It's time for marketers to switch from savings to value and outcomes, says AANA chief

Marketers need to stop thinking about cost savings and start better articulating the value and outcome they’re delivering if they have a hope of being the strategic drivers of growth they aspire to be.

That’s the view of AANA CEO, John Broome, who spoke at this week’s AANA event, ‘The Media Challenge: One Year on’, about the growing quest to improve and remove waste from the media supply chain.

One of the ways marketers can do this is by being more accountable for contracts and taking back control from procurement, Broome said.

“No longer is it about driving cost savings, you have to think about creating value,” he said. “When you look at what you’re doing from that point of view, you can actually have more meaningful conversations around your partnerships.”

It’s also about putting the emphasis on outcome-based marketing, Broome said. “Focusing on what can drive business growth and using that as a currency in the leadership room, is what needs to be focus on. The measurement and things that lead up to that are no longer as relevant as that output-based approach,” he said. 

“And that’s how we combat media waste and just looking for cost efficiency instead of growth.”

To get there, marketers must expect to pay more for better quality, Broome said. “If we’re going to drive up standards, then expect it will cost more. But then go to your outputs, outcomes and what the ROI is you’re getting,” he said.  

Broome also advised brands to deliberately favour providers and publishers who offer and adhere to better standards.

At the same time, marketers need to better understand ad technology and technology stacks. “We have to invest time and energy in this space,” Broome continued. “Typically, marketers spend 10-15 per cent at best on their media budget. Yet in their P&L, after servicing costs, it’s the biggest line item. We have a responsibility to ensure we understand what we’re spending money on.”

In addition, Broome stressed the need to stop drawing a line between digital and other marketing. “All marketing is digital – that’s a huge enabler in everything,” he said.  

The AANA event this week delved into four key trends impacting the way media is being purchased and managed across industry: Waste, precision, control and growth. The themes were derived out of the recent US ANA conference in Orlando.

Broome, who attended a similar event in the UK last month, agreed these themes were being echoed in Europe, with a particular emphasis on accountability and client-side marketers taking back control. But often, the conversation is still in the weeds of the digital supply chain and making sure there’s transparency, responsibility and accountability across partners, he said.

Across the board, Broome outlined four key priorities: Digital accountability, viewability, meaningful agency/client relationships, and data privacy. The last is of particular importance to the UK and Europe with the forthcoming arrival of the GDPR laws.

“The big issue that’s on the horizon is the erosion of public trust,” he said. “If you don’t get that right, the calls for regulation will only increase. The GDPR is a weapon that can do that.”

The way big brands globally are looking to address the issue of transparency and data ownership is by bringing more capability and agency functions in-house. This trend can clearly be seen across larger players such as Procter & Gamble and Unilever.

But Broome recognised the answer won’t be the same for mid-sized organisations and many in Australia. Arguably, building stronger agency partnerships will be key to success.

“There are only 20-30 advertisers out of the pool of 3000 locally who can do what Procter & Gamble is doing,” he pointed out. “We have to think about all of those 3000 national advertisers and recognise that as well.”

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