Capital One hands 50m UK ad account to AMV without a pitch
Capital One, the US credit card giant, has handed its 50m UK advertising account to Abbott Mead Vickers.BBDO without a pitch. It was previously handled by DDB London.
Capital One, the US credit card giant, has handed its £50m UK advertising account to Abbott Mead Vickers.BBDO without a pitch. It was previously handled by DDB London.
The credit card company works with both DDB and BBDO in the US and says that the decision to change from one Omnicom agency to another in the UK was “by mutual agreement”. It is understood that “creative differences” drove the decision.
The move has been overseen by Justin Basini, Capital One vice-president of brand marketing.
DDB London scooped the UK advertising for Capital One in early 2005 from McCann Erickson. The review was triggered by a decision to move its US account from McCann Erickson to DDB Chicago, which has not been affected by the UK move. BBDO Atlanta is also on the US roster.
Capital One’s branding campaign, “What’s in your wallet?” was created in 2000 by D’Arcy, which held the account until 2003 when the agency was purchased and closed by Publicis Groupe.
Basini says the switch is unlikely to spell the immediate end of the “What’s in your wallet” activity. He adds that media planning and buying, handled by Starcom Mediavest, is not affected.
Capital One started its repositioning in late 2006 with the launch of a £9m ad campaign, created by DDB, aimed at convincing consumers to “like” the unpopular financial services brand (MW September 7, 2006).
Last October, Capital One appointed Partners Andrews Aldridge to handle a series of direct marketing projects, as the company assembled its first direct agency roster. It also works with WWAV Rapp Collins.
