Brief the Algorithm. Win the Buyer.
The rules of B2B media have changed. It’s no longer about reach and repetition. Success in 2025 will belong to the brands that brief the algorithm, show up in culture, and make buying as seamless as streaming.
This article outlines how B2B CMOs can shift from static campaigns to dynamic, culture-powered media ecosystems, built for attention, trust and velocity.
Media Planning Just Got Turned Upside Down
Every scroll, search and stream your buyers interact with is now ranked by AI before a human ever sees your brand. As dentsu's Year of Impact report outlines, 2025 is the year media becomes 100% addressable, shoppable and accountable but also algorithmically filtered.
This fundamentally rewrites the rules of B2B media. The traditional playbook - broad programmatic, quarterly bursts, static ABM lists - can’t keep up. In this environment, relevance isn’t a differentiator, it’s the entry fee.
And it’s not just the platforms that have evolved. According to the Superpowers Index 2024, B2B buyers now prioritise personal values over professional credentials. “Feeling safe signing the contract” and “brand alignment with my values” are now top purchase drivers.
Media can no longer just push messages, it must participate in culture, build trust and spark curiosity in context.
If you're exploring how to re-engineer your media mix for 2025 and beyond, complete the form. Or read on to learn what Outcome-Based Algorithm Planning (OAP) looks like in action.
Strategy: Outcome-Based Algorithm Planning (OAP)
In an AI-ranked media landscape, algorithms are now your first audience. They decide which content gets surfaced and to whom. The brands that win are the ones that actively brief the algorithm, just like they would brief a creative agency.
OAP focuses on three flywheels:
- Availability to Algorithms – Structure your campaigns and metadata to make it easy for platforms to match you to high-propensity micro-audiences.
- Attention Quality – Prioritise media placements and formats that drive real-time engagement, not just views.
- Commerce Bridge – Build seamless paths from inspiration to action: think retail media overlays, QR codes in CTV, and shoppable content embedded within thought leadership.
Key Shifts & Evidence
Shift: CTV Goes B2B
- What's changing? Prime Video’s ad tier now reaches over 50B impressions globally, with B2B targeting by firmographics and intent.
- Why it matters? CTV is evolving from awareness-only to a full-funnel channel that can convert high-value decision-makers.
Shift: Retail Media isn't just for FMCG
- What's changing? Platforms like Amazon Business, Alibaba, 1688, and PayPal now support B2B shopper data and targeted media.
- Why it matters? B2B marketers can now intercept buyers at the procurement moment with relevant, shoppable content.
Shift: Micro-Moment Mapping
- What's changing? AI chat and zero-click search are shifting research behaviour; buyers get answers without ever clicking.
- Why it matters? Brands must now show up in “helpful” moments, inside tools, results, and content summaries, not just on landing pages.
Shift: Private Marketplaces for Trust
- What's changing? ESG, carbon metrics and brand safety are now baked into media buying protocols.
- Why it matters? Buyers are under pressure to prove ethical sourcing media vendors must meet higher transparency standards.
Shift: Culture-Powered Inventory Buying
- What's changing? DSPs are enabling buys based on social trends, subcultures and creator moments (e.g., Reddit, TikTok for B2B).
- Why it matters? Campaigns that sync with cultural relevance can drive up to 2.5× view-through conversion.
Shift: Attention as a Currency
- What's changing? “Attentive seconds” are becoming the new gold standard for media performance, replacing viewability metrics.
- Why it matters? Attention-linked media buys have proven to correlate more directly with recall, trust and pipeline acceleration .
How Culture x Commerce Reinvents Media for B2B
In B2C, Culture × Commerce is about putting products into pop culture. In B2B, it’s about making trust transactional by being visible in cultural conversations and removing friction from commercial ones.
Buyers today expect B2B to behave like B2C. Rich storytelling, seamless UX and on-demand relevance are table stakes. The brands that show up in context and show they understand the person behind the persona get the meeting.
Culture x Commerce media tactics in B2B:
- Target communities that matter (e.g. Discord dev servers, industry subreddits, regional WeChat groups)
- Time your campaigns to cultural bursts (e.g. product launches, budget season, social conversations)
- Embed a commerce bridge in every asset (e.g. “Demo now” CTAs, ROI calculators, pricing modules)
Culture earns attention. Commerce captures it. Media connects the two.
Tactical Blueprint for B2B Media Leaders
Adopt Algorithmic Buying Frameworks
Structure campaigns to let AI optimise for performance in real-time, combining targeting, prospecting and propensity in one shell.
Blend Culture Signals with Commerce Outcomes
Use social listening to inform inventory buys. Prioritise placements during cultural peaks (industry memes, tastemaker posts).
Create Shoppable CTV
Add overlays that trigger demo requests or self-led tours, closing the loop with clean-room attribution tools (e.g. Disney x Mercado Libre).
Invest in Attention & Sustainability Metrics
Trade on attentive seconds, not impressions. Introduce a CO₂-per-MQL cap to reflect buyer expectations on ESG.
Retail & Payment Media Pilots
Explore emerging ad formats in B2B marketplaces and financial ecosystems to intercept decision-makers mid-purchase.
Governance and KPIs for the Algorithm Era
To prove media impact in a machine-ranked world, B2B CMOs need KPIs that go beyond clicks and impressions focusing instead on relevance, resonance and revenue efficiency.
| Metric | What it Measures | Why it Matters |
| Algorithm Quality Score | % of creative ranked top quartile by AI relevance models. | Predicts if your content will be seen at all. |
| Attentive CPMs | Cost per 1,000 attention seconds. | Links investment to meaningful engagement. |
| Segment Media Efficiency Ratio | Pipeline generated ÷ spend per segment. | Aligns media investment with revenue growth potential. |
Win the Feed, Win the Funnel
In 2025, the media battle is no longer won in the bid, it’s won in the first few milliseconds of algorithmic ranking.
CMOs who shift from volume to value defined by cultural fluency, commerce access and algorithmic visibility will do more than generate pipeline. They’ll earn lasting brand preference and unlock lifetime value.
In B2B, the smartest media isn’t louder, it’s faster, sharper and always in the right context.
Related whitepapers & thought-leadership
The Superpowers Index
Superpowers: the largest and longest running B2B study ever in APAC
We take customer-obsession to the next level. We’ve studied the big, bold, beautiful world of B2B customer experiences in APAC an...
The Year of Impact
In this report, our experts examine these trends and, more importantly, share practical considerations brands can incorporate into their 2025 media planning.
Total Person B2B
The future belongs to B2B brands that value whole-customer experiences. iProspect specializes in supporting B2Bs to thrive at the intersection of personal, professional, and media connections.
2023 Merkle B2B Futures
Navigating today’s dynamic B2B landscape requires B2B brands to evolve their experiences, at speed and at scale, to keep pace, stay relevant and remain competitive.
Fragment Forward: Creative Trends 2025
Explore the trends that will shape consumer behaviour, brand engagement, and culture in 2025 and beyond.
Cannes Lions 2025 Rewind Report
We identified five key themes from the Festival — ranging from emotion in a data-driven world to Gen Z design, time-shifting culture, tech-powered societal change, and the power of entertainment IP.
Sources: Dentsu B2B The Superpowers Index 2024 Global, dentsu | The Year of Impact: 2025 Media Trends, dentsu | Total Person B2B: Accelerating New Brand Growth, iProspect | 2023 Merkle B2B Futures eBook, Merkle | DC Trends 2025 – Fragment Forward, dentsu Creative | dentsu Cannes Lions Rewind 2025, dentsu | Beyond 2025: Winning in the Algorithmic Era, dentsu X.