WSJ To Pit Its Incumbent Shops Against Each Other, Outsiders

The Wall Street Journal is conducting what a representative last week called an “informal review” of its consolidated ad account, currently split between Hill, Holliday, Connors, Cosmopulos and J. Walter Thompson.
In recent weeks, the newspaper’s marketing executives have solicited branding ideas from Hill, Holliday in Boston and JWT, among other shops, said WSJ representative Celia Currin. The review stems from a merger of the newspaper’s trade and circulation marketing departments, she said.
Hill, Holliday was named in 1996 to develop advertising programs aimed at increasing circulation.