In our most recent Power of 3 series, Jonathan Davis and Hugh Boston, ask three questions to three leading executives across the digital marketing services landscape.
This series features Juan Andres Elhazaz, CEO of SAMY Alliance, Alex Langshur, CEO Americas of Incubeta, and Glen Hartman, CEO North America of JAKALA. A big thank you to all the participants for their involvement.
Here we share some of their collective thoughts on the trends and opportunities ahead for the global digital marketing industry.
Back to business fundamentals & strategic optimization
Alex Langshur of Incubeta emphasizes the importance of focusing on core business fundamentals—people, clients, operations, and financials—before refining strategy. He compares leadership to a pilot navigating an emergency, prioritizing essential controls.
“You really need to focus on the fundamentals of the business, and then you have to be constantly looking at optimizing every one of those fundamentals.”
Alex Langshur, CEO Americas, Incubeta
AI as the future of digital marketing & business growth
All three CEOs stress AI’s transformative role across their industries. Langshur sees AI as the biggest growth driver for Incubeta, beyond creative applications. Hartman of JAKALA highlights AI-driven personalization and machine learning as key differentiators, while Elhazaz of SAMY Alliance notes AI’s role in shaping audience behavior and content trends.
M&A as a growth lever
Each company is expanding through acquisitions, targeting firms with strong data, AI, and specialized platforms expertise:
- SAMY Alliance sees M&A as one key lever to achieve their vision of becoming a global and independent leader in social media marketing. They look for social-first companies with recurring revenue, data-driven capabilities, and ambitious leadership.
- Incubeta seeks companies excelling in data/analytics, platforms specialization, scalable AI-driven processes and able to do digital creative optimization at scale.
- JAKALA prioritizes firms that are strong in AI, machine learning, and retail media, particularly in North America.
The need for market differentiation
Hartman of JAKALA critiques the “sea of sameness” in marketing services and stresses the need for unique value propositions. He champions “The Big Integration”—aligning strategists, data scientists, creatives, and media experts to focus on end-customer outcomes rather than traditional client metrics.
“The biggest opportunity for JAKALA and all its clients is what I call the Big Integration—bringing together strategists, data scientists, technologists, and creatives to redefine success through the lens of the end customer.”
Glen Hartman, CEO North America, JAKALA
Social media & commerce as a core marketing channel
Elhazaz of SAMY Alliance emphasizes the dominance of social media in modern marketing, with brands leveraging platforms for audience insights, trend detection, and authentic engagement. He foresees social commerce as a major growth area.
“Social media marketing is becoming the heart of the marketing mix, where brands can truly understand their audience, detect early trends, and build authentic connections in a platform of trust.”
Juan Andres Elhazaz, CEO, SAMY Alliance
Conclusion
These leaders share a common vision: leveraging AI and data-driven strategies, scaling through strategic acquisitions, and differentiating their services to stay ahead in a competitive digital landscape. While their approaches vary, their focus on innovation, optimization, and integration reflects the future direction of digital marketing and business transformation.
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