Why Independent Agencies Are Winning Big with Marketers in 2025 And How OMI’s Results-Driven Mindset Drove ROI for a Leading Telecom Provider

As agency consolidation surges and holding company structures proliferate, independent agencies are having a moment. As highlighted in a recent MediaPost article, marketers are seeking out agency partners that deliver more flexibility, deeper client focus, and real accountability. And it's paying off.

At OMI, we’re feeling the love. As an independent agency trusted by Fortune 1000 brands for audience data, performance marketing, and campaign executions, we’re not driven by shareholder value and not held back by layers of red tape. We keep it simple. Our only focus is helping clients succeed.

Here are a few reasons why independent agencies like ours are resonating more than ever with today’s modern marketers.

1. Pure Client Focus With No Distractions

Independent agencies have one goal: solve the client’s challenge. There are no quarterly earnings reports or inter-agency politics shaping decisions. That's one of the most significant reasons why top brands partner with OMI. They want an agency focused on results, not bureaucracy—and one that can adjust strategies quickly when needed.

We don't bring in a dozen different teams to pitch or even service a new client. We have one multi-talented and experienced team that listens, builds, and executes while embracing data, creativity, and speed.

 

2. Performance That’s Hard to Ignore

One of the biggest reasons clients stick with independent agencies sounds simple yet it is very difficult to achieve: we deliver results. Speaking of which, we’re excited to share a sneak peek into a case study we’ll be posting soon that showcases how we define success at scale for our clients:

Telecom Email Acquisition Campaign Highlights

The 2024 email acquisition campaign, conducted during a three-month period, consisted of 9 million email sends and spanned two of the provider’s solution offerings. Our primary goals were to elevate awareness and sales. At a high level, the campaign demonstrated how well-planned sequencing and high-quality data come together to drive conversions.

The telecom client provided the prospect contact data to fuel the campaign and had not previously marketed to any of the records. In addition, the records were unverified, meaning additional work needed to be done to ensure the highest levels of deliverability.

Process

OMI’s first step was to focus on the data. We re-validated the client’s prospect file for email deliverability and analyzed the email domains for deliverability categorization and outbound email domain assignment. Throughout the campaign, we also maintained opt-out cleaning compliance on a weekly basis with the client.

Using the client’s creative assets, OMI initiated a three-touch email marketing campaign to the supplied data each month over the three-month period.

Results

Our performance data shows the following achievements:

• Emails Sent: 9 Million
• Leads Delivered: 872,411
• Open Leads: 335,188
• Open Clicks: 537,223
• Sales Attributed (as of 12/31/24): 3,514
• Cost per Lead: $0.295
• A 13-point increase in ROI over 2022 and 2023 campaigns

What made the difference?

• Our proven three-touch acquisition email model, designed to build engagement over time.
• A deep cleanse of the client’s internal prospect list to boost data quality and email deliverability.

Our success in this campaign was driven by a formula consisting of proven practices, an experienced team, a focus on results, and relentless attention to data quality. Although you can call it an example of the independent agency model at work, for our team, it's just the way we do business.

 

3. Flexibility and Speed = Competitive Advantage

As the MediaPost article points out, independent agencies are often more agile. They’re able to turn strategy into action faster than their holding company counterparts. That’s because there’s less internal overhead and more direct access to senior decision-makers.

At OMI, we like to start each client engagement by building a custom audience. After that, we never take a cookie-cutter approach. Whether we’re using high-performing net-new data, cleansing a stale file, running multi-touch campaigns across channels, or a combination of these and other actions, we adapt to what the client needs most and we move quickly.

 

4. Data-Driven by Design

Modern marketing is powered by data, and independent agencies like ours don’t treat it as an add-on. We have always been focused on enabling clients to reach the right audiences with clean, current, and fresh data, whether it’s for:

• Acquisition email
• Programmatic and CTV campaigns
• Direct mail
• Social media
• Media activation
• All of the above (omni-channel)

The recent telecom campaign is a case in point. By using cleansed, high-quality prospect records, we created a foundation for success.

 

5. Real Accountability, Real Partnership

When you work with an independent agency, you know who’s doing the work—and you know who’s accountable. You won't be working with a large project team, but you will experience clear communication, shared goals, and performance you can measure.

That's why OMI has long-standing relationships with a growing number of Fortune 1000 brands, including top telecom companies. They count on us not only for our data expertise but also for our partnership mindset.

 

What’s Next

From our perspective, we're witnessing the evolution of a shift in the agency business. Marketers are tired of complexity and complacency. They want clarity, performance, and partners they can trust to move fast and get results.

Our upcoming case study will dive deeper into how our telecom client scaled conversions using OMI’s campaign and data expertise—but the bigger story is that independent agencies like ours are winning because we’re focused on results.

We know you want to feel the love of campaign success that can only come from partnering with an independent agency. Reach out to our team to have a conversation about partnering with us to achieve the results you want: request@outwardmedia.com.