The IMAA, the national, not for profit industry association for independent media agencies launched last year.
Since then it has continued to grow its membership base and make a series of big announcements, including its trade credit deal and a number of new media partners.
Mediaweek has been profiling members of the IMAA – previous features can be found here. This week we spoke to Dean Shell, the founder and director of Shell Media.
Shell founded the agency in 2019 after spending over 20 years working for the big agency groups. From IPG to Group M and then most recently Zenith, he said the planets aligned when his wife took on a senior role with a big multinational agency group which allowed him the freedom to go out on his own.
“It was pretty tough the first couple of years and then coming into a pandemic, I wondered if I had done the right thing. I was fortunate enough to secure my foundation client Sabco Australia early in the piece and have been able to look after all of their media requirements for the last couple of years and build a business around them. The other clients are the local independent school Tuart College. I’ve also done some pro bono work for Care Australia. Also, Oakwood Products is another subsidiary of Sabco in the cleaning field.”
Shell said that one reason that he launched Shell Media was that through conversations with stakeholders in the industry, he noticed a shift towards independent agencies from the client-side of the industry.
“Even pre-pandemic, from a marketing and comms perspective clients and advertisers have shifted a little bit in their opinions and thoughts regarding bigger holding groups and are seeking more of a personalised approach, which you get from a growing list of independents out there. This reinforced my decision to go out on my own.”
When asked what the specialisations of Shell Media are, Shell said that they focus on all aspects of media planning as well as the strategic offering. This is due to the industry experience he gained when working for the larger holding companies.
“My background has been traditionally in investment and that’s where I enjoy spending a lot of time. Having looked after the federal government account at UM for almost five years from an investment perspective, I really enjoy getting sort of down dirty with the media, and ensuring that the client gets the best outcome. And it’s still fair for the media as well. Traditionally when people mention the word negotiation, there’s a bit of a misnomer that it’s kill or be killed. It doesn’t have to be that way. Because it’s about sustaining a long term relationship, both with the client and with the suppliers.”
Shell Media and the IMAA
Shell said that his experience with the IMAA has been fantastic and added that he was fortunate enough to know a couple of the Melbourne directors before he joined.
“I always wondered why there was not an equivalent of the MFA so that true independents could have a voice and collaborate together. The team at the IMAA led by Sam Buchanan have been awesome. There have been benefits for all of the members. Being in the company of like-minded individuals who 90% of them have all had their start in the big holding groups as a junior burger, being in that company, you go along the path of growth problems and trials and ups and downs, and you have that understanding. It’s almost like an unspoken I know what you’re going through, but just hang in there, this will, this will work out in the end. And to formalise that into an industry citation.
“It also gives clients and the media a real reassurance that there is a group of agencies who are 100% Australian owned and all of their profits are going back into this economy, not into an offshore office in New York or Paris. And they’re bettering the industry here, particularly for our young people who are the future of the industry.”
