2018 Wishlist

We’re focused on building a sustainable future for digital advertising and excited about several new initiatives that will launch throughout 2018. Below, our A-list C-suite describe what they hope to see in the coming year.

Jane McNeill, Chief Operating Officer

Working for a trade body that is 100% funded by members, the top of my wishlist would be fully engaged, happy members who are utilising and gleaning all the benefits that membership offers including: finding inspiration at our numerous events, taking the opportunity to speak at our seminars, participating in our steering and advisory groups and learning and developing thanks to our specialised training.

I’d also like to see our membership diversify in 2018 by welcoming more agencies in order to ensure the whole industry is working together to build a sustainable future for digital advertising. Last year we made a commitment to diversifying speakers at our events and I’m proud to say 40% of speakers were female. This year I’d like to see an equal split of male and female speakers on stage at our events.

Another item on my wishlist is ensuring that everyone who works at the IAB has the best opportunities to create sustainable careers. The IAB is committed to culture and its people, and this year we will continue to give individuals the space to become an expert in their field, we will ensure an immersion in the digital advertising industry and we will commit to investing in their overall career development. 

Tim Elkington, Chief Digital Officer 

My wish for 2018 is that we make things better. 2017 was a challenging year for digital advertising with brand safety at the fore. I want 2018 to be the year that digital advertising fights back, not in an aggressive and confrontational way, but through collaboration. We established the IAB Gold Standard in 2017 and 2018 is the year that we need to kick on, turn promises into actions and work together to make digital advertising better for everyone. This collaboration theme builds on one of my 2017 highlights – the Future of News session at Engage where we showed what we can do as an industry working together – more of that in 2018 please!

James Chandler, Chief Marketing Officer

Leaders, leading

I hope 2018 is defined by the leaders in digital advertising leading from the front, taking responsibility for doing the right thing with people in mind whilst still making sure their model is commercially sustainable. Leadership will be as much about inspiring others as it is setting the bar high. Opinions are important but actions are critical.

Today & tomorrow

From measurement to brand safety, from ad standards to the GDPR, there is lots to figure out in the here and now. But there’s also so much to understand about what digital will mean tomorrow. Balancing what we need to get done today with what’s needed to prepare for the future will be critical and will only be made harder if we try to solve both independent of each other. We can absolutely work in two speeds at the same time.

Control & choice

Wherever you sit in the digital advertising chain, you’re largely in control of the decisions you make. If you’re an advertiser, it’s where and on what terms you choose to spend your advertising budget. For agencies, it’s the partners you trust to partner up with – both suppliers & clients. And for media owners, ad tech suppliers and publishers, it’s the quality of ad experience you offer.

Some decisions will be binary, some will be more nuanced – but everyone involved has a choice and say in the type of digital advertising industry we want to create in 2018. 

Jon Mew, Chief Executive Officer 

I think ‘The good will out’ is an apt expression for 2018. We’re seeing a really positive drive across the advertising industry of companies doing the right thing, starting internally with staff and culture all the way through to the way they do business. The spotlight will shine even brighter and those with ethics will start – and continue – to win.   

It will be a big year for video content – I feel like we’ve spent a long time waiting for big tech companies to really invest in live content and for me it’s been very interesting that they haven’t done so. Yet. 2018 feels like it will be an incredibly interesting battle of the eyeballs for video and TV content. It’s the first time, in my mind, we’ve gone into a year where platforms like Netflix and Amazon Prime no longer feel like potential challengers, but platforms with scale and power.

Finally, I hope Brexit will be cancelled. Well OK maybe not. The challenge in 2018 is that we make sure we don’t hit the advertising pause button. The rest of the world will keep evolving and its critical we stay ahead. It’s critical we keep on preparing for the future and keeping pace with the change in the world.