On this week’s #MediaSnack, the first of 2017, Tom and David get excited about CHANGE, which they reveal is #MediaSnack Media Word of 2017 (in 2016 it was CONTROL) - as they foresee many advertisers implementing significant change this year in how they manage their media investments and work with media agencies. Tom and David detail 3 areas where they predict the biggest changes in 2017:The Advertiser - we expect a significant change in the internal narrative around media, from a cost to be managed downwards into an investment in growth. Advertisers will continue to take more control of media decisions, define a clear vision and ambition for media investment, set proper KPIs for media performance which focus investment against driving business outcomes. This change will be huge, with many advertisers who may have neglected their media budgets for years taking it seriously again and redefining media as a powerful lever for growth and a critical part of marketing success, so important to get right. The last piece of the jigsaw will be change in the relationship between marketing and procurement, we expect a change of internal narrative around media to drive far closer alignment between marketing and procurement stakeholders, which will have a very positive impact on media being seen as an investment in growth and the media agency being seen more as a strategic partner in success rather than a commodity supplier. The Agency - media agencies will undergo more change in 2017 than they’ve ever faced, driven largely by the change in brief and scope issue by marketers. The most significant change to media agencies will be driven by the big media pitches of 2017, as these tend to create the huge tectonic pressures needed to remould the media agency networks. The more strategic pitch briefs (rather than the clumsy, race-to-the-bottom eAuctions) will define a new blueprint for the media agency model, asking them to engineer their resources more specifically around marketers new requirements. We expect media agencies in 2017 to be more open to defining partner relationships with advertisers, aligning to the same KPIs, working to performance-based payment models and offering greater financial transparency. This in turn might have a huge impact on the shape of media agencies, perhaps shifting away from the being ‘buying giants’ leveraging scale to secure cheap pricing, to be more like objective, strategic consultants. But to do this legitimately media agencies are going to have to be very transparency about their business model, as its impossible to be wholly objective and neutral if your income is derived largely from the buying of certain media. Accountability - we anticipate big changes in how media investment is held accountable. This year, 2017 could be the year when metrics for media become more rationalised, with more standardisation and consistency. Accountability is the new thread that will link the changes in advertisers with the changes in media agencies, as both parties become more accountable to the CEO, CMO, CPO to account for how media investment is driving a business outcome. Over time we expect that this will result in the media market moving from one focused on cost, price, discount and auditing to one of value, growth and performance. Change starts from within, as Mahatma Gandhi said “You must BE the change you want to see in the world” which will be a good mantra for advertisers who became frustrated with media in 2016, not least over transparency concerns. The change starts with the advertiser
