Ad Age Wake-Up Call: Google and Walmart Partner Up, While WPP Cuts Its Forecast
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Good morning. Welcome to Ad Age’s Wake-Up Call, our daily roundup of advertising, marketing and digital-related news. What people are talking about today: Google and Walmart are teaming up on an online shopping partnership, forming a united front against Amazon. Or as The New York Times puts it, “Google and Walmart are testing the notion that an enemy’s enemy is a friend.” Google Express, the internet giant’s online marketplace, will offer Walmart products. And shoppers will be able to voice-order Walmart products using Google’s virtual assistant, The Wall Street Journal reports. Amazon controlled almost 45 cents out of every dollar spent online last month, according to data from Slice Intelligence, the Journal says. For Walmart, the figure is 2 cents.
WPP shares plummet
WPP cut its full-year revenue forecast, predicting revenue growth between zero and 1% this year. Previously, it had predicted 2% growth. WPP’s share price fell up to 12% after the company released its first-half earnings, and Bloomberg News said it was the biggest drop in 17 years. Agency holding companies have been hurting as some clients trim advertising budgets. UK-based WPP, the biggest agency company by revenue, singled out “pressure on client spending in the second quarter, particularly in the fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) or packaged goods sector.” WPP also says it bought independent brand design agency, Design Bridge, which has about 400 people in London, Amsterdam, New York and Singapore.
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