2026 AGENDA OVERVIEW
Marketing Procurement IQ tackles the themes reshaping tomorrow’s marketing landscape, connecting you with the experts and peers driving real change. A dynamic forum where the industry’s most critical conversations spark insight, inspiration and momentum.
Conference Co-Chairs Nick Manning and Tina Fegent set out their insights for Marketing Procurement in 2026 in our latest article here, and how these will be examined in depth at the Marketing Procurement iQ Conference on March 24th and 25th in London.
DAY ONE – Chaired by Nick Manning
The Future of Advertising, Marketing and Media
We are entering a new era in marketing.
There is barely an area of marketing that is untouched by this evolution, and the marketing services industry is having to transform itself.
Against this backdrop, the discipline of marketing procurement is also being transformed with a new emphasis on the right solutions, not just the right value or pricing.
Day One will dive into the following trends to help attendees navigate this evolving landscape.
Results measurement: The trend towards ‘outcomes’
There is a strong movement towards the need for the generation of identified effect. This is driven by a need for growth, but also by the fact that it is no longer enough or possible to measure media accurately.
Advertisers are investing in a wide range of channels, many of which are unmeasurable, with many executions and in huge numbers of ad appearances. The only sensible measure of success is the business return from the money spent.
There is strong demand for new ways of measuring effect, including updated versions of Marketing/Media Mix Modelling.
Why this matters to Marketing Procurement:
- Performance used to be measured in cost-per-unit bought (GRPs, CPMs) and via benchmarking/auditing.
- Advertisers are now looking to measure performance in actual business uplift.
- AI will accelerate the move to better measurement.
- This means that Marketing Procurement will increasingly be involved in helping evaluate partners’ ability to provide accurate results measurement. This will increasingly be sourced internally or by independent entities.
- New measurement systems will aim to synthesise results across the marketing spectrum, including the interplay of price, product, distribution, promotion and other variables.
The need for more reliable and better data:
A greater emphasis on accountability means more reliable data. The need for transparency is greater when advertisers require confirmation that their data is as accurate as possible.
Why this matters to Marketing Procurement:
- Advertisers will need more visibility into the data sources, their provenance and how they are processed in models.
- Marketing Procurement will be more involved in the governance of data gathering, storage and use with new governance and contractual frameworks.
- Extra emphasis will be placed on privacy compliance, data security and cyber-security. This means deeper dives into third party systems robustness, especially as these platforms are offered by agency groups.
The increasing importance of digital commerce, retail media and agentic targeting :
The growth in these sectors and new platforms and products (as recently announced at CES) will mean that advertisers will be more involved in the interface between media and direct sales, with automated agents increasingly playing a role on behalf of consumers.
Why this matters to Marketing Procurement:
- The profile and patterns of media investment are rapidly changing, with more investment in social, retail media and digital or ‘social’ commerce (eg Tik Tok shop).
- These media are harder to track in terms of true cost and value, so new techniques are required to assess the competitiveness and efficiency of spend.
- Marketing Procurement will be engaged in evaluating new measurement techniques from established players, including auditors, and building in new protocols for governance and delivery into partner contracts.
Content and channel integration continues to progress:
With the reduced gap between media and performance there is a need to bring the creative and media processes together, including digital commerce and search-led shopping.
Advertisers will be seeking strategic supplier relationships with a range of partners, adopting more Joint Business Plans with platforms and using more platforms that can create and distribute messaging, including those provided by Meta, Google, Amazon, TikTok, Reddit and the agencies.
Advertisers will be aiming to find providers who can unify content and channel in terms of communications strategy. It will be key to achieve the right balance of content and channel for the longer-term and short-term needs.
Why this matters to Marketing Procurement:
- Marketing Procurement will be further involved in internal discussions about the range of supply resources needed and where they should be sourced. This will include the balance between in-housing and external provision.
The Creator and Influencer market is rapidly expanding:
The growth of YouTube and TikTok is driving advertiser use of individual creators and influencers. These are usually additive to more mainstream techniques but need to be coordinated and managed.
Why this matters to Marketing Procurement:
- Engaging with creators and influencers requires a very different governance to the traditional agency process
- New contractual, financial and legal protocols are being created to help advertisers control and manage these new areas. Marketing Procurement will play a key role in establishing precedents.
The agency scene is transforming, and agencies’ remits and remuneration are evolving fast:
We are at the end of a forty-year period where the advertising holding companies were built, dominated the advertising industry and wrote the rules.
The big online platforms eroded the agencies’ position in media distribution, and now generative AI has rapidly hit their creative revenues.
The agency scene is being transformed by mergers, potential disposals, a dispersal of advertiser needs and the AI capabilities of the platforms, especially in self-serve tools.
Why this matters to Marketing Procurement:
- New provider eco-systems are being invented to fulfil the wider range of marketing needs among advertisers. The choices that advertisers can make are now wider and more delicate.
- Some are looking for a bigger ‘one-stop shop’ where a very wide range of services can be found under one roof, while others will seek a more customised set of relationships.
- Marketing Procurement will provide the financial, legal, contractual and compliance support for the route that each advertiser chooses, advising on choices, staging the tenders and organising the appropriate documentation for the type of services sought.
- This will be a more complex and wide-ranging task, requiring more internal stakeholder management and the control of a bigger and wider range of relationships and contracts.
The big online platforms will continue to dominate the advertising market :
The power and strength of Silicon Valley is likely to become even more ingrained as they continue to erode the media market share of other players, notably with YouTube in streaming and the continuing hegemony of Amazon in e-commerce and retail media.
Why this matters to Marketing Procurement:
- Every advertiser will need a clear strategy for their relationships with, and use of the big online platforms, either directly or through other partners, based on their specific needs for data-led marketing to niche audiences.
- The use of self-serve tools will continue to grow, and Marketing Procurement will be involved in the decisions on bringing more execution in-house or leaving external providers to use the relevant tools, with the appropriate needs for tendering and offer evaluation.
- New operating protocols will be needed, backed by the relevant innovation in contract construction, governance design, legal robustness and contract compliance.
Payment by results will become entrenched:
With the move towards the measurement of business uplift or ‘outcomes’, there is a strong groundswell towards advertisers paying their external partners according to success, either wholly or in part.
The traditional cost-plus method of charging by agencies will have to transform to meet the need for remuneration more rooted in actual business performance.
Why this matters to Marketing Procurement:
- Marketing Procurement will be the lead players in many instances, as new agency charging models are introduced. There is little settled practice in this area, and new techniques will have to be invented, supported by the contractual frameworks needed.
Media trading practices will become increasingly untransparent:
As the media market evolves, and the media mix increasingly relies on AI-led tools, it will become more difficult for advertisers to track and monitor their media delivery and performance.
The volume of advertising will grow and the ratio of real human traffic to agentic and automated traffic will change, with the latter growing.
There will be more principal-based and proprietary media as new platforms develop around media arbitrage, and the audit trail will become harder to track.
Why this matters to Marketing Procurement:
- The role of Marketing Procurement in securing the best possible visibility into the dynamics of media trading will become crucial.
- A deep understanding of money flows, trading mechanics, real versus synthetic benefits and a strong contractual infra-structure will be essential.
DAY TWO – Chaired by Tina Fegent
Maximising Investment Across Creative, Content and the Marketing Ecosystem
Marketing organisations are fundamentally reshaping how creativity is developed, content is produced, and partners are structured.
What was once a small number of clearly defined agency categories has evolved into a complex ecosystem of creative, content, social, PR, influencer, production and technology partners operating across multiple platforms and markets.
Day Two focuses on how this ecosystem is designed, governed and optimised — and the role marketing procurement plays in ensuring it delivers effectiveness, efficiency and sustainable value.
Creative & Brand Experience:
Creativity remains the primary driver of brand differentiation and long-term growth. As creative output becomes more distributed and increasingly supported by AI, organisations must rethink how creative value and effectiveness are assessed.
Why this matters to Marketing Procurement:
- This topic area explores how procurement supports stronger creative outcomes through partner selection, governance and measurement, without constraining ambition.
Content & Scaled Storytelling :
Always-on content and rapid adaptation have transformed marketing cost structures. This topic examines how brands scale storytelling without inflating spends.
Why this matters to Marketing Procurement:
- How procurement helps shape operating models and commercial frameworks that balance speed, volume and quality will be crucial.
Social, Community & Culture :
Social and community channels now sit at the intersection of media, content and PR. Their immediacy and platform-specific nature create challenges around scope, accountability and measurement.
Why this matters to Marketing Procurement:
- This topic area explores how procurement brings clarity to a fragmented landscape while protecting cultural relevance.
PR, Earned Media & Influence : In an environment of declining trust and heightened scrutiny, earned media and influence are increasingly strategic.
Why this matters to Marketing Procurement:
- This discussion focuses on how procurement supports transparency, appropriate remuneration and meaningful performance measures in areas where value is often long-term and reputational.
Creators, Influencers & Talent Ecosystem :
Brands are working directly with creators and talent at scale, raising new issues around contracting, rights, compliance and value.
Why this matters to Marketing Procurement:
- The challenge to be explored here is how procurement helps professionalise the creator ecosystem while preserving flexibility and creative impact.
Production, Operations & Creative Delivery :
Production is where creative ambition meets operational reality. With growing pressure on speed, cost and governance, this topic area examines in-house, hybrid and outsourced delivery models,
Why this matters to Marketing Procurement:
- The role procurement plays in enabling efficient, scalable production to support new models as they emerge will be key.
Marketing Ecosystem Design & Management :
Marketing success relies on the effectiveness of the entire ecosystem.
Why this matters to Marketing Procurement:
- Here we would like to explore procurement’s evolving role in designing and orchestrating partner ecosystems, reducing duplication, clarifying roles and improving collaboration across creative, content and media.
Commercial & Remuneration Models:
AI and automation are challenging traditional pricing structures.
Why this matters to Marketing Procurement:
- Procurement plays a critical role in developing fair, transparent and outcome-aligned models across the marketing ecosystem.
Balancing Efficiency & Effectiveness:
The role of procurement in balancing financial rigour with marketing effectiveness to drive sustainable value
Why this matters to Marketing Procurement:
- Because modern marketing procurement is accountable not just for savings, but for enabling effective investment and sustainable growth.
AI: Friend or Foe?: Beginning with how AI is reshaping consumer behaviour and trust.
Why this matters to Marketing Procurement:
- This theme examines the implications for Marketing Procurement’s influence over marketing investment, agency capability and value evaluationTwo
Each day will close with a final panel discussion reflecting on key takeaways, answering audience questions, and providing actionable guidance for the road ahead. With a packed agenda full of forward-thinking insights and practical strategies, delegates can expect an engaging and informative day designed to equip them for the future of marketing procurement.
