IAB Belgium, powered by BAM, announces strategic revival to address critical gaps in digital advertising & marketing ecosystem

BRUSSELS, Belgium –IAB Belgium today announces its strategic revival, marking the return of a strong and recognizable IAB label for the Belgian market. Powered by BAM (Belgian Association of Marketing), IAB Belgium will operate as a focused digital expert community with a clear mission: to strengthen standards, accelerate collaboration, and unlock digital marketing and advertising effectiveness in a fast-moving digital age.

Belgium’s digital advertising and marketing sector currently faces significant challenges, says Fleur Parnet, CEO of BAM. These include fragmented industry standards, inconsistent definitions for emerging channels such as Connected TV and retail media and limited alignment between brands, agencies, media owners and technology platforms. At the same time, increasing European regulatory complexity and a growing skills gap in digital and AI technologies have made stronger coordination and expertise-sharing essential. We addressed these topics in 2025, and we are now ready to accelerate with nine dedicated moments throughout the year for our community.

Our program will include four afterworks focused on key strategic themes such as agentic AI, search models, leadership and organization in the age of AI. In addition, we will organize sector-specific events covering retail, or luxury, automotive and FMCG.

Our ambition is to engage brands directly (not only agencies) and to create meaningful dialogue around these priority topics. As part of our strategic plan, all these events will be free of charge for BAM members. In the second half of the year, we will also host the IAB MIXX Awards, a flagship event celebrating excellence in digital marketing that we are bringing to the next level!

“Belgium’s advertising sector has tremendous potential, but fragmentation has held us back from realizing our full impact,” says Frederic Martins, one of the founding leaders of the revived IAB Belgium, board member of BAM and Digital Director at RMB. “This renewed momentum within BAM comes at a critical moment when industry players are seeking alignment, and European frameworks require strong local translation and operationalization.”

Getting a digital community out there.

“It’s not that nothing is happening in the digital community,” says Roel Van Aelst, member of the IAB Belgium leadership team and Strategic Partnership Director at iO. “But this is an important next step. Given the pace of digital and technological developments, we need to remain proactive. Belgium has an enormous base of digital expertise, and through IAB Belgium, we can better connect, leverage and share that knowledge, especially under the umbrella of BAM touching all the digital marketers.”

Together with fellow members of the IAB Belgium advisory board within BAM, the team is developing formats and initiatives designed to build momentum and energy toward 2026 and beyond.

2026 strategic priorities

IAB Belgium will focus on two key priorities from 2026 onward: establishing its voice as the definitive standards fosterig innovation in alignment with IAB Europe and building cross-industry community and collaborations.

The community will serve digital departments across brands, agencies, media owners, technology companies, regulatory bodies, and academic institutions, while creating structured pathways for young digital talent entering the market.

“IAB Belgium will actively translate European standards into practical local action - not only to ensure alignment, but to position the Belgian marketing and media ecosystem as stronger, more competitive and more innovative in a rapidly evolving digital landscape,” adds Nele Vanhecke, member of the IAB Belgium leadership team and Sales Manager retail media at bol. I am especially excited to bring also new formats on the market like the sector-event in retail with a round table in April.

Industry stakeholders interested in joining the IAB Belgium community are invited to connect with the founding team to explore participation and partnership opportunities.

Next on the calender:
IAB Afterwork 5@7 – 5th of March:  Discover how Agentic AI is reshaping the digital advertising landscape.