WFA Maps Evolution of Media

A recent research report produced by the World Federation of Advertisers (WFA) and Spire identified 5 stages in the evolution of a company's marketing sourcing expertise.

1. In the first stage the focus is on cost reduction and supplier rationalisation

2. By the second stage, managing money well and building third-party relationships are equally important.

3. Building third-party relationships and leading SRM programs accounts for nearly half of sourcing time at the third stage.

4. By phase four, managing processes becomes a focus as procurement seeks to streamline account management.

5. After reaching maturity, managing money well, building relationships, optimising process and driving improvements are all equally important.

The report, Maximising Marketing Efficiency said progress along the evolutionary path is driven by two factors: the capability of the procurement team, and the readiness of the organisation to “move beyond a pure cost focus”.

Steve Lightfoot, Communications Procurement Manager at the WFA commented: 

"Those companies that create the environment for procurement to succeed within the marketing category are best placed to generate skills growth within this function.

Enabling marketing procurement to fully engage with the marketing spend creates the right conditions for breeding sourcing expertise that boosts marketing efficiency."

Author VJ Ratnam