Organic Exec Predicts Greater Digital Reach in '09

This post was written by Douglas Quenqua

The coming year in advertising is predicted to be, if nothing else, unpredictable. In a talk with ClickZ News, Adam Turinas, EVP of client engagement at digital agency Organic, suggested digital could benefit.

Ad spending is likely to drop next year, which could drive more money to digital media. Turinas, who heads up Bank of America’s interactive account at the Omnicom shop, believes this will lead to more instances of “the digital tail wagging the traditional dog,” meaning digital will be at the center of client initiatives. As a result, interactive work will be activated across all channels.

“We’re already working with clients by taking the digital experience into the retail environment,” he said. Discussing the retail sector, he added, “I would expect to see things like a kiosk or a tool for the store associate to work with, more like utilities that help customers answer questions.”

Of course, it is not surprising that a digital agency executive would predict that digital work would dominate in the coming year. And it’s worth noting that the model Turinas predicts–using media primarily as a tool to accommodate consumer need–is precisely the philosophy espoused by Organic.

But most forecasts for the ad market in 2009 make it hard to argue against the idea that digital will gain prominence. In October, media firm Zenith Optimedia revised its previous prediction of 3.9 percent growth for ad spending in 2009 to a meager .9 percent. Meanwhile, eMarketer’s most recent forecast for online ad spending calls for growth of 8.9 percent–considerably stronger, though also revised from previous prediction of double-digit growth.