WHAT'S AHEAD FOR 2018 MEDIA PITCHES?: #MediaSnack Ep. 94

Never miss your #MediaSnack - subscribe for updates every FridayOn this week’s #MediaSnack we reflect on what's driving media pitches in 2017 and what to expect to be figuring in pitch briefs in 2018.*****Thank you to COMvergence for sharing some of their data on the global pitch activity this year. You can find out more about them and their research into the global media industry here:http://comvergence.net/*****At this time of year, as we enter Q4 it's a good time to reflect on the global media pitch market; the major ones are concluding and marketers begin to refine their thinking for reviewing agency contracts for the year ahead. Tom and David consider the trend of pitches since 2015 which you will remember became known as 'MediaPalooza' because of the unusual volume of media pitches triggered, especially in the USA. The subsequent years have been relatively quieter, driven by marketers reflecting on powerful insights provided by 2016's ANA media transparency report and P&G's Marc Pritchard making a rallying cry to the industry to clean up its act in January 2017. Tom and David are anticipating all this marketer reflection to result in 2018 being another busy year. Some pitches will occur due to natural 3 years cycles following the 2015 gold rush, but other major advertisers will be considering 2018 as the year in which they put their new knowledge and oversight of their media investments to the test. Expect that 2018 pitches focus less on cost savings and more on defining a long-term constructive relationship with a media agency as a business partner, built on principles of trust and transparency and shared values and objectives. With reference to data from a great study called 'Global Media Governance & Guardianship' by the WFA published in August 2017 - #MediaSnack predicts that 5 key themes will become part of 2018 media pitches:1. Liability for fraudulent inventory2. Brand safety3. Control of programmatic4. Data ownership5. Fair agency compensationSome #MediaSnack tips for those advertisers preparing 2018 media pitches: Prepare, think long-term, set a clear vision, create a strong contract, drive better accountabilityOn this week's Good Week Bad Week, we congratulate independent media agencies in the UK, who last week made up 5 of the top 10 most successful agencies in new business in 2017 so far. Its a Bad Week for the ID Comms Library Shelves, who have featured in all 94 episodes so far but will be replaced next week as we move into our new, bigger office in London. Can a shelf itself be left on the shelf....?Further reading:WFA Report: https://www.wfanet.org/news-centre/global-marketers-making-radical-changes-to-media-management/Good Week: Bad Week:RIP the ID Comms Library Shelves...QOTW: What will dominate 2018 media pitch briefs? Talent, Fraud or Pricing?