The Independent Media Agencies of Australia (IMAA), is launching an indie agency version of Upfronts season with its new InFront webinar series, designed to give members exclusive access to key insights from its media partners’ Upfronts and Outfronts.
The webinars, which kicked off this month and continue through October, will include individual presentations from several IMAA media partners, providing critical takeaways from their upfronts, including new product information and the latest audience data.
Participating media partners include Foxtel, SBS, Mamamia, Amazon, Nine, Paramount, Seven and oOh!media, among others.
IMAA CEO, Sam Buchanan, said: “One of the biggest challenges many media owners face is communicating to the ever-expanding indie universe, particularly in the busy upfronts season. Our InFront webinar series will provide a platform for our media partners, allowing them to communicate their key messages directly to indie agency staff who may have missed their initial upfront presentation.
“It’s an excellent way for our media partners to extend their reach within the indie sector, ensuring their insights resonate with those working ‘on the tools’ and that their future plans are effectively communicated to our sector.
“The InFront series is just another way the IMAA is delivering value for its members. We’re committed to taking feedback from both our agencies and media partners and using it to drive tangible change in the sector. We’re hopeful this series will provide much-needed information and inspiration for member agencies, while also giving our media partners another touchpoint to connect with media professionals as planning begins for 2025.”
Nine’s chief sales officer, Michael Stephenson said: “We are delighted to be part of the IMAA’s “Infronts” and look forward to showcasing key milestones in the areas of Content, Technology and Data along with innovations across Total TV, Total Audio and Total Publishing designed to drive real business outcomes for Indies and their clients.”
Foxtel Media’s director of customer engagement, Toby Dewar said: “The Foxtel Media Upfronts will restate our resolve to deliver better outcomes for brands, and reinforce our focus on the most watchable content, meaningful partnerships, and momentum in measurement.
“Indies help shape our Upfront by inspiring us to challenge conventions and create value through deeper partnerships and innovation. Our Upfronts will bring to life how we will continue to disrupt with purpose and help clients invest smarter across our platforms.”
oOh!media’s national head of sales – direct clients, independent agencies, boutique agencies, Tim Elder said: “As Australia’s number one out-of-home company, we have been extremely excited to bring this series of announcements to the market through Outfront ’25.
“oOh!’s clear understanding of five key megatrends of the power of scale, the rise of retail media, the fragmentation of audiences, the AI revolution and the shift to outcomes, showcases our ability to adapt and innovate in a rapidly and significantly transforming media landscape.
“The positive response from the independent agencies sector highlights the value of our approach in simplifying processes and enhancing campaign effectiveness. Data-driven, customised and highly effective advertising solutions, powered by our proprietary platforms and supported by partnerships such as Westpac Data X and Unpacked by Flybuys, are playing an important role in delivering results.”
Mamamia’s national head of independent agencies and direct, Holly Yates said: “Mamamia kicked off our Upfronts in Brisbane last week as part of our national Upfronts tour in September. This year Mamamia, the super channel for women, is going bigger, broader, and deeper. As Australia’s largest women’s media brand, Mamamia is supercharging in three ways: new content, platforms, and insights.
“Mamamia is an independent media publisher and has been a proud partner with the IMAA, and is supporting their newly launched InFronts this year. We look forward to going deeper with our IMAA independent agency partners and working closer in the coming year.”
The InFront webinar series will be available exclusively to IMAA member agencies in the coming months.
