• by Steve McClellan  @mp_mcclellan, March 5, 2013

Detroit-based Doner -- part of MDC Partners -- has been selected as agency of record for auto resale giant Manheim after a review, the client has confirmed.

The scope of work includes creative, media planning and buying and strategic planning. The incumbents on the account were Toronto-based Nurun and Jacksonville, FL-based Dalton Agency. Other contenders in the review were not immediately identified.

Lynn Morgan, vice president, marketing at Manheim, cited the agency’s knowledge of the auto resale business and its “extensive experience” in marketing to automotive dealers as factors in the decision. Other auto-related businesses on Doner’s client roster include Fiat, Ram trucks and Jeep, as well as AutoZone and AutoTrader.com.

Morgan also stated that Doner’s “creativity and highly integrated model” helped tilt the decision in Doner’s favor.

Manheim conducts both online and offline auctions of used cars. Worldwide, the company handles nearly 8 million used vehicles annually, facilitating transactions worth more than $50 billion. The company, based in Atlanta, is a subsidiary of media company Cox Enterprises. Its consulting division publishes the annual Used Car Market Report, and offers services such as custom analytics, business optimization and macroeconomic analysis.

According to Kantar, the client spent about $500,000 on ads in the U.S. in 2011.

David DeMuth, co-CEO, president of Doner, stated that the agency would work with the new client “to build preference of their brand and increase traffic to their auctions.”

The account will be handled out of Doner’s flagship Detroit office, and Lisa Nardone, executive vice president and brand leader, will head the account.