Facebook owner Meta hires Spark Foundry as global media agency

Facebook has appointed Spark Foundry as its global media buying and planning agency, following a competitive pitch that involved Dentsu, also an incumbent, and Havas Media.

The review, which began in March, covers all of Meta’s brands – including its social media platforms Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp.

WPP withdrew from the process after reviewing the RFP. WPP-owned Mindshare has worked with Facebook since 2014.

Facebook’s review, which launched in March, was handled by ID Comms.

According to research consultancy Comvergence, the media account is worth $750m (£545m), although its budget is likely to grow.

Facebook increased its total global adspend in 2020 by 44% to $2.26bn (£1.64bn) despite the pandemic.

Spark Foundry will handle media planning and buying for the world’s largest social media company, as well as “strategic thought leadership, media innovation, cross-channel approaches, tools, tech and operations”.

“We are pleased to announce that Spark Foundry will be our new global media planning and buying partner across Meta’s brand portfolio,” a Facebook spokesperson said.

“We are deeply grateful for the partnership we’ve had with Group M and Dentsu since 2014 and are proud of everything we’ve been able to accomplish together. 

“We also want to thank the teams that participated in the review process. We are privileged to have access to such great talent and appreciate the time and interest in partnering with us. “

The second-largest global advertising media owner recently posted better than expected Q3 financial results in spite of Apple’s tracking changes and high-profile whistleblower accusations of immoral behaviour. 

It also signalled a huge pivot and investment in the metaverse, while rebranding the name of its parent company from ‘Facebook’ to ‘Meta’.