GLOBAL: Agencies using their own programmatic tech stack can build better relationships with publishers and deliver more for clients, according to new research.

A study from ExchangeWire and IPONWEB, Agents of Change: The Rise of the Programmatic Media Agency, was based on responses from 129 respondents working in programmatic media for marketing agencies across APAC, EMEA and North America.

This found that almost half (49%) of agencies relied on their own advertising technology for programmatic media buys, while a third (34%) combined their own with third-party technology; a minority (17%) relied exclusively on third-party offerings.

Agencies in EMEA are in the forefront of this trend, with 58% using only their own technology; North American agencies (56%) are close behind but far fewer APAC agencies (33%) are using just their own tech.

But there is a significant incentive to do so, as the research found that agencies that take greater control over their programmatic technology achieve superior performance across a number of key media buying and measurement criteria.

In particular, agencies using their own tech scored themselves almost three times higher on campaign measurement and analytics (50% “very strong” vs. 18% for those not using their own tech exclusively).

The confidence engendered by using their own tech also encourages agencies to be more ambitious about targets across a range of areas, including combating ad fraud, furthering omnichannel, improving campaign measurement, building customised algorithms for individual client buys and continuing to expand their relationships with publishers.

On the last point, almost two-thirds (63%) of agencies using only their own programmatic media buying technology reported major improvements in their ability to build relationships with publishers. This compared to 33% of those who do not exclusively use their own tech.

“Agencies that own and therefore control their own technology stack have the competitive edge thanks to better performance across a range of programmatic touch points,” said Brian Fitzpatrick, General Manager of Demand Solutions at IPONWEB.

“Owning technology also gives an agency better visibility of clients’ campaigns, enabling them to drive up ROI,” he added.

These benefits have to be offset, however, against the set-up and maintenance costs involved.

Sourced from ExchangeWire, IPONWEB; additional content by WARC staff