Marketing procurement is far more than managing costs or contracts, it’s about turning marketing spend into a strategic growth engine. Unlike other procurement categories, marketing is an investment, not a commodity, and its value often includes intangible elements such as creativity, brand impact, and innovation.
The reputation of marketing procurement, however, is sometimes a bit simpler – they’re the ones who drive down costs and hand contracts to the lowest bidder.
Nina Chandé, who has held senior marketing procurement roles at brands including Sainsbury’s, Sky, Sony and most recently Unilever, and is now working independently as a consultant, is familiar with that misconception. In her most recent role, she operated at the intersection of creative and technology, helping marketing and tech investments deliver real impact. She now helps agencies, tech vendors and brands adopt Future Fit Procurement practices that unlock growth through smarter negotiation, AI enablement and commercial transformation.
“Marketing procurement, ironically, has got a lot of marketing to do,” Chandé tells VideoWeek.
But it’s in agencies’ and marketing departments’ interests to move past these misconceptions. Understanding what marketing procurement teams really care about and decoding procurement can be key for coming out on top in RFPs.
Translating marketing into finance
Marketing procurement in some ways functions similarly to other types of procurement. At its core, the job is about setting frameworks for how money is spent and performance is measured, deciding which vendors to work with, and ensuring money is spent in a way which aligns with the best interests of the company.
But marketing is an investment, not a cost, a fundamental difference from other types of procurement. “With marketing procurement, you’re not buying pens, you’re not buying laptops, you’re buying creative ideas,” says Chandé. “But how do you put a price on a creative idea?”
So marketing procurement workers, in an ideal world, should have a good understanding of both marketing and procurement as separate disciplines. Chandé says that when she worked at Sky, she physically had a desk in the marketing department and a desk in procurement, to ensure she was regularly in the loop with both parts of the business.
“You’re a bridge between your business and its partners, and you’re also a bridge of communication internally,” says Chandé. “Where procurement might talk about costs and marketing might talk about value, you’re interpreting what each part of the business wants and speaking in their own language.”
“When executed effectively, marketing procurement is a collaborative force rather than a barrier. Procurement 4.0 approaches empower marketers by combining clear commercial frameworks, negotiation mastery, and AI-driven insights, helping teams make smarter choices, optimise investments, and strengthen supplier partnerships. The goal isn’t to limit creativity, it’s to translate ambition into actionable strategies that protect margins, accelerate growth, and drive sustainable value.”
“You can look at it through different dimensions,” Chandé explains. “You could be looking at different channels and optimising media investments – are we better off spending money in TV, in influencer marketing or in digital? Then when you’ve decided what your channel allocation will look like with finance partners, legal partners, marketing partners and other procurement partners, you go down to the next level. So within digital, where are we spending? It’s going down layer by layer, but always with the business.”
“Marketing definitely can be resistant to marketing procurement,” she adds. “The worry is ‘they’re going to ruin my relationships, cut my costs, decide which agencies I can and can’t work with, take so long to put contracts together that I lose sales, and not help me meet my business targets’.”
Company culture, set by the leadership, can lead to poor relationships both internally and externally, resulting in suppliers being treated badly and an over-focus on cost cutting. And when there isn’t a defined marketing procurement role or department, unclear roles and responsibilities and poor incentives can damage external relationships.
How to win a pitch
It’s not just brands themselves who sometimes get marketing procurement wrong. Agencies have plenty of misconceptions and misunderstandings too. But Chandé says that getting on the same page as marketing procurement can be key to building good relationships and, yes, winning pitches. Based on her experience, Chandé suggests five recommendations for vendors when it comes to working with marketing procurement.
1. Think beyond costs and decode procurement
Agencies should learn to speak the language of marketing procurement, balancing the intangible value of marketing with cost management and value assessment of procurement.
“I’ve never not chosen the best supplier because of cost, as much as people might think that’s all marketing procurement cares about,” says Chandé. “Marketing procurement wants good investment. So show them that you’re offering a good investment! Back it up with figures and statistics to the point that the marketing department says ‘why wouldn’t I invest my money here?’ You can still bring the ‘wow’ ideas, but you have to translate that into commercial value too.
2. Be brave enough to say no
Not every RFP will be a good fit for every agency. Chandé advises agencies to evaluate alignment with their core capabilities and watch for red flags in brand-side relationships.
“Don’t get distracted by the dollar signs when there’s a chance to work with a big brand,” she explains. “I know it’s tempting to try something new when you want to get an inroad with a big company, but stick to your core speciality. Are you best suited to the job? If you are, then that should stand out in your pitch.
3. Think long term
Agencies should avoid over-promising, under-delivering, and damaging their long-term reputation. Effective supply relationship management after winning a contract is as important as the pitch itself.
“Put yourself in the client’s shoes and take care of their investment,” says Chandé. “Ask yourself, how can we be proactive? Are we delivering the big ‘wow’ ideas? I think that’s where agencies often fall down.”
“If you’re an incumbent agency, there should be no surprise if there’s a pitch going on,” she adds. “Whether that’s because you’re not doing a good job, or it’s the brand’s standard practice, you should have your finger on the pulse as their business partner and know exactly what’s going on in the business.”
4. Invest in negotiation mastery
“I’m very passionate about negotiation training, because I’ve seen the results it can deliver,” says Chandé. “One of the things you learn about negotiation is that price isn’t the only variable. Once you look at all the variables the brand is interested in and take the client’s perspective, that’s a very, very powerful tool.”
“Make sure you’ve got people that are commercially savvy,” she adds. “I’ve always been able to spot very easily when the negotiation will be quick and easy negotiation because the people on the other side haven’t been well trained. And whenever the people I’m negotiating with are well trained, that’s when I know negotiations will be lengthy!”
5. Get the right people in the room
Bringing appropriately skilled and senior participants ensures smooth negotiations and demonstrates credibility. Overloading pitches with unnecessary personnel can backfire.
“You hear it so much, that senior people turn up in pitches but then you never see them again,” says Chandé. “Or they bring a room full of people and you are faced with a cinema audience on teams or a crowded meeting room. It makes you question what their overheads are like if they’ve managed to bring 14 people along to a pitch! So make sure you’re bringing in the right people.”
Relationships remain key
Trust, transparency and communication remain at the heart of successful marketing procurement.
“Be really honest and really transparent, that’s really what marketing procurement wants,” Chandé emphasises. “Once trust and transparency is gone, it’s very difficult to get it back. Those human values are very important.”
Over the course of her time working in marketing procurement, Chandé has seen significant change and that evolution is only accelerating as AI transforms the industry. “AI, like marketing, is an investment, and successful pilots require the right outcomes and commercial frameworks. Technology, legal and cybersecurity teams are increasingly stakeholders in these discussions, but the human element remains constant.”
As she moves into her next chapter as an independent consultant, Chandé is focused on helping agencies, tech vendors and brands adopt “Future Fit Procurement practices” that unlock growth through smarter negotiation, AI enablement, and commercial transformation, turning procurement from a compliance function into a strategic growth engine.
