The “Ghetto Day” email scandal that hit Campbell Ewald in January continues to affect the IPG agency network.
This week we learned that Edward Jones and Henry Ford Health System will not renew their current contracts with C-E, which expire in April and May, respectively. Their decisions follow that of USAA, which terminated its contract as IPG CEO Michael Roth fired C-E’s chief executive Jim Palmer days after the post first ran.
Edward Jones will move the portion of its business which had been with C-E to Chicago-based indie agency Cramer Krasselt, which has handled its consumer-facing advertising since 2009. Henry Ford will soon launch a full creative review.
Edward Jones last sought a new agency partner in 2013, picking Campbell Ewald to work on its talent recruitment business as it focused on a plan to employ 20,000 financial advisors by the year 2020. C-E then picked up Henry Ford Health System last summer as part of a series of new business wins that included Valero Energy, Country Inns & Suites, New York State Tourism and Travelocity, for which it just launched its first campaign. (These additions followed the loss of the U.S. Navy recruiting account to Y&R after 15 years.)
A spokesperson for Edward Jones called the move an effort to “ensure consistency in our message and result in gains in efficiency.” Henry Ford said that the email story had played a role in its decision not to renew the contract, adding, “We assessed our partnership based on our values and commitment to supporting a diverse culture.”
According to Kantar Media, Edward Jones spent approximately $30 million on measured advertising in 2014 while Henry Ford spent around $3.1 million.