
Pictured, from left to right: Sarah Thompson, Ishma Alexander-Huet and Urania Agas
As we close out 2023 and head into 2024, Media in Canada interviews the industry’s top executives to find out their thoughts on the year that was and what they see on the horizon for 2024. Today, we feature Sarah Thompson, Dentsu Media president; Ishma Alexander-Huet, Initiative EVP of client advice and management, and head of learning and culture; and Urania Agas, EssenceMediacom CEO. Stay tuned for more interviews rolling out in the first week of January.
In your opinion, what were most seismic changes of 2023?
Sarah Thompson: The removal of local media on Meta and the significant closures and job losses across Canadian media will create a ripple effect that we can’t possibly comprehend.
Ishma Alexander-Huet: We never truly see a seismic change in one year in this industry. In 2023, the recognition of newcomers as a mass growth audience and gaming as a mass platform stand out as changes that are no longer novel as we close out the year. There’s also the growing focus and testing of attention metrics and, of course, access to and support of Canadian news and local media that rightfully have taken up a lot of conversation space as we plan for those big changes. There has also been the continued shift to video buying (which has been a decade-long change at least) now that more ad opportunities are becoming available on streaming services.
How do you predict those changes will evolve in 2024?
Sarah Thompson: We need to act as an industry and start focusing on attention and quality of media as a measure of performance that goes beyond low cost and scale. The changes will continue to come and probably most significantly to broadcasters who are facing inflation, lower volume of content product (due to the writers and actors strikes) and challenges as streamers come into market with an ad supported platform.
Ishma Alexander-Huet: I hope that as an industry, we become smarter and less performative about how to authentically engage newcomers or enter the gaming space. Gaming is an immersive space where we can gain the attention we’re trying to measure, and local media is a key requirement in connecting with newcomers. That said, we are entering a year of cost containment across many clients, and the debate around brand versus performance is taking centre stage again. It’s difficult to truly test and learn with new audiences, platforms or niche media outlets when growth has to come from beating results that are largely dependent on algorithmic performance channels.
What is the single most critical pressure facing the media industry as a whole right now?
Urania Agas: The need for cross-industry collaboration and alignment in light of key challenges such as regulation, measurement and sustainability. The media landscape is undergoing rapid and profound changes, driven by technological innovations, consumer behaviours and social and environmental issues. These changes demand new ways of thinking and working together, across different platforms, stakeholders, and markets, to ensure that we can deliver effective, responsible, and relevant media solutions for our clients and audiences.
Sarah Thompson: Quality. We need to ensure that every dollar we invest on behalf of clients is in trusted and high-attention spaces that produce low carbon emissions and keep us all connected as a society. These topics are all intertwined. We want our clients to garner attention and grow share and that is challenging as ad loads on platforms continue to increase. Time to go back to the media first in 2024.
Ishma Alexander-Huet: There’s the continued move to diversify, spend and support more local media against the reality of performance being a priority for many brands in 2024. How we measure business impact and understand risk tolerance will be crucial conversations or we’ll see the market continue to focus on short-term results.
What do you and your agency see as the biggest challenge facing your business?
Urania Agas: The biggest challenge facing our work and business is the complexity and fragmentation of the media landscape, which requires us to constantly adapt and innovate our strategies, capabilities, and partnerships. To address this challenge, we are planning to invest in our talent, technology, and tools, and foster a culture of learning, collaboration, and experimentation. We are committed to attracting, developing, and retaining diverse and skilled media professionals, who can bring fresh and relevant perspectives, insights, and solutions to our clients. We are also leveraging our scale and influence to access and create cutting-edge technology and tools that can help us generate actionable data, optimize media performance and measure outcomes across platforms and markets.
Sarah Thompson: Our Dentsu team across Carat, Dentsu X and iProspect are all committed to supporting local media and we will move past 25% in digital investment in 2024. We are also ensuring our people continue to be supported as the industry changes and a focus on training and development, celebrating the work, doing good and innovation by the truest form – constant improvement. And that [means] bringing our clients along on that journey…because they need to truly understand what their investment yields and where we are eliminating waste.
What do you see as the biggest opportunity in 2024?
Urania Agas: One of the biggest opportunities in 2024 is to leverage the power of data and technology to create more personalized, relevant, and engaging media experiences for consumers across platforms and devices. We believe that data and technology are not only enablers of efficiency and effectiveness, but also drivers of creativity and innovation.
Sarah Thompson: Lean into mental availability and how it is connected to high quality and attentive media. We want our clients’ brands to grow and to do that you can see the correlation of quality media, to attention, to creating memory to growing share. Let’s rebalance media, remove the waste and focus on the partners that support growth, customers, and our society.
Interviews have been edited for length and clarity