Media capability gaps pose challenge for multinationals

Large multinationals are still facing big challenges on delivering their media aspirations even as the function becomes more important, according to new research from the World Federation of Advertisers (WFA).

Why it matters

Four fifths of WFA respondents believe that media will occupy greater strategic prominence than in the past, not least as new responsibilities are being included within the remit of media leaders. It’s no longer just about investments that deliver a positive ROI for the brand: they now also need to consider whether these are the right choices for the environment, consumers and society at large. Mark Gay, Chief Client Officer at Ebiquity, says the global marketing community needs to “adopt and flex new skills”.

Five capability gaps

The WFA, in conjunction with Ebiquity, identifies five key areas where satisfaction with the current approach falls short of the level of importance it has been assigned by media leaders:

• E-commerce and shopping (57% gap): no respondent was “very satisfied” with their current capabilities in e-commerce, and many are looking to online retailers and D2C brands for inspiration. (Some of this dissatisfaction may reflect the fact that only 28% of media and marketing teams own the budgets for shoppable media formats.)
• Long-term challenges around measurement (51%): almost no-one doubts the continuing importance of this area, which will become increasingly problematic with the degradation of third-party cookies.
• Long-term challenges around transparency (49%): almost all (91%) think media transparency will be very important/important over the next 3-4 years but only 43% are satisfied with their organisation’s current capabilities.
• Finding the right balance for in-housing and partners (38%): two thirds claim to be strengthening internal media capabilities, but only 11% are very satisfied with their current capabilities here; data and technology are problems areas.
• Managing the challenges of ESG (36%): these areas are challenging to manage because they need to be considered throughout an increasingly complex supply chain.

Background

The Capability Gap study talked to 52 global media leaders across multiple industry sectors, representing advertisers with a total ad spend of more than $40 billion globally.

Sourced from World Federation of Advertisers