Dive Brief:

• Half of agencies outsource their consumer and B2B data, per a survey commissioned by data agency Stirista. Conducted in April 2021 by research firm Thrive Analytics, the survey gathered data from 150 professionals at 50 U.S. advertising and marketing agencies.
• Nearly two-thirds of agencies said leveraging data is a critical business imperative, with respondents citing uniqueness (41%), validity (39%) and accuracy (33%) as their top concerns. Quality of data (79%), provider reputation (56%) and privacy/security of the data (54%) are driving decision-making around choosing data providers.
• Data purchasing is a complex and often siloed effort at both boutique shops and large agency holding companies, according to the press release. Agencies increasingly must meet the data-driven needs of clients, who are facing a tightening data privacy landscape.

Dive Insight:

Stirista's survey of agencies across the ad tech and martech worlds finds that agencies are concerned about purchasing high-quality data, as half of respondents outsource their consumer and B2B data needs. Measuring campaign results as well as collecting first-party data and collaborating on second-party data remain priorities for marketers as they seek to target, track and effectively reach consumers.

"Agencies and the brands they represent are increasingly tasked with delivering high quality campaigns with measurable and attributable results," Will Kunkel, VP of marketing at Stirista, said in the press release. "An overwhelming majority of agencies believe that they should be served high quality and valid data, but they are increasingly uncertain whether they are actually receiving it."

Surveyed agencies said data is necessary for marketing strategy (52%), content creation (41%) and lead generation (39%), while nearly half want account-based management and more than one-third offer connected TV (CTV) services, per the release. With CTV driving the growth of digital video, accurate data is a requirement for agencies and their brand clients.

Along with data quality, provider reputation and privacy/security of data are driving decision-making in the space. Keeping data private and secure aligns with consumer demands that have driven both actions by regulators and tech giants like Apple and Google. Even with Google's recent decision to delay the death of third-party cookies, some agencies are advising clients to build their first-party data infrastructure through focused targeting and content activations.

Agency holding groups have increasingly sought to boost their data offerings for marketer clients. WPP this year combined data specialist units from GroupM and Wunderman Thompson to form a consultancy that will assist clients with their first-party data strategies, while IPG recently called out its ability to leverage data around both media activation and e-commerce offerings as a source of growth.