MarketingVOX: Integrating the typical media buy of TV and radio and a new media buy that offers creative and innovative solutions as well as ROI is proving challenging for ad agencies - with the big five holding companies doing a really poor job, according to the 4th Annual PRWeek/MS&L Marketing Management Survey conducted by Millward Brown. Only 7.5 percent of marketers said holding companies were more effective at offering integrated strategies than independent firms.

The survey polled 266 senior marketers, of which 19.2 percent are CMOs, 32.7 percent are marketing VPs and 21.8 percent are directors or associate directors of marketing.

When asked which large ad holding companies did a good job of offering integrated marketing strategies, marketers' top choice was Omnicom, with a mere 17.3 percent of respondents selecting it. WPP was second with 11.7 percent, followed by Interpublic Group at 10.9 percent, Publicis Groupe at 7.9 percent and Havas at 3.8 percent. The The top answer - chosen by 68.8 of marketers - was "none of them."

Marketers themselves are using very new media in surprisingly large proportions: 19.9 percent are podcasting, up from zero percent two years ago; 25 percent are using viral web campaigns; and 21.4 percent are creating blogs.

When asked what external partner they would most likely seek to plan integrated communications, 27.8 percent of marketers said a consulting company, and 28.6 percent said a PR agency; ad agencies came in third with 20.7 percent.

A significant change over last year's agency mix is that the number of marketers using internet/new-media agencies has nearly doubled, from 9.8 percent to 19.2 percent, and half have seen their new media budgets increase.

Marketers also ranked the top 20 companies in their effectiveness at integrating their marketing strategies on a scale of 1 to 5. Only two companies scored above a 4: McDonald's and Walt Disney, with a 4.1; Toyota scored a 4.0.

Respondents were asked to pick which disciplines were most suited for various tasks, and advertising was not the first choice for any. PR was the discipline of choice for product launches; generating word of mouth; building corporate reputation; managing a crisis; and changing perceptions. Direct marketing was the preferred tool for ongoing product promotion; targeting niche audiences; and increasing sales.