Marketing & Advertising Acquisitions in 2024

Malvern, PA-based marketing-as-a-service provider 2X has acquired Intelligent Demand, a Denver-based B2B growth strategy and execution firm. The transaction (a PE-backed platform add-on) expands 2X's MaaS capabilities—adding GTM strategy, demand generation, RevOps and onshore U.S. delivery to its subscription-based marketing services.

Specificity (SPTY) completed an asset purchase of HomeQ, acquiring the company's technology stack to expand its home-services marketing capabilities. The deal brings HomeQ's audience-targeting and home-services technology into Specificity's adtech platform, and HomeQ investors — including largest investor Glenn Anderson — expressed support, with Anderson increasing his investment in Specificity.

The Independents, a global luxury communications group, has acquired Paris-founded PR firm Lucien Pagès Communication. The founder Lucien Pagès will continue to lead the agency and become a partner of The Independents as the group expands its luxury PR and events capabilities.

Zen Media has acquired Sevans PR, a Las Vegas-based technology-focused strategic communications firm. Founder Sarah Evans joins Zen Media as Partner and Head of PR as the combined agency expands Zen Media’s capabilities into B2C markets while strengthening its B2B marketing and PR offerings and expanding its geographic footprint.

LoopMe has acquired mobile advertising and monetization platform Chartboost from Zynga (a Take-Two Interactive company). Financial terms were not disclosed; the acquisition expands LoopMe's mobile app footprint, growing its SDK network and strengthening its AI-driven brand advertising and mediation capabilities for app publishers and advertisers.

Radius Global Market Research has acquired 7th Sense, a market research and insights firm headquartered in Bingham Farms, Michigan. The acquisition strengthens Radius's research and consulting capabilities—particularly 7th Sense's automotive expertise—and integrates qualitative, ethnographic, quantitative and blended-method capabilities; financial terms were not disclosed.

The Yadot Group has acquired Austin-based full-service advertising agency Hitch Media. The acquisition expands Yadot's integrated agency capabilities (creative, production, brand and performance media) and establishes a strategic anchor in the Austin market.

AEA Investors has acquired digital experience and design firm Huge from Interpublic Group (IPG) and will combine Huge with AEA portfolio company Hero Digital to form a larger independent experience transformation business. The strategic combination aims to expand capabilities, scale global reach, and deliver enhanced AI-driven and data-led digital experiences for enterprise clients.

Supreme Group, a Trinity Hunt-backed healthcare and life sciences marketing platform, has acquired Amendola Communications, a Scottsdale-based healthcare, health tech and life sciences PR and marketing agency. Amendola will continue to operate under its brand with founder Jodi Amendola remaining as president; the acquisition is the fifth add-on to the Supreme Group platform and aims to expand the platform's healthcare marketing and digital capabilities.

Bensussen Deutsch & Associates (BDA), a Woodinville-based global merchandise agency, has acquired Piscataway, New Jersey–based promotional-products and software company SwagUp. The deal adds SwagUp's SaaS-powered ordering and fulfillment platform to BDA's offerings, strengthening BDA's technology-enabled branded merchandise capabilities and expanding its enterprise service suite.

Colangelo & Partners has acquired a majority stake in WineGlass Marketing, a Napa-based digital marketing agency focused on the wine and spirits industry. WineGlass will continue to operate under founder Susan DeMatei while drawing on Colangelo & Partners' PR, branding and trade resources to expand digital capabilities and gain a physical presence in Napa.

Axios HQ, an internal communications software company, has acquired Mixing Board, a community and events network for senior communications, brand, and marketing leaders. The deal closed on November 27, 2024; Mixing Board's investors (including Bloomberg Beta, Jim Hock and Rebecca Reeve Henderson) reinvested their proceeds into Axios HQ, and founder Sean Garrett will join Axios HQ as Chief Communications Officer while continuing as President of Mixing Board.

NeoReach acquired Influencers.com and announced a strategic partnership with Blueberry AI to build a unified, AI-enabled suite of creator tools aimed at improving content management and monetization for creators. The move consolidates the Influencers.com domain into NeoReach’s platform to expand capabilities and drive creator monetization under a single brand.

Informa PLC has combined its Informa Tech digital businesses with TechTarget to create Informa TechTarget. Informa contributed $350 million in cash and its digital businesses for an approximate 57% equity stake while existing TechTarget shareholders received cash and retain about 43% of the new company; the combined company began trading on Nasdaq under the ticker TTGT.

Market Performance Group (MPG) has acquired E.A. Langenfeld Associates (EAL) to expand MPG's omnichannel commerce capabilities into the Hardware & Home Improvement channel. EAL's leadership team — including CEO Steven B. Henley, who will join MPG as President, E.A. Langenfeld — and its field sales, merchandising and retail execution capabilities will support MPG's brand and retailer offerings across major home-improvement and industrial retailers.

Adwanted Group has acquired MediaSpecs, a Belgium-based advertising and media database used by media and ad agencies across Belgium, Luxembourg and France. The acquisition expands Adwanted's data offering and European media database capabilities alongside its existing assets such as SRDS, Tarif Media and BRAD.

Avoq has acquired SRA Communications, a Pennsylvania-based public affairs and advisory firm founded by Steve Aaron; Aaron will join Avoq as a Partner. The deal expands Avoq’s geographic footprint and service offerings in Pennsylvania and brings SRA’s experience in public health, banking and energy to Avoq’s platform, which is backed by Coral Tree Partners.

Rise New York & Partners, an independent creative agency, has acquired experiential studio Spaces&Creatures and rebranded it as Artlab by Rise. The deal expands Rise's creative-technology and experiential capabilities and will move the new entity's operations to New York City, with global creative leadership from Edson Pavoni and Bella Nardini.

Mercury Public Affairs announced that Chicago-based Serafin & Associates is merging into Mercury's Illinois business, expanding Mercury's public affairs and strategic communications capabilities in the Midwest and nationally. Thom Serafin will join Mercury as co-Chair for Illinois, and Mercury-Illinois will be led by partner and former Congresswoman Cheri Bustos; Mercury is part of the Omnicom Public Relations Group.

German staffing software provider zvoove has acquired Netherlands-based recruitment marketing firm Online Results, integrating Online Results' Falcon SaaS platform into zvoove's ecosystem. The deal strengthens zvoove's job-marketing capabilities for temporary staffing agencies by combining managed campaign services and a self-service SaaS offering to boost candidate inflow and campaign optimization.

Centerfield has acquired Brainjolt, a social commerce platform and digital publisher that curates products and drives e-commerce purchases via Meta, Snap and TikTok. The acquisition adds social commerce capabilities to Centerfield’s Dugout customer-acquisition platform and represents the fifth add-on for Centerfield since its acquisition by Platinum Equity.

Best Practice Media has acquired We Wild Women, a PR agency, coaching, and training company founded by Renée Warren. The acquisition expands Best Practice Media's service offering to include PR and coaching/training capabilities and strengthens its North American footprint.

Shamrock Capital, a Los Angeles-based investment firm, has acquired DE-YAN, a New York–headquartered experiential consultancy specializing in design, production and technology-driven live experiences. Monroe Capital arranged a senior credit facility to support the acquisition; Evros Group and Willkie Farr & Gallagher served as M&A and legal advisors, respectively.

Los Angeles-based PromoShop has acquired Del Mar, California-headquartered JR Resources, with all JR employees joining PromoShop and JR rebranding as "JR Resources, a PromoShop Company." Financial terms were not disclosed; the deal is intended to expand PromoShop’s agency-style branded merchandise capabilities and client portfolio.

MSQ has acquired United Digital Group (UDG), a €40m-revenue, 350-strong German digital customer experience agency, to build a pan‑European digital customer experience and tech powerhouse. The deal, which adds UDG's design, engineering and technical delivery capabilities to MSQ's global network, is part of MSQ's PE-backed growth strategy supported by One Equity Partners and LDC; UDG was previously part of PIA Group (owned by Equistone).

billups has acquired UK-based out-of-home specialist Mediabridge Global to double its UK operation and strengthen its presence across EMEA. Mediabridge, launched in 2020, brings the BRIDGE tech platform, a roster of 30 agency partners and rapid billings growth; the deal expands billups' UK team to more than 40 employees.

Independent global media advisor MediaSense has acquired creative and media advisory specialist R3 in an add-on deal that expands MediaSense’s marketing operations and creative advisory capabilities and accelerates its footprint in North America and Asia. The acquisition follows Apiary Capital’s earlier stake in MediaSense and will see R3’s co-founders join MediaSense’s executive leadership while both brands continue to operate under their existing names.

Arketi Group, an Atlanta-based digital marketing and public relations agency serving B2B technology companies, has secured a majority private equity investment from Go Capital and Station Partners. The investment positions Arketi as the platform leader for a new network of B2B tech marketing and communications firms to accelerate growth, expand services and enter new verticals; TobinLeff served as M&A advisor on the transaction.

Harvest Group, a national integrated commerce agency based in Rogers, Arkansas, has acquired Bold Strategies, Inc., an eCommerce, shopper marketing and creative services firm. The deal expands Harvest Group’s media, shopper marketing and DTC capabilities (including BOLD Labs), increases its managed media spend by ~20%, and brings the combined headcount to about 350 employees.

Samba TV, a TV measurement and ad-tech company, has acquired audience data and contextual targeting specialist Semasio. The deal will combine Samba TV’s video data and AI capabilities with Semasio’s semantic analysis platform to expand contextual targeting across digital, mobile and CTV and accelerate AI-driven product development.

ECI Partners has taken a majority stake in Croud, the UK-headquartered global digital marketing agency, in a deal that marks LDC's exit after a five-year partnership. The investment will support Croud's continued organic growth and further acquisitions, enabling expansion of its media, data and technology capabilities while the business maintains operational independence.

Minds + Assembly, a PE-backed healthcare communications and commercialization agency, has acquired Awaken Interactive, a healthcare-focused digital marketing firm specializing in digital media, analytics, technical development and marketing automation. The deal is an add‑on to Minds + Assembly’s platform (backed by Amulet Capital Partners) to expand its analytics and digital capabilities for healthcare clients.

O2 Commerce and ZaneRay have merged to combine their e‑commerce, design, and technical capabilities under a single, unified brand (Datmos). The merger brings together O2 Commerce's data-driven commerce platform expertise with ZaneRay's award-winning design and UX capabilities to strengthen their North American market position and expand offerings for B2B and B2C clients.

Datawrkz, a subsidiary of Nazara Technologies, has acquired a majority stake in UK growth marketing agency Space & Time for approximately USD 6.2 million in cash and stock. The deal is intended to accelerate Datawrkz’s expansion across Europe and North America by combining Space & Time’s growth marketing and media expertise with Datawrkz’s programmatic advertising technology.

Portland-based Mad Fish Digital has acquired Grady Britton, a long-running, values-driven creative and branding agency. The deal unites Mad Fish’s applied digital expertise (SEO, SEM, analytics) with Grady Britton’s brand and creative capabilities; TobinLeff acted as M&A advisor to Grady Britton.

Impact XM, a global experiential marketing agency based in New Jersey, has acquired Matrex Exhibits, an award-winning exhibit, event and environmental design firm based in the greater Chicago area. The acquisition adds Matrex's fabrication and experiential execution capabilities to Impact XM's offering and strengthens the combined firm's position—particularly in the pharmaceutical and trade-show segments—while supporting Impact XM's continued geographic and capability expansion.

O2 Investment Partners, through Orchestra, has made an investment in and partnered with Small Girls PR to expand Orchestra's consumer, experiential and influencer marketing capabilities. Small Girls PR, co-founded by Mallory Blair and Bianca Caampued, operates in New York and Los Angeles with about 75 employees; financial terms were not disclosed.

Sound Growth Partners (SGP), with co-investors Everside Capital Partners and Caumsett Capital, acquired LPi Digital, LLC on October 25, 2024. LPi, headquartered in the Milwaukee area, is a leading provider of advertising-supported print and digital bulletins and newsletters for faith-based, community, and membership organizations across the U.S.; SGP said it will support LPi’s technology investments to expand its impact.

OneMagnify, a Detroit-based data science-driven marketing solutions provider backed by Crestview Partners, has acquired Emodo, an AI-powered, CTV-first programmatic advertising marketplace. The deal brings Emodo's dynamic creative, advanced audience targeting, and AI-driven CTV capabilities into OneMagnify's suite while allowing Emodo to operate as a separate company.

OneMagnify, a Crestview Partners‑backed digital experience and marketing platform, has acquired Guidance to expand its eCommerce and digital experience capabilities. Guidance is a commerce services provider that builds customized eCommerce websites, mobile experiences and complex system integrations for B2C and B2B brands; financial terms were not disclosed.

Cincinnati-based creative strategy and branding agency Hyperquake has acquired Salt Lake City–area digital marketplace engineering firm MarCore Group and merged its team into Hyperquake’s Growth Marketing pillar. MarCore’s founder Ari Monkarsh joins Hyperquake as Executive Director of Growth Marketing as the firms integrate digital engineering, performance marketing and affiliate capabilities to broaden Hyperquake’s service offering.

eHouse, a Charleston-based multi-service commerce agency, has acquired Pointer Creative, a Shopify Plus creative and design agency based in Ottawa, Canada. The acquisition strengthens eHouse's UX/UI, creative design and Shopify capabilities to deliver more unified commerce services to mid-market and enterprise clients.

Insignia Capital Group has acquired two audio and creator-based advertising agencies, Oxford Road and Veritone One, combining them to form a leading global podcast and creator-based media entity. Veritone One (the media agency business of Veritone, Inc.) was sold for up to $104 million (including up to $18 million in earn-out), while terms for Oxford Road were not disclosed; both agencies will operate independently near-term with plans to integrate to deliver scale, data capabilities, and creator-led advertising services.

MINDS + ASSEMBLY has acquired HashtagHealth, a specialist healthcare social media agency, which will operate as a fully integrated division led by co-founders Brittany Latson and Kristin Hassan. The acquisition expands MINDS + ASSEMBLY's social media capabilities and deepens its healthcare commercialization platform, which is backed by private equity partner Amulet Capital Partners.

Gravity Global, backed by Elysian Capital, has acquired Denver-based social media agency VOCO to strengthen its organic and paid social media, content and creative capabilities. The acquisition will integrate VOCO's team into Gravity Global's global digital experience capability and support the group's full-funnel brand-to-demand services.

Onfolio Holdings Inc. acquired a 70% majority interest in Eastern Standard, a Philadelphia-based digital marketing and branding agency, with two Onfolio special purpose vehicles purchasing an additional 20% stake. The deal values the 90% purchase consideration at $2,160,000 (70% via $410,000 in Series A Preferred Shares plus $1,250,000 in secured promissory notes; the SPVs paid $500,000 for 20%) and positions Eastern Standard as part of Onfolio's agency platform for future organic and inorganic growth.

Zeta Global has completed its acquisition of LiveIntent, a people-based marketing platform, adding LiveIntent’s assets, publisher network and channel capabilities to the Zeta Marketing Platform and Zeta Data Cloud. The deal is intended to strengthen Zeta’s AI-powered marketing offering, expand direct-channel revenue, and bolster margins through integration of LiveIntent’s identity graph and publisher relationships.

Truelink Capital has acquired GES, the global exhibition and event business, from Viad Corp in a transaction that closed Dec. 31, 2024. The divestiture separates GES from Viad so Viad can relaunch as Pursuit, while Truelink intends to operate GES as a standalone platform to invest in capabilities, technology and international expansion.

Hover Group completed the acquisition of Black Rock Marketing Group (now operating as BRMG), bringing the marketing firm into Hover’s portfolio and transitioning it to a brokerage-style platform. Over the past year, BRMG has implemented shared infrastructure, profit-sharing and operating partner collaboration to support independent marketers while maintaining their client ownership.

Seattle-based creative experience agency DCG ONE has acquired Cirangle Design, a boutique direct marketing agency based in New Jersey. The deal expands DCG ONE's direct marketing and direct-mail design capabilities to support its enterprise client base.