It is the first communication group to open the ball of financial results.
The French Publicis (Publicis, Leo Burnett, Saatchi & Saatchi, Starcom or Zenith), world number three in the sector, reveals a net income of 12.5 billion euros in 2022, up 10.1% over one year.
“2022
is synonymous for us with a new record year, with double-digit growth for the second consecutive year”,
comments to
Figaro
Arthur Sadoun, chairman of the management board of Publicis.
It ended the year with a free cash flow of 1.7 billion euros and an operating margin rate of 18%.
Since the pandemic, the physiognomy of the group has changed considerably.
Now, more than a third of its revenue comes from data-related activities, with Epsilon (+12% growth in 2022) and in consulting and technology, with Sapient (+19%).
This allows Publicis to be less dependent on advertisers' spending on traditional communication, a market that has been falling lately in the face of inflation and economic uncertainty.
"Our mix of activities allows us to position ourselves with our clients, well beyond the traditional services of a communication agency
", explains Arthur Sadoun
.
"As a partner in the business model transformation of companies, particularly in proprietary data and e-commerce"
.
An industry in full transformation
In a world post-third-party advertising cookies (these small trackers capable of tracking the activity of an Internet user online), customers are looking for large-scale personalization, to resist the era of platform domination.
Mastering “
logged
” (or proprietary) data is a holy grail for site editors and advertisers.
“Creatively, there are also a lot of things to reinvent with the transition from linear content to dynamic content, often managed by artificial intelligence.
There can no longer be marketing without the contribution of data and technology
, ”said the boss of Publicis.
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In the United States, the group's largest market, growth exceeded 10% in 2022.
In France, it was around 5%, in line with the 4.8% expected across the French advertising market, according to the latest projections from Magna (IPG Mediabrands).
Confident for 2023
For 2023, the group expects growth between 3% and 5%.
“We are confident in the future, despite the possible downturn in the advertising market ahead.
We should continue on a very positive dynamic thanks to our mix of activities”
, anticipates Arthur Sadoun.
The group will continue its policy of "
small strategic and targeted acquisitions
to recover both technology and talent.
It provides for this purpose a budget of 600 million euros.
Last year, for example, he got his hands on Wiredcraft, which consults in technology and digital products in Asia, the Romanian software developer Tremend, or Profitero, an American platform for analyzing sales and marketing performance of companies on e-commerce sites.
In the coming months, connected TV and retail media, ie the inventories and advertising products placed on the merchant sites of major retailers, should represent the new El Dorado for advertisers.
“
In two years, our customers will spend more on Walmart.com than on the CNBC television channel
,” concludes Arthur Sadoun.
