ISBA, in partnership with Ebiquity, has launched The Business Case for Responsible Media, which lays out clear and actionable arguments that brands can use to build responsible media buying practices.
It follows on from the 2025 publication of ISBA’s Responsible Media Guide, which set out practical guidance for safe, sustainable and legal ad placement across media channels.
The Business Case for Responsible Media underlines that responsible media planning and buying drives media effectiveness highlighting that improvements in sustainability, inclusion, data governance, brand safety and AI oversight produce effective, measurable, ongoing commercial benefits.
The guidance is designed to provide marketers with evidence and commercial arguments to foster corporate adoption of responsible media practices. Examples of evidence include:
- Sustainability perceptions alone contribute up to 10% of brand equity
- 33% lower cost per action through stronger data standards
- 30-40% improvement in efficiency through governed AI use
- Stronger long-term sales and loyalty through more inclusive campaigns
- Greater effectiveness with lower brand risk in trusted media environments
Alongside the report, ISBA has developed the Responsible Media Campaign Checklist - a practical tool designed to help marketers, their agencies, internal teams and supply chain partners align on standards, reduce duplication and improve decision-making across campaigns.
By creating a single framework, the checklist supports:
- Lower wasted spend and fewer duplicated processes
- Improved alignment across marketing, legal and procurement teams
- Greater confidence in compliance and governance
Guidance on Responsible Media practice reflects ISBA’s focus on helping members build marketing operations that are more effective, accountable and future-fit. Ebiquity shares this focus and aims to help brands turn media principles into practical actions that deliver more effective and responsible advertising.
Bobi Carley, Director of Industry Relations at ISBA, said:
“This is about helping marketers make better decisions with their media investment. What we see consistently in the evidence is that reducing waste, tightening governance and improving standards doesn’t make marketing harder - it makes it work harder. The checklist has been designed as a practical tool to help teams and their partners apply that consistently, reduce duplication, and get more value from every pound spent.”
Bryony Lawler, Senior Director of Sales and Growth at Ebiquity, said: "Marketing investment faces growing pressure to deliver both performance and accountability. This work shows that responsible media is not a trade-off. It is a route for brands to deliver advertising that is more effective for their business and more responsible for people and the planet.”
Vicky Keenan, Marketing Director Northern Europe, Consumer Health, Bayer, said, “The Business Case for Responsible Media demonstrates that prioritising responsible practices in our strategies drives stronger engagement and business growth. It shows that inclusive marketing leads to measurable success and helps marketers embrace diverse audience perspectives to connect authentically and enable brand growth.”
ISBA members can access the content here.
To support this work, ISBA and The Unstereotype Alliance have launched the Community Media Directory, a practical resource to help brands connect with diverse audiences more effectively.