Tools and providers
Media buying tools and suppliers for 2027, compared in the right order
Compare media buying agency tools and suppliers for 2027 through requirements, first-party evidence, data controls, contract checks and an exit plan.
What to take away
- Compare in procurement order, not by performance: pass or fail conditions first, then requirements evidence, then data controls, then contracts and exit.
- Separate four jobs, planning, buying, measurement and workflow. A single product covering several still needs each function defined.
- Expect no comparable public price list for managed platform access. Agency fees are quoted as a percentage of media spend, not a fixed tariff.
- Ask bidders for exports, permissions and change history rather than feature lists, and record why each failed bid was excluded.
- Test the smallest credible migration path before permissions change, against acceptance criteria written in advance.
Separate four tool jobs
Planning tools estimate audiences or likely delivery. Buying systems place and manage activity. Measurement services describe exposure or outcomes. Workflow software carries approvals, assets and records.
Four Kinds of Media Tool
Planning
- Job
- Estimate audiences
- Output
- Delivery estimates
- Example
- Keyword Planner
- Evidence
- Modelled forecast
Buying
- Job
- Place activity
- Output
- Live campaigns
- Example
- Google Ads
- Evidence
- Account access
Measurement
- Job
- Describe outcomes
- Output
- Exposure data
- Example
- Barb
- Evidence
- Currency remit
Workflow
- Job
- Carry records
- Output
- Approvals, assets
- Example
- Workflow software
- Evidence
- Audit trail
Set each job out as its own requirement, even where one supplier covers several. What matters is the output: an estimate, a booked schedule, a verified exposure figure or an audit trail.
Independent currencies do not share a remit. Barb covers television and video, while out-of-home research uses different methods and recency rules. Audience research for a media agency brief shows how buyer interviews and currency definitions fit together before requirements are written.
Write a procurement-order shortlist
ISBA's guidance on proprietary media names transparency, governance and data as areas advertisers should examine. It supports due diligence but is not a contract.
Procurement-order shortlist
| Order | Tool or supplier | Job | Evidence to request | Check before signing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Google Ads with Keyword Planner and Reach Planner | Search, display, video, shopping | Google Ads help pages | Account ownership, conversion routes |
| 2 | LinkedIn Campaign Manager | B2B targeting and workflow | LinkedIn help page | Professional data permissions, roles |
| 3 | Amazon DSP | Programmatic buying | Amazon DSP access pages | Access route, minimum commitments |
| 4 | The Trade Desk | Independent DSP | Public product pages | Platform fee percentage |
| 5 | Google Display & Video 360 | Enterprise DSP and ad server | Google Marketing Platform pages | Negotiated fees, seat minimums |
| 6 | Meta Ads Manager | Facebook and Instagram | Meta business help pages | Pixel and conversions API permissions |
| 7 | Barb | Television and video measurement | Barb method pages | Licence terms, data recency |
| 8 | IPA member directory | Agency longlist | IPA member listing | Membership is not proof of fit |
The order is a procurement sequence, not a performance ranking. A bid that fails a mandatory condition is excluded, and the reason is recorded.
GroupM, Publicis Media, Omnicom Media Group, Dentsu and Havas Media all trade in the UK, offering planning, buying and trading services.
How the named platforms differ in practice
Google Ads spans search, display, video and shopping. Keyword Planner gives keyword ideas and estimates under selected settings, while Reach Planner covers modelled forecasts for supported video. Neither is a delivery promise. Google's conversion tracking documentation sets out the measurement routes inside an account.
LinkedIn Campaign Manager works on professional profile data, so its audience rules differ from consumer platforms. Amazon DSP buys across Amazon inventory and exchanges under its own access rules. The Trade Desk and Display & Video 360 are independent demand-side platforms competing on inventory access, data controls and fees. Barb sells a currency, not media.
Media buying tools on the record lists the first-party page for each named product.
Make the commercial route visible
Request one schedule covering agency remuneration, technology charges, data costs, verification, media owner payments and taxes. Use the same unit and period for every bid.
Align Cost Bases Before Comparing
Percentage of media
- Unit
- % of spend
- Period
- Campaign
- Cost base
- Media spend
- Comparable
- Only if aligned
Monthly fee
- Unit
- Per month
- Period
- Monthly
- Cost base
- Retainer scope
- Comparable
- Only if aligned
Project charge
- Unit
- Per project
- Period
- Fixed term
- Cost base
- Deliverables
- Comparable
- Only if aligned
Google, LinkedIn, Amazon, Meta and The Trade Desk publish no comparable list price for managed accounts, seats or spend minimums. No like-for-like tool figure can be given here. Agency fees are commonly quoted at an indicative 5% to 15% of media spend. Demand-side platform fees are often a low double-digit percentage of media. Confirm both in the contract.
A media agency budget with separate rows for fees, media, tools and VAT keeps that comparison honest.
Check data, contracts and the exit
Map every movement of audience, campaign and outcome data. Name the controller and processor for each use, and decide who may create audiences or reuse learning across clients. The ICO's guidance on storage and access technologies covers cookies, pixels and similar techniques in online advertising.
Then settle account ownership, export formats, retention, licence transfer and minimum commitments that survive a campaign pause. Send the wording to a qualified adviser.
Plan the implementation as a controlled migration
Controlled migration
- Name an accountable owner on each side.
- List accounts, tags, feeds, audiences, creative and historical exports.
- Mark each item to move, to stay read-only or to retire.
- Back up anything the advertiser may retain before permissions change.
- Test the smallest credible path on limited or non-live traffic, checking roles, naming and approvals.
- Check data capture, export and reconciliation, then sign off against acceptance criteria written in advance.
A technical test confirms that a workflow operates. It does not establish campaign performance.
Common questions
Is the shortlist a performance ranking?
No. It sets a procurement order. Vendors publish no independent comparative tests, so a performance ranking would be invented.
Why are there no prices for the named tools?
Managed platform pricing is negotiated per contract, covering seats, spend minimums and data terms. Only agency and platform fee percentages can be given, as indicative ranges.
Does UK guidance apply outside England?
ISBA, IPA and ICO material covers the UK, while product documentation is global. A global feature page cannot prove a workflow is lawful or effective for an English advertiser.
In this guide
- Prove the exports before you sign a media agency software licenceSelect agency software by mapping the work, proving access and exports, checking UK data controls, and agreeing ownership before any licence is signed.
- Media buying agencies supplier comparison: a methodA method for a media buying agencies supplier comparison: shortlist agencies, set a common scope, test matched scenarios and record terms.
- Vendor due diligence on a media agency, from contracting entity to departureVendor due diligence checks an agency's legal identity, authority, money path, data access, security evidence, subcontractors and exit duties.
- Media buying agencies tool implementation: a UK checklistMedia buying agencies tool implementation: a UK checklist covering ownership, access design, data-path proof, acceptance tests and handover.
