• by Michael Shields , July 6, 2004

Horizon Media is broadening its horizons, expanding beyond its core media planning and buying services to include direct marketing services. The agency--which has been developing the capability internally for several years as a result of increasing client demand--Tuesday announced a new division dedicated to direct response media planning.

The new unit, the aptly named Direct Response Planning Group, will be headed by Gene Turner, who was promoted to associate director of direct response planning from an account executive at the agency. The move is an interesting progression for one of the last big independent media buying services, given that many of its peers are moving in more of an integrated communications planning direction that lumps direct response in with traditional media, sales promotion, PR, and other marketing services disciplines.

"We call ourselves a 'marketing-driven media services company,' said Carl Kotheimer, executive vice president and general manager of Horizon. "It's on our Web site, our business cards. So this has been building for a while. We are all about results."

While Horizon has implicitly been stepping up such services, Kotheimer said the new group reflects increasing demand from clients for direct response tools, as well as an industry-wide push for more ROI-based media evaluation.

"It's all about return on advertising investment. We are going to be talking to you about real, concrete metrics of success," noted Kotheimer.

Turner indicated that his team hoped to sell its versatility. "We want to be one-stop shopping for direct marketers," he said.

That includes nearly all forms of direct-response-friendly media, with the exception of direct mail. That discipline is soon to come, according to Kotheimer.

While the media buying world has experienced a massive wave of consolidation and bundling of services, Horizon appears to be taking a stand in favor of specialization with yesterday's move.

"There are such things as specialists, and they do things better than generalists," Kotheimer said. "There are people that do some parts of the communications channels really, really well. There is something to be said for that."

Kotheimer hinted at some doubts about cross-communication platforms.

"The integrated approach--show me an example of where that works and I'll learn from that," he said.

When it comes to direct media planning, Horizon may not be alone in its decision to separate operations from traditional planning.

"I haven't seen as much bundling," said Barry Kessel, president of Wunderman, New York. Given the nuances of buying and negotiating direct media, the speed at which the business tends to operate, and the sophisticated data collecting involved, "it doesn't bundle as well," he said.

With the newly dedicated division, Horizon expects to be considered for more business than in the past.

"Some people don't think of our dual capabilities," Kotheimer said. "People think of our general capabilities first." That is something he believes will soon change. "We will be attractive to a whole new group of clients."