $29.80 billion, a sizable share of the $69.95 billion in aggregate worldwide revenue and $66.26 billion in U.S revenue for the top 50 ad agencies.

Insider Monkey has compiled full-year data on the worldwide and U.S revenue of each advertising agency. Monetary values indicated on this list of the top 10 advertising agencies in NYC are as of 2016 for public companies and as of 2015 (the latest available) for private companies and units.

10. Horizon Media

Total revenue, worldwide: $225 million (as of 2015)

Total revenue in the U.S: $182 million (as of 2015)

Horizon Media ranks 10th in our list of top 10 advertising agencies in NYC. It is an independent marketing and media services firm that negotiates, buys, and plans deals across the media spectrum.

9. iCrossing, owned by Hearst Corp.

Total revenue, worldwide: $252 million (as of 2015)

Total revenue in the U.S: $216 million (as of 2015)

Ad agency iCrossing, owned by Hearst Corp., was established in 1998 as a standalone search marketing agency.

8. inVentiv Health

Total revenue, worldwide: $385 million (as of 2015)

Total revenue in the U.S: $367 million (as of 2015)

The healthcare-focused inVentiv Health runs ad agencies such as Navicor, GSW, and PALIO.

7. Experian Marketing Services, owned by Experian plc (LON:EXPN)

Total revenue, worldwide: $870 million (as of 2015)

Total revenue in the U.S: $432 million (as of 2015)

Experian Marketing Services that ranks 7th in our list of top 10 advertising agencies in NYC, owned by Experian plc (LON:EXPN), offers targeted display ads, advanced TV advertising, and online ads. The main business of the New York City-based ad agency’s parent company is providing credit services.

The next six companies on this list of the top 10 advertising agencies in NYC each earned worldwide revenue of more than $1 billion in the most recent year which data is available.

6. PwC Digital Services, owned by PricewaterhouseCoopers

Total revenue worldwide: $1.12 billion (as of 2015)

Total revenue in the U.S: $624 million (as of 2015)

One of the two ad agencies on this list that is a unit of an established accounting firm, PwC Digital Services, owned by PricewaterhouseCoopers, was founded in 2014 as a consulting division concentrating on digital marketing.

5. MDC Partners Inc (NASDAQ:MDCA)

Total revenue, worldwide: $1.39 billion (as of 2016)

Total revenue in the U.S: $1.10 billion (as of 2016)

We are continuing our list of top 10 advertising agencies in NYC with MDC Partners Inc (NASDAQ:MDCA), that is not an ad agency itself, but it holds significant stakes in about 52 advertising and marketing firms, including Crispin Porter + Bogusky, Redscout, and 72andSunny.

4. Deloitte Digital, owned by Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu

Total revenue, worldwide: $1.65 billion (as of 2015)

Total revenue in the U.S: $865 million (as of 2015)

It appears that big accounting firms can also be masters of the ad game. Take for example Deloitte Digital, owned by Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu, a full-service design and development agency that touts itself as a creative digital consultancy.

3. Accenture Interactive, owned by Accenture Plc (NYSE:ACN)

Total revenue, worldwide: $2.92 billion (as of 2015)

Total revenue in the U.S: $1.23 billion (as of 2015)

Up next in our list of top 10 advertising agencies in NYC is Accenture Interactive, owned by Accenture Plc (NYSE:ACN), that provides services such as marketing strategy, customer experience, and omni-channel commerce.

2. Interpublic Group of Companies Inc (NYSE:IPG)

Total revenue, worldwide: $7.85 billion (as of 2016)

Total revenue in the U.S: $4.68 billion (as of 2016)

Amid all the buzz about digital and analytics in the advertising space, the best ad agencies are still the ones that have been around for ages. Interpublic Group of Companies Inc (NYSE:IPG) owns McCann, the ad agency behind The Coca-Cola Co (NYSE:KO)’s “I’d Like To Teach The World To Sing” ad of the 1970s and the iconic “There Are Some Things Money Can’t Buy” Mastercard Inc (NYSE:MA) ads.

1. Omnicom Group Inc. (NYSE:OMC)

Total revenue, worldwide: $15.13 billion (as of 2016)

Total revenue in the U.S: $8.63 billion (as of 2016)

While Interpublic has one iconic ad agency, Omnicom Group Inc. (NYSE:OMC) has two: BBDO and DDB Worldwide. While a failed merger with Publicis Groupe of France would have turned Omnicon into a behemoth in the ad world, the company on its own was still big enough to top this list of the top 10 advertising agencies in NYC.

Disclosure: None