Imre Rebrands Social Practice 5Loom

5Loom-BAs the Web gets more social, agencies are tailoring their services to help clients accommodate the shift. The most recent example is brand communications firm Imre, which is building out -- as well as rebranding -- its social marketing practice.

Now known as 5Loom, the social practice will take what the company is calling a “centralized approach” to their social marketing initiatives.

Per the changes, existing and prospective clients “will benefit from the experience of being part of a more global network of socialized brands,” said Mark Eber, president and partner at Imre.

Clients include Target, Black & Decker, Pfizer and Travelers. Key sectors for Imre include healthcare, home & building, financial services, and sports industries.

Born as Imre’s social marketing practice in 2009, 5Loom now employs 19 social marketing experts. 

The practice offers services in strategic planning, launching social media programs and managing those campaigns, social CRM and other “specialty services,” and measurement and analysis.

Big and small, agencies are responding to brands' increased interest in social media.  

Just this week, WPP said it is looking to increase its spending on Facebook advertising from around $200 million in 2011 to around $400 million in 2012.

Ogilvy & Mather recently realigned its social assets into a single practice dubbed Social@Ogilvy, which aims to connect more than 550 dedicated social media experts around the world, as well as strengthen ties with another 4,000 digital experts.

On the small side of the agency spectrum, BlogFrog -- which earned a name for itself in 2009 by hatching a healthy network of female bloggers -- recently debuted a social activation platform, which helps brands from Lego to Random House engage “social influencers” among niche audiences.

Also of note, social marketing platform Wildfire, which helps brands market through Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn, now has 13,000 paying customers. Since the start of 2010, the startup has grown from seven to 300 employees, TechCrunch reports. Still a private company, TechCrunch estimates the company did between $35 million and $45 million in revenue in 2011.

As part of 5Loom’s global market platform, it will employ cultural and language experts from emerging markets like China, Russia and Brazil.

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