Where is Wal-Mart's $580 million ad account going?

With the recent dismissal of advertising chief Julie Roehm and the firing of ad agency DraftFCB, the Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE:WMT) ad account -- some $580 million -- now appears to be up for grabs. Who is salivating in their seats to grab a piece of that action? The firms which are chomping at the bit need to temper their enthusiasm given the demands that a company like Wal-Mart will most likely have. That is, no "flash and grab" kinda stuff, but more "core values of shopping" type of stuff (that actually works). Roehm obviously didn't have it, and the door she was shown.

I still believe that Wal-Mart struggles from an image and branding problem -- that is, if it wants to dig itself out of the "low price" hole and brand itself more than that. With Wal-Mart about to run another ad agency review in order to pick a new ad firm, finalists from the last round of the competition will be notified this week about who is eligible to pitch in the new contest and how Wal-Mart will run the new review. Of course, DraftFCB will not be in the running for the review, which Wal-Mart wants to conclude by Feb.1 of next year.

With Roehm recently saying that a marketing review process "can be uncomfortable for a conservative company," it makes me wonder what kind of advertising nonsense these ad firms pitch to clients. With so many eyeballs to try and reach and with the "distraction culture" of the Internet/iPod/Xbox/Lifetime Channel/what-have-you, ad firms are up against the wall to try and make an impression on customers who are constantly bombarded with marketing in every facet of life.

It's safe to say that Wal-Mart's culture is "conservative" because the company is in every way. Nothing wrong with that at all -- different cultures have different philosophies that are generally ingrained by their founder (Sam Walton in this case). A recent Wal-Mart exec hinted that Wal-Mart's advertising will focus on "price leadership on the hottest gifts," with current ads including a frugal dad who is happy that his family buys gifts at Wal-Mart.