History of Omnicom Group

In 1891, George Batten established Batten Communications Company in New York. In 1919, Bruce Barton and Roy Durstine founded Barton & Durstine in New York. In 1920, Barton, Durstine and Alex Osborn merged; in 1928, Batten Communication Company merged with Barton, Durstine Osborn to form Batten, Barton, Durstine & Osborn (BBDO for short, Chinese name is Tiangao, a joint venture established in mainland China and China Guanglian) The company is called Tianlian).

In 1949, Bill Bernbach, the first representative of art advertising, was listed as the “most influential advertiser of the 20th century” by Advertising Age and Ned Doyle left Gray and co-founded Doyle Dane Bernbach (DDB) with Mac Dane***. After Bernbach's death in 1982, DDB's successors began to shift their focus from art to capital operations. In 1986, DDB merged with Needham, Harper & Steers to form DDB Needham. In 1986, DDB Needham merged with BBDO to form Omnicom Group.

In 1968, Jay Chiat and Guy Day established the Chiat/Day advertising agency. Chiat/Day has always advocated bohemian creativity, which has won and lost many customers. In 1994, Chiat/Day, which was trying to reduce operating costs and improve work efficiency, made another surprising move. It converted the original office into a warehouse and allowed employees to go home with their laptops and mobile phones to implement virtual working! But contrary to expectations, virtual working has led to lower work efficiency and a large number of employee resignations. In 1995, Chiat/Day was acquired by Omnicom and merged with TBWA, which Omnicom acquired in 1993, to form the current TBWA/Chiat/Day.

In 1993, Interbrand joined Diversified Agency Services (DAS), a division of Omnicom. DAS's business covers advertising agency, corporate financial communications, direct marketing, image design, health care, information technology, integrated marketing, media planning and buying, organizational communications, promotions, public relations/public affairs, recruitment communications, telemarketing, Trademark Licensing and Yellow Pages Advertising. In addition to DAS, the Omnicom Group includes some of the largest advertising agencies (BBDO Worldwide, DDB Needham, TBWA Chiat/Day and Goodby Silverstein & Partners), as well as some of the leading interactive advertising agencies. This relationship benefits clients by ensuring they have access to the full range of services from a leading advertising, marketing and communications firm. Omnicom leverages the breadth and depth of its talent to provide customers with unusually holistic, global solutions.

Omnicom's DAS also owns three of the world's seven largest public relations firms, including FleishmanHillard, Triumph Herald and Porter Novelli, as well as specialized public relations firms such as Brodeur Worldwide and Gavin Anderson. DAS has the most influential health communication business in the world, represented by Targis in Asia. DAS also owns the Bernard Hodes Group, which specializes in recruitment communications services, and the corporate and financial advertising agency Doremus.

On April 5, 2006, Tsinghua University and Omnicom Group Inc. jointly announced the winner of the Omnicom Chinese naming competition. This was a milestone moment in the history of cooperation between the two parties. Interbrand, a subsidiary of Omnicom Group Inc., is a leading global consulting company. In order to find a suitable Chinese name for Omnicom Group Inc., Interbrand worked closely with Tsinghua University, while formulating strict entry criteria and deciding on the final name through a demanding selection process. More than 110 students participated in the competition. The Chinese name that finally stood out was "Hongmeng", which in English means "Magnificent Alliance". The final winning student Fei Yuqian was very happy when she learned that her Chinese name was finally determined to be the name of Omnicom Group Inc., and she also got an internship opportunity at Interbrand overseas company.

In 1991, BBDO came to China and cooperated with China Advertising United Corporation. So far, the BBDO family has another oriental face - BBDO Tianlian.

Affiliated to the Omnicom Group, BBDO has a distinguished background and more than 100 years of creative experience, allowing BBDO to develop rapidly in China. With the establishment of Proximity China in 2005, BBDO has become more versatile in the fields of events and interaction. In 2008, BBDO announced the acquisition of part of the shares of Xuanya International Communications Group, China's leading integrated communications company. At the same time, BBDO changed its name to BBDO CHINA. 17 years after coming to China from the United States, BBDO is determined to be a "Chinese company." BBDO China has brand customers including Pepsi, GE, VISA, FedEx, ICI, Gillette, Bayer, Disney, Snow Beer, Chrysler, Wrigley gum, FENDI, CK and other brands.