Why brands are going in-house
Efficiency is driving brands to establish in-house agencies, but the advantages are more than financial, representatives of three companies that moved at least some creative work in-house said.
“The Kitchen was created to drive a creative culture at Kraft Heinz from within,” said Kelly Roe, head of creative for The Kitchen, Kraft Heinz Co.’s in-house agency. “Efficiency is one part of it [but] I would argue you can be efficient and super creative.”
The Kitchen is creating three times the content at about one-third of the cost of an outside agency, and takes pride in its speed. “When there’s a trend in culture you have to act fast,” Roe said.
Related: Kraft Heinz chief growth officer on in-house agencies
Mike Frease, head of creative North America for Whirlpool Corp., said an in-house shop helps the appliance maker put “creativity at the core of the business,” and feels his shop gives nothing away to agencies: “We have to be shining some trophies in order to compete with the Wiedens of the world.”
Devastated by the pandemic and its effect on travel, TripAdvisor has rebounded behind an in-house agency that has collected support beyond the usual hotels and flights, exposing its 450,000 monthly visitors to consumer packaged goods brands, financial services, and alcohol beverage companies, among others. “There are a lot of touchpoints to hit that consumer when they’re going to spend a lot of money [on travel]," said Christine Maguire, TripAdvisor's VP and general manager of global media business.
Read more: TripAdvisor's in-house studio serves external clients