Scopen’s fifth edition of its Agency Scope study in Chile shows an increase in the number of advertisers remunerating their creative agencies through annual fees (91.2% in 2025 vs. 80.3% in 2023), reflecting the trend toward more continuous, long-term relationships.
Source: © 123rf
123rf Scopen’s fifth edition of its Agency Scope study in Chile shows longer-term relationships between creative agenciess and advertisers
For media agencies, the percentage of remuneration via annual fees decreases to 59.2% (down from 64.4% in 2023), while commission-based payments increase to 48.3% (up from 38.4% in 2023).
Additionally, 31.3% of advertisers interviewed (compared to 23.0% in 2023) have established a variable remuneration (annual bonus) with their creative agencies, representing 12.4% of the total annual remuneration.
This figure places Chile below the global average, where such variable payments account for 15.6%.
For media agencies, the annual bonus paid by advertisers has declined slightly from 32.9% in 2023 to 31.1% currently.
This represents 12.1% of the total annual remuneration and again falls below the global average of 13.1%.
Overall, variable remuneration is decreasing in nearly all markets covered by Agency Scope, especially with creative agencies.
Agencies tend to prefer negotiating a higher annual fee rather than relying on variable payments, which advertisers do not always honour even when objectives are met.
Fewer agencies participate in pitches
In Chile, the average number of agencies (creative and/or media) participating in pitches has decreased to four (down from five in 2023), with three agencies considered the ideal number.
Key factors considered in the selection process for creative agencies are Creativity, Strategic Planning, and the agency’s professional team, with the latter gaining significant importance.
On the other hand, factors such as the agency’s independence, awards won, and the agency’s international network are the least prioritised.
For media agency selection processes, Negotiation and Buying Capacity, Strategic Planning, and Digital Capability stand out, although Digital Capability has decreased in importance compared to 2023.
The relevance of Research Capacity and Tools has increased and follows closely behind. Awards, Social Media/Influencers, and Commitment to Sustainability are among the least important factors in this edition.
High expectations
Seventy-one percent (71%) of clients express satisfaction with the work carried out by their creative agencies.
Eleven percent (11%) report dissatisfaction, and 16% remain indifferent.
Compared to other international markets, Chilean advertisers demonstrate a higher level of demand, with the global average satisfaction rate standing at 79.6%.
Satisfaction has a significant impact on advertisers’ intentions to change agencies, with 20.4% of Chilean advertisers considering a switch, higher than the global average of 15.2%.
Regarding media agencies, satisfaction reaches 72%, with only 4.6% expressing dissatisfaction, resulting in a lower intention to change agencies.
Chilean advertisers believe that the creative agencies they work with contribute 31.5% to the growth of their businesses (compared to a global average of 30.5% and 35.6% in Chile in 2023).
For media agencies, this contribution to business growth is reported at 32.7% (down from 38% in 2023).
The ‘ideal’ agencies
When defining an ‘ideal’ creative agency, the most important qualities for marketing decision-makers at advertiser companies are Creativity/Innovative Ideas, Knowledge (of the market, client, and brand), Strategic Planning, and Timely Delivery/Responsiveness.
For the ‘ideal’ media agency, key attributes include Proactivity/Initiative (which has significantly increased in importance compared to two years ago), Data/Research/Tools/Measurement, Knowledge (of media, market, client, and brand), and Creativity/Innovative Ideas—which has also gained relevance since 2023.
In contrast, attributes such as Professional Team and Digital Capabilities have decreased in importance.
The study also analyses the market image of agencies and uses the results to compile various rankings:
- Spontaneous Awareness
Reflects the history, trajectory, and experiences that advertisers have had with agencies and is one of the most important indicators when evaluating agency image.
Among creative agencies, BBDO ranks first as the most spontaneously recalled agency, followed by McCann and DYU. In the media agency category, the top three remain unchanged from two years ago: Havas Media, OMD, and Initiative.
- Creativity
The agencies most frequently mentioned for their Creativity (combining mentions for original and effective creativity) are again BBDO, McCann, and DYU. While all three retain their 2023 rankings, the top two have significantly increased their mentions in this edition.
- Attraction
Attraction is defined by the inclination to include the agency in a shortlist of three, and in this edition, BBDO ranks first (second in 2023) among creative agencies, followed by McCann and RAYA, and among media agencies, Havas Media, OMD, and Initiative hold the top three positions.
- Exemplary agencies
As exemplary agencies, advertisers mention one or two agencies they consider closest to the ‘ideal,’ influenced by their satisfaction with agencies they currently work with or have worked with in the past.
Among creative agencies, the top three are BBDO, McCann, and Publicis, while among media agencies, Initiative, Havas Media, and OMD lead.
Overall rankings
In addition to these, three overall rankings are produced: perception among advertisers, client evaluation, and perception among competing agencies.
To create these, interviewed professionals rate the agencies they know based on a set of attributes related to the services provided.
Each attribute has a weighting that contributes to the Market Perception ranking.
In this edition, this is led by BBDO, McCann, and DYU among creative agencies, and Havas Media, OMD, and Initiative among media agencies.
Notably, Dentsu X and iProspect are the agencies that improved their positions the most compared to the previous edition, making them the best evolving agencies in the Top 10.
Regarding client evaluations of the agencies they work with, the highest scores among creative agencies are obtained by Wolf, Havas Creative, and BBDO, while among media agencies, Carat, UM, and PHD lead.
When professionals working within the agencies themselves give their opinions on competitors, the standout creative agencies are BBDO, Aldea, and MRM, and among media agencies, PHD, OMG, and Hearts & Science.
Scopen’s Agency Scope in Chile
Fieldwork for this edition was conducted between December 2024 and March 2025, with a total of 414 professionals interviewed.
Of these, 230 work for advertiser companies (representing 166 different companies), and 184 work at agencies—130 in creative agencies and 54 in media agencies.
This is the second time that agency professionals have been included in the study in Chile.
Conducted every two years across 11 key markets worldwide (Argentina, Brazil, Chile, China, Colombia, Spain, India, Mexico, Portugal, the United Kingdom, and South Africa), the study analyses advertising industry trends with the objective of understanding the processes, perceptions, and performance of the agencies that advertisers work with.
The results provide a comparative analysis with previous editions in Chile and offer insights benchmarked against findings from other markets.
While this is the fifth edition in Chile, the study has already been carried out 10 times in Brazil, is now in its eighth edition in Argentina and Mexico, and has reached its 24th edition in Spain.
About Agency Scope
Agency Scope is the only study of its kind in the sector. Its key value lies in offering participating agencies first-hand insights into their clients’ evolving needs, becoming a strategic tool for identifying growth opportunities, improving performance, and developing new services.
