Things are up in the air at eBay.
Three parties close to the matter confirmed this week that the ecommerce company recently met with McCann Worldgroup in the U.S. regarding its global creative business.
We should note that this does not amount to a formal review.
72andSunny officially won the global creative business two years ago after a split with Target eliminated that potential conflict. Since then it has produced a number of campaigns, many focused on the array of products available via the service. Here’s a recent example.
That review was a consolidation of sorts from a client that previously worked with agencies including Pereira & O’Dell.
Just over one year ago, the equation changed slightly when eBay chose CRAFT, McCann’s production division, as its newest partner in the EMEA. The idea, as a company spokesperson explained it at the time, was to have them support 72 in the interest of “more agility and an increased speed to market.”
Since then CRAFT has expanded its remit and begun creating original content of its own.
That U.K.-based relationship facilitated a recent meeting in the U.S., which we’re told concerned an exploration of potential opportunities for McCann regarding the brand’s platform.
There’s another factor at play here: eBay has no global CMO. According to our sources, the company has been making some unspecified changes in the makeup of its global marketing team and exploring potential agency solutions in accordance with that. Since no one person leads the charge, the overall strategy is something of a patchwork model.
For example, 72andSunny’s campaigns have primarily focused on the U.S. and Australian markets, and some CMOs reportedly want their teams (and, by extension, their agencies) to have greater influence.
But again, there has been no RFP and 72 continues to handle the work, so its official AOR status does not appear to be in jeopardy.
Spokespeople for McCann and 72andSunny declined to comment. After this post went live, eBay confirmed the talks and said 72andSunny remains its global lead.