Merkle Appoints Michael Butler as Head of Agency Sales for Media

Merkle, dentsu’s leading technology-enabled, data-driven customer experience management (CXM) company, today announces the appointment of Michael Butler as head of agency sales for Merkle’s Media practice area.

Michael’s appointment follows a period of significant growth for Merkle’s market leading media business, which spans PPC, paid social, programmatic, digital consultancy and customer strategy.

Merkle’s media practice sits in the intersection of dentsu’s media and CXM services. In his new role, Michael will be instrumental in leading the media sales team and driving significant business growth for new and existing Merkle clients across both media and CXM. This will enable clients to seamlessly access both services and deliver a total customer experience across every interaction a customer has with a brand.

Michael brings a wealth of experience to Merkle after more than 11 years at Essence. Most recently as head of business development EMEA, he achieved huge success in diversifying Essence’s client roster, playing an instrumental role in the addition of brands such as Sainsburys, Argos, ITV, L’Oréal and most recently Mars. This saw the company grow from ninth to fourth in Campaign’s top 50 media agencies in 2021.

Merkle helps clients navigate the complex data and technology decisions required to deliver against continually changing customer expectations. Through its Analytics, Data & Martech, Media and Strategy & Transformation practice areas, Merkle helps their clients become adaptive organisations that constantly evolve to meet ever-changing consumer expectations.

“Michael’s impressive track record of winning and retaining some of the largest UK and international brands, makes him the perfect choice to lead our media sales team in the next phase of our growth evolution” said Toby Benjamin, managing director of Media at Merkle.

He added, “As we continue to strengthen the collaboration between media and CXM at dentsu, Michael’s extensive experience in driving new business growth and nurturing existing client relationships, is critical in today’s fiercely competitive environment. Brands are now continuously having to evolve to keep up with customer’s ever-changing expectations, and at Merkle we are uniquely positioned to help our clients deliver contextually relevant, consistent, and seamless experiences for their customers.”

Michael Butler, head of agency sales, Merkle Media said, “I’m incredibly excited to be joining a company like Merkle, which is at the forefront of customer experience transformation. After such a standout few years for the business, I look forward to working with some of the most talented sales professionals in the media and customer experience landscape, as we continue to drive Merkle’s Media practice area to great new heights.”