2026 Predictions: Signals Brands Are Paying Attention To
At AUDIENCES, we work directly with brands inside their existing cloud environments to help them activate data safely, efficiently and at scale.
As brands plan for 2026, the conversation around data activation is changing. The focus is moving away from acquiring more technology and towards how data is activated in practice. More safely, efficiently and within the environments brands already trust.
Across the market, the same questions are surfacing again and again:
- How do we activate data without moving or exposing it?
- How do we collaborate across partners without duplicating infrastructure?
- How do we demonstrate return of value while simplifying operations?
- And how do we scale activation within the cloud environments we already trust?
These conversations are grounded in real-world experience, shaped by regulatory pressure, operational realities and the need to make data work harder for the business.
Rather than offering predictions for their own sake, this piece reflects what we’re observing through hands-on work with brands across sectors. We asked leaders across AUDIENCES to share the signals they’re seeing, the questions that are coming up more often, and where thinking is beginning to shift as 2026 planning takes shape.
Rob McLaughlin, Founder & CEO - AUDIENCES
Drawing on your experience managing data at large organisations like Barclays and Sky, what lessons still resonate today as brands think about activating data safely and at scale?
Credit to the hero's behind the data activation achievements of the past decade or so. A long list of trends, fads, acronyms and false idols litter the floors of marketing, enterprise data & technology team offices! Principle themes have however emerged which are guiding those at the forefront of data activation:
"It’s scale, stupid" - Advertising 101 dictates that size matters, it’s time to release the brakes that have held back the industry. Think identity resolution, federated ID graphs and micro-segmentation – All the enemy of great data activation – Remove everything that sits between your 1PD & the demand/supply of media
Interoperability always: Yes, the walled gardens are eating budget allocation, but data activation is a superpower in budget diversification into all mediums and platforms – Many advertisers are winning in CTV and programmatic for the first time thanks to onboarding audience signals
The Lovers: It’s a cliche but marketing & data/tech teams must be best friends, one is not relevant without the other – Group hug?
Looking ahead to 2026, what do you believe will most clearly separate brands that can activate data with confidence from those that remain constrained by risk, complexity or organisational friction?
The future is owned by brands who activate from within the enterprise data stack, making their cloud & datawarehouse relevant for data activation – Win data privacy & security and accelerate activation x10 fold
Those who remain wedded to the monolithic thinking of the martech/adtech thinking of the past decades will fail to the find massive gains available from cloud & warehouse native data activation – This is the opposite of techie, this is the ultimate marketing objective driven data delivery that our industry has been waiting for
And as a kicker, there should be no-tax on data activation. Brands and data owners have incredible proprietary data assets; there should be nothing technical or commercial in-between them and advertising
Matt Wilkinson, Founder & CCO - AUDIENCES
Brands are under pressure to justify every investment. Where are you seeing the clearest conversations around return of value rather than return on technology?
Brands need their advertising £s to work as hard as possible in the current climate. Whereas we may have previously seen big purchases of ‘technology for technology’s sake’, there is now a microscope on the return this tech drives. Great news for AUDIENCES
From a commercial perspective, what results are you seeing when brands activate their first-party data at scale, and why is this proving more effective for personalisation and return on value than more complex approaches?
We are proud in many cases to drive a 20X return on investment for our clients. Our cloud native approach means much of the complexity associated with activating data in new channels is made much easier. “More data to more places” is our mantra, and we love to execute this on behalf of our clients.
Hugh Stevens, Managing Director - AUDIENCES
Having worked across multiple stages of data infrastructure maturity, what feels different about the way brands are approaching 2026 planning?
There is no doubt in my mind that the future of data activation for brands/advertisers is about bringing technology to the data and not data to the 3rd party technology. A truly composable marketing technology stack is going to be built and operationalised off of a live, single source of customer data truth, not a copy. Where access and the utilisation of the brands most valuable customer data is controlled at source, in their 1st party infrastructure and value is delivered by working with the best of breed partners who plug directly into it. Security and control in a world where data leakage is in the news constantly is not, and has not been for a long time, acceptable. Operational simplicity is a must have in a fast paced commercial climate where consumer spend is competitive and your teams need to have autonomy to make decisions and act on hypotheses quickly. SaaS commercial models will need to fit a future where marketing budgets can be focused on growth metrics and not be penalised by variable costs and ‘tax’ on media. I see this world as being the norm that brands will come to seek out.
How are brand teams thinking about measurement, activation and accountability when data movement is increasingly scrutinised?
Autonomy for different functions in a marketing organisation will be key. Increasingly owned and paid channels need to be aligned in strategy for both growth and retention of consumers to your brand. Activation in media especially is more efficient if you can exclude your known customers who you know can’t buy another service/product from you e.g. your customer has just signed a 2 year contract for their TV service. The content you put in front of them next is important...not new or better deals, but promotion of the high-quality entertainment they now have access to. Growth + Retention. Efficiency through relevance being re-invested to drive growth and incremental ROI. Measurement is easier when you are more in control of the audience you are targeting so in a world where marketing budgets are, in real terms at least, being squeezed, achieving growth with a lower budget is high on the agenda.
Nicola Webb, Sales Director for the Gaming & Emerging Digital Environment, AUDIENCES
What’s the biggest mistake gambling/gaming brands make with data during major sporting events?
Treating data as something to analyse after the moment has passed. During peak events, value comes from activating first-party data in real time, responsibly and with control, not from retrospective insight. If you can’t move quickly when attention is highest, you’re already too late.
Why does first-party data matter more in gambling than in other sectors?
Because relevance and responsibility must exist side by side. Gambling brands can’t rely on broad assumptions or third-party signals. First-party data allows brands to engage players in ways that are informed, consented and appropriate, especially during high-attention sporting moments.
Why should sports and gaming brands prioritise activating first-party data in marketing to maximise ROI?
First-party data is the strongest signal of intent a brand owns. In sports betting and gaming, where margins are tight and attention windows are short, it allows marketing to spend to focus on known, high-value audiences rather than broad, inefficient reach.
When first-party data is actively used in marketing, brands can deliver more relevant messaging, reduce wasted impressions and respond to behaviour as it happens, especially around major sporting moments. The result is smarter spend, stronger performance in the moment, and better returns over time.
Kalpana Jayaram- Sales Director, Retail Media & Commerce - AUDIENCES
Retail media has scaled quickly, what nuances are brands starting to recognise as it matures?
Brands are beginning to see that they can leverage retail data to power omni channel
strategies - CTV, Social and other off-site channels. Focus is shifting away from ROAS to incremental growth and true business outcomes. We are also seeing more retailers and now non-endemic brands monetise their first party data by launching their own retail and commerce media networks.
How are brands thinking about using retail data in ways that feel sustainable, not just effective in the short term?
Brands are increasingly viewing retail data as a full funnel strategy rather than limiting it to lower funnel tactics. Instead of repeatedly targeting the same shoppers, they are focusing on acquiring new buyers, driving basket expansion, win back strategies, increasing CLV and building loyalty. At the same time, they are prioritising consent, transparency, and consumer expectations, recognising that trust is critical for long term value. The goal is to use insights not just for short term performance but to inform customer experiences and shape business strategies.
Molly Peake, Head of Customer Success & Partnerships - AUDIENCES
From working closely with brand teams day to day, what tends to make the biggest difference between data activation initiatives that gain real traction and those that struggle to move beyond pilots?
Early collaboration on data & use cases - Initiatives succeed when teams align early on what they want to activate and whether the data actually exists, is usable, and is compliant.
Clear objectives – A brand is more likely to be successful when they have a clear view of what they want to achieve aside from better marketing performance. E.g. retaining a certain type of customer, acquiring net new customers etc.
Business alignment around 1PD - When first-party data activation is tied to wider business goals, not just media performance, it gains internal momentum and buy-in.
An agency that is fully bought in - Traction comes when agencies treat first-party data as a core performance lever, embedding it into planning and reporting, rather than treating it as an add-on.
Prioritise scale over hyper-targeting – Fewer, higher-impact use cases outperform multiple small, hyper-targeted audiences, both in results and operational efficiency.
As brands plan for 2026, what are you seeing that helps teams feel more confident activating data particularly when it comes to trust, ease of use and proving value internally?
No need to over-complicate. What are the simple, high value use cases that you can reproduce across channels? If a brand has access to a list of existing customers, this can be used as a suppression audience as well as a seed audience for a lookalike to improve acquisition campaigns. Once the basics are in place, brands then have the opportunity to build out more innovative use cases.
Closing: Experience Over Assumptions
As 2026 approaches, the most valuable insight isn’t found in bold predictions. it’s found in patterns observed through real execution. Brands aren’t looking for another rulebook. They’re looking for clarity, confidence and partners who understand the trade-offs.
At AUDIENCES, our perspective is shaped by working with brands. Inside their environments, across their clouds, and within the realities they face every day.
We wish all of our clients, partners and industry friends a very Happy Christmas! Here's to 2026!
