Marketing chiefs are being urged to not get caught in the AI advertising trap, amid claims the technology will soon have such a tight grip on campaign management that CMOs will be unable to control how their ads are bought, priced and delivered.
So says a new Gartner study, which predicts that, by 2028, more than 70% of global adspend, equivalent to $910bn out of $1.3trillion, will flow through self-serve advertising platforms.
AI is deeply embedded in the algorithms that advertising platforms use to determine which ads are shown, to whom and at what cost. This “back-office” AI is distinct from GenAI used to develop advertising creative. It operates behind the scenes to influence how advertising is
Gartner Marketing Practice VP Analyst Eric Schmitt said: “AI is not merely helping marketers execute campaigns faster. Advertising platforms are using it to exert greater influence over how marketers reach their audiences, what they pay, and the outcomes they achieve.
“AI was expected to make advertising more efficient, but improved platform economics does not necessarily translate into lower costs for the advertiser. CMOs need independent evidence that they’re getting the returns they expect.”
With advertisers and their agencies increasingly buying and managing media through advertising platform interfaces and APIs, over time, AI will become more deeply embedded in decisions involving ad delivery, audience selection and pricing.
To improve transparency, measurement and accountability, Gartner says CMOs should prioritise the advertising platforms most strategically important to the business. Concentrate investment, talent and management attention on the platforms most critical to reaching priority audiences and driving results.
They should also curate a portfolio of additional platforms and use them selectively to expand reach, test new opportunities and capture incremental performance.
Finally, Gartner says CMOs should favour platforms that support transparency and independent measurement and direct more investment toward those that enable meaningful performance comparisons and independent evaluation of results.
Schmitt concluded: “The more influence AI has over advertising decisions, the more important independent measurement becomes. CMOs need confidence that platform performance reflects real business impact, not just platform-reported results.”
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