‘It’s not just about what the brands want anymore’: UTA Marketing’s co-heads on why big brands are turning to Hollywood talent agencies

It’s no secret that Hollywood talent firms are in the ads business. The create content, not ads mantra is old hat now.

And there are few businesses better placed to help marketers do this than the likes of United Talent Agency. Recent events bear this out: the pandemic-powered growth of ad-free streaming services was built on premium content, thereby making its creators even more influential.

Little wonder then why more advertisers are turning to talent agencies like United Talent Agency for help. Moreso than ad agencies, the likes of UTA have built businesses on the back of the entertainment industry; they have unrivaled access to talent across film, TV, music, and increasingly esports. It gives them a unique take on how brands can riff on culture beyond the ad break — at least that’s the pitch.

Digiday caught up with David Anderson and Julian Jacobs, the co-heads of UTA Marketing, to talk about the division’s inception, work to date, future growth plans, and more.

This conversation has been lightly edited and condensed for clarity.

Talent agencies have been down the advertising path before. What’s different this time?

Anderson: We started UTA Marketing four and a half years ago on the belief that the industry is shifting away from ad-supported worlds and in tandem, creators are becoming increasingly influential. Both of these trends were unfolding long before Covid. Marketers would ask us what to do about the fact that their traditional media buys weren’t delivering the same ratings. But Covid accelerated this interest as marketers saw more media companies, from Disney to HBO, choose to rely on non-ad-supported models. Now, I can’t sit here and say for sure how this will all play out, but I do know that marketers are going to have to figure out new and innovative ways to connect with those creators to tell their stories because the traditional methods they’ve relied on aren’t going to work. It’s more of a necessity now and we see that in our work with marketers. Before, we had the luxury of working with innovative marketers who saw the future. Now, it’s no longer about innovation

So you see yourselves as brokers of sorts between clients and talent?

Jacobs: There’s been an opening in distribution opportunities for premium content that brands can be a part of. We’re helping our clients navigate this opening by leveraging the access the agency has to creatives — that’s the route to how many of these projects, whether it’s the Headspace documentary series on Netflix or the Unilever series on Apple TV+ about dads have found homes on meaningful distribution platforms.

How easy have marketers been able to fill that opening in distribution?

Anderson: We’re in a period of experimentation. There’s a lot of friction between marketers who have invested heavily in media companies like Disney and Warner Bros. and the limitations of these new streaming services. As more content goes to platforms without ads, marketers are going to seek out ways to show up. But the experimentation …read more

Source:: Digiday