Momentum Worldwide

Last updated
Momentum Worldwide
Company type Subsidiary
Industry Experiential marketing
FoundedJanuary 1987;38 years ago (1987-01) [1]
Headquarters300 Vesey Street,
New York City 10282 [2]
Area served
Worldwide
Key people
Donnalyn Smith (Global CEO) [3]
Parent Interpublic Group
Website www.momentumww.com

Momentum Worldwide is a global experiential marketing firm, headquartered in New York, formed in 1987. [1] The company is part of agency network Interpublic Group (IPG). [4]

Contents

History

Momentum Experiential Marketing Group was formed in 1987. [1] In 1996, Momentum, by then known as Momentum IMC and part of parent IPG's McCann-Erickson ad agency, was combined with the newly purchased Ad:vent, another event marketing company. [5] In 1997, IPG reorganized McCann Erickson, at the time the second largest agency in the world, into McCann-Erickson World Group, which included Momentum along with several other agencies. [4] Momentum was renamed Momentum Experiential Marketing Group. [4] In 1999, IPG acquired sales promotion agency Louis London and incorporated it into Momentum. [6]

By 2000, Momentum had 1,650 employees and was operating in 58 offices around the world. In August 2000, Momentum announced it had purchased St. Louis-based Waylon Co., and ImageWerks, a Southern California youth-oriented marketing agency. [7]

In 2007, the agency was credited for creating the term "phygital" to reference how online and "brick and mortar" physical stores should work together. [8] In 2012, Momentum acquired shopper marketing company ChaseDesign, and its subsidiary 10Red Design. [9]

In November 2022, Momentum's North America President Donnalyn Smith was named global CEO, replacing Momentum Chairman and CEO Chris Weil. [3] [10] In March 2024 and again in March 2025, the company was recognized as business publication Campaign Magazine's US experiential agency of the year. [11] [12]

In October 2025, advertising industry publication Adweek named Momentum's experiential marketing team as one of the winners of its inaugural Team Visionary Awards. [13]

Business

Momentum is a global experiential agency that creates brand experiences for customers. [12] The company uses modern marketing techniques including artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) to deliver and measure experiences, referred to in the marketing industry as activations. [13] [14] Some of the agency's notable clients include or have included AT&T, [15] General Motors, [15] Walmart, [14] Coca-Cola, [14] Anheuser Busch, [16] Sprite, [17] [12] and GEICO. [12]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Serrano, Lizbeth (January 2, 2025). "Agencias a Observar 2025: Momentum" [Agencies to watch 2025: Momentum] (in Spanish). Mexico City: InformaBTL.
  2. "Contact". New York: Momentum Worldwide. September 22, 2025. Retrieved October 29, 2025.
  3. 1 2 Bonilla, Brian (November 14, 2022). "Momentum Worldwide promotes Donnalyn Smith to global CEO role". Ad Age . New York. Archived from the original on March 6, 2023.
  4. 1 2 3 Elliott, Stuart (September 22, 1997). "The media business: advertising; A sweeping reorganization at McCann-Erickson seeks to highlight marketing services". New York Times . New York. Archived from the original on October 29, 2025. Retrieved October 29, 2025 via www.nytimes.com.
  5. Goll Beatty, Sally (June 7, 1996). "McCann-Erickson Buys Ad:vent, Hot Player in Event Marketing - WSJ". The Wall Street Journal . New York. Archived from the original on October 31, 2020 via www.wsj.com.
  6. "Mass times velocity: With McCann-Erickson's help, Momentum lives up to its name". Chief Marketer. Norwark. June 1, 2000. Archived from the original on October 29, 2025. Retrieved October 29, 2025 via chiefmarketer.com.
  7. Kranhold, Kathryn (August 7, 2000). "Interpublic Unit Builds Momentum Through Purchases of Two Firms - WSJ". The Wall Street Journal . New York. Archived from the original on June 17, 2024 via www.wsj.com.
  8. Holman, Jordyn (April 19, 2024). "Retailers Get 'Phygital'". New York Times . New York. Retrieved October 29, 2025 via NYTimes.com.
  9. McClellan, Steve (August 8, 2012). "IPG's Momentum Acquires ChaseDesign, Ups Shopper Marketing Reach". MediaPost. Wilton CT. Archived from the original on December 23, 2024. Retrieved October 29, 2025 via www.mediapost.com.
  10. Zanger, Doug (June 2, 2016). "Momentum Worldwide creates new experience role, appoints director". The Drum. London. Archived from the original on October 29, 2025. Retrieved October 29, 2025 via thedrum.com.
  11. "Experiential Agency 2024: Momentum Worldwide". Campaign US . New York: Haymarket Media Group. March 28, 2024. Archived from the original on November 6, 2025. Retrieved November 6, 2025.
  12. 1 2 3 4 "Campaign US Agency of the Year Awards 2025: Experiential Agency". Campaign US . New York: Haymarket Media Group. March 27, 2025. Archived from the original on October 29, 2025. Retrieved October 29, 2025.
  13. 1 2 Hardin, Brandon (October 27, 2025). "ADWEEK's Team Visionary Awards Recognize Collective Excellence". Adweek . New York. Archived from the original on October 8, 2025. Retrieved November 6, 2025 via adweek.com.
  14. 1 2 3 Adams, Peter (October 9, 2023). "Why Momentum is betting machine learning can upgrade experiential". Marketing Dive. Newton MA. Archived from the original on September 6, 2025. Retrieved October 29, 2023 via marketingdive.com.
  15. 1 2 Bradsher, Keith (June 10, 1996). "THE MEDIA BUSINESS: ADVERTISING -- ADDENDA;McCann-Erickson Acquires Ad:vent". NY Times. New York. Archived from the original on May 26, 2015. Retrieved November 6, 2025 via nytimes.com.
  16. Lefton, Terry (August 20, 2025). "Michelob Ultra World Cup experiential to be handled by IPG's Momentum agency". Sports Business Journal. New York. Archived from the original on February 19, 2025. Retrieved October 29, 2025 via sportsbusinessjournal.com.
  17. Nelson, Samantha (October 10, 2022). "Sprite Zero Sugar's Latest Campaign Opens a Portal to Wakanda". New York: ADWEEK. Archived from the original on November 4, 2022. Retrieved October 29, 2025 via adweek.com.