As it ramps up push to fund AI bets, Meta makes a new play for agencies

It’s a shift from the way the platform has previously worked with agencies. Typically, agencies are appointed a single Meta rep as their go-to platform exec, whom they meet with periodically to discuss what more they can get out of the platform — including new features, or whatever else the agency needs from the platform to commit more ad dollars to it.

But as part of the collective, “Instead of an agency having access to a single rep, all communications goes to an alias, where that alias is only focused on an agency’s select accounts (designated by Meta),” said another exec who has been pitched about the team. “This alias would not necessarily be supporting the full book of business by an agency.”

In exchange, participating agencies can gain access to a rotating bench of Meta specialists and virtual training sessions aimed at improving performance for clients. Additionally, the platform will connect agencies with specialists and subject matter experts to share information needed to help drive performance for their clients. 

“I think having multiple trainings throughout the year with Meta helps agencies when applying those learnings to their clients,” said Alana Putterman, group vp of social media investment at Basis.

No minimum spend requirements have been touted to the ad execs Digiday interviewed for this article, though they have not been ruled out, Digiday has learned. Membership is open-ended but participation is being monitored, according to another executive briefed on the plan. Agencies that fail to engage meaningfully with the pilot risk being removed, the exec added. 

For a renewed courtship of independent agencies — the first in several years per those execs — it’s a notably controlled approach. 

“This isn’t a return to the old white-glove era so much as a course correction,” said Rita Steinberg, vice president, media at FUSE Create. “AI tools like Advantage+ can absolutely drive outcomes, but agencies still need access, translation, and leverage to confidently recommend Meta within multi-platform plans.”

It would be overstated to frame the move as a turnaround. Meta does not suddenly need agencies to prop up its ads business. It does, however, need more advertising revenue to fund the capital-intensive ambitions behind its AI roadmap. Agencies are, therefore, a means to an end in that regard, giving it access to larger brands and bigger budgets. Tools such as Advantage+ and its recent Manus acquisition remain central to that automation vision, and will continue to anchor how Meta scales as dollars in the years ahead.

A spokesperson from Meta said: “Agencies are critical partners, and we will continue to closely collaborate with them to deliver growth for businesses of all sizes.”