LONDON — Some advertisers have progressed beyond measuring attention as a signal to using it as a planning currency for more than a year. Still, many others are just beginning to analyze attention metrics from existing campaigns.
“I know a sport brand, for instance, which has been using attention from a planning perspective for over a year now. Whereas there’s some who have just started to look at the existing campaigns, what has been the attention, and now how can we utilize that,” Danielle Darko, EMEA digital director at WPP Media, told Beet.TV contributor Robert Andrews at the Beet.TV and WPP Media Leadership Summit.
Incorporating attention from planning stages enables better packaging with partners before measuring outcomes, rather than retrofitting attention analysis to completed campaigns.
Value built through collaboration
Media value has evolved beyond traditional definitions through innovations including artificial intelligence, data importance, and collaboration that collectively create new value frameworks based on desired outcomes.
“When you basically merge all of those, you can see that the value of media is almost co-built, Darko said. “It becomes a new definition of how valuable it is and based on exactly what the outcome we’re trying to achieve.”
Client objectives drive strategy
Unlocking premium media value begins with direct questions about client goals rather than prescriptive solutions, working backward from desired outcomes across upper, middle, and lower funnel stages with distinct measurements.
“I never shy away from asking my client, ‘What do you want?’ and then working it back,” Darko said. “We have the traditional funnel, the top funnel, mid-funnel and lower funnel, all with different measurements, all with different outcomes that they want. And that way we define the value of media across each funnel.”
The challenge requires stitching funnel stages together rather than treating them as isolated objectives.
Attention planning adoption varies
The maturity gap between advertisers using attention for planning versus measurement reflects broader industry adoption curves, with advanced clients integrating attention into upfront strategy while others analyze historical performance.
“When it comes to attention, it’s better to incorporate it from a planning perspective because once you understand where it sits and you can understand how you can package that up with your partners, then you can start to look at how can it bear fruit, which is the outcome,” Darko said.
Transparency comes into focus
Digital media evolution in 2026 will emphasize collaboration, transparency, and accountability as walled garden disruption continues and partners address transparency concerns.
“We’re going to see far more collaboration, far more transparency, and most importantly, accountability as well, because it needs to be measured,” Darko said.
Key success ingredients include data strategies and availability in high-value environments that support client storytelling objectives rather than generic inventory access.
“There are key ingredients for success. One of them being data strategies, one of them being making sure we’re available in high value environments that basically help tell our client’s story,” Darko said.
You’re watching coverage from Beet.TV’s Global Leadership Summit with WPP Media, filmed in London, presented by Criteo, Index Exchange, Seedtag & The Trade Desk. For more videos from this series, please visit this page.
