Matthew Houltham. Credit: Starcom Australia
The AdNews end of year Perspectives, looking back at 2025 and forward to next year.
Matthew Houltham, CEO Starcom Australia
There is a moment when you move from briefing an agency to leading one that is like stepping through the looking glass. The landscape looks familiar, but the contours change. The pressures, the pace, the priorities are all there, just reframed.
Having been on both sides of the fence this year, as a global marketer for a tech scale-up and now running a media agency, I’ve learned that focus isn’t optional. It’s survival.
The noise in our industry is deafening. The pace of change is relentless. And the anxiety driven by economic uncertainty, structural shifts, competitive pressure and the impact of AI is real.
If you’re curious like me, you’re bombarded daily with new ‘stuff’ from news sources you trust and salespeople vying for your attention. Productivity hacks, media innovations, research breakthroughs, audience tools, and endless AI bolt-ons to existing solutions. The temptation to explore everything is strong, but that’s the road to madness. There’s simply too much.
It’s taken me a while, but I’ve finally realised that success doesn’t come from chasing the next shiny thing. It comes from choosing. From knowing what matters and doubling down. There’s a saying that ‘strategy is what you choose not to do’, and this approach is the only way I’ve found to manage the maelstrom.
Being considered in your choices cuts through complexity, aligns effort with impact, and builds confidence.
For our agency, that’s meant focusing on specific products, processes and people initiatives to further improve the work and continue to enhance our relationships with clients and media partners. And we’re seeing great signals through employee feedback, client engagement scores, award wins and inbound leads.
We’ve also seen the benefits for clients who have doubled down. Brands like Miele, who focus on leveraging precise audience segmentation, continue to outperform the market. Tourism Tasmania utilises media partnerships to integrate into culture to great effect, while Metcash has scaled its personalisation strategy to deliver customised creative at scale across hundreds of media locations.
2025 has been a rollercoaster – fast, unpredictable, exhilarating and, occasionally, disorienting. But I’ve learnt one thing: clarity is power. You’ll never clear the to-do list, so stop trying. Instead, identify the few things that will unlock growth for you and your business, and give them the attention they deserve.
As we head into 2026, I’m not making predictions; I’m making choices. About where to invest time and resources, what to ignore, and how to stay client-focused in a world that won’t slow down. That’s how I stay sane - and happy.
If you too are dealing with overload, maybe it’s time to make a choice. What are you going to not do this week?
Have something to say on this? Share your views in the comments section below. Or if you have a news story or tip-off, drop us a line at adnews@yaffa.com.au
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