A little nudge toward the next big thing

Annually, Marian Salzman puts out the “Big Little Book of Nexts” spotting trends in her industry of advertising and marketing heading into the New Year.

These days, she is also pointing out what she says could be the next big thing for Connecticut ”“ the small but significant lineup of ad agencies in Fairfield County that could provide a major platform to lure an anchor company from New York City.

The CEO of the Euro RSCG Worldwide subsidiary of Havas, Salzman recently wrote Gov. Dannel P. Malloy on behalf of the Fairfield County Public Relations Association she leads urging the state to recruit major ad, marketing and public relations agencies to move to the county and to include their headquarters operations.

It would not necessarily take much in the way of tax or monetary incentives either, she adds ”“ but it would take a masterful sell job tailored to industry executives who know a thing or two about the subject.

“A large percentage of us who wake up, bleary-eyed, to take the train every day to Manhattan for work are bona fide and baked-in Connecticut locals,” Halzman said in a blog posted to the FCPRA website. “Connecticut”™s creative corridor needs to start proudly selling itself, boasting even of its unparalleled talent pool and proximity, lifestyle oasis and community of collaborative spirits. It”™s not without reason to imagine a time when Connecticut could be a nexus for all things PR, marketing and advertising.”

According to the most recent estimates by the U.S. Census Bureau, New York and California are home to fully 28 percent of the advertising and public relations jobs in the United States ”“ both a blessing and a curse, with the Census Bureau noting that layoffs are common when major accounts are lost, clients cut budgets or agencies merge.

Only last year, the digital creative agency Plaid was acquired by New York City-based MDC Partners, but maintains its Danbury office under the new moniker Humongo.

MDC”™s tagline is “where great talent lives,” one that Salzman is essentially adopting in her own push to promote Fairfield County as a cluster location for ad agencies. Industry powerhouses increasingly are open to locating offices in other locales, she maintains, a process driven as much by providing easier access to corporate customers as quality of life concerns. That is illustrated in the case of Detroit, which has a strong cluster of ad agency offices. Salzman points out that Connecticut has more than twice as many Fortune 1000 companies as the metropolitan Detroit area, coupled with its easy access to New York City.

If not their headquarters, all of the “Big 4” ad agency companies have Fairfield County offices, including:

Ӣ Omnicom Group Inc. in Greenwich and in Wilton via its TracyLocke promotion unit;

Ӣ WPP via its Kantar Retail market research division in Wilton;

Ӣ Interpublic Group of Cos. through its Octagon sports marketing agency in Norwalk; and

Ӣ Publicis Groupe via its Digitas digital marketing agency office in Stamford.

With Havas also here via its Euro RSCG Worldwide unit, of the largest agencies only Dentsu does not have a presence here. Fairfield County is also home to multiple smaller ad and media agencies that have a marquee customer base, including Colangelo in Darien, Mediastorm L.L.C. in Norwalk and Ryan Partnership in Westport.

Entering 2012, Salzman says she will continue making the local rounds, promoting the concept of Fairfield County agencies promoting their own little cluster as the next big thing.

“I know that we ”“ Euro RSCG ”“ have a wonderful, exciting office in Wilton and currently contemplate two (or) three other offices being situated in Fairfield County,” Salzman said. “Our challenge is the same one all our competitors face: we need to convince ourselves that best-in-class creativity is possible in the ”™burbs ”¦Â  The future is not in creativity in overpriced downtown spaces ”“ but in hubs where creators thrive professionally, personally (and) culturally.”