The Best Value for Money Guide

AGS Rome 2026 Welcome Kit for Media Buyers · for company-funded and self-funded attendance alike · the pass, the whole trip, the plan, and what to bring back

The pass is only part of the spend, and "which ticket" is the least important decision on this page. The important ones are whether the people you'd want to talk to are actually coming, what the whole trip costs including the days you're not at your desk, who covers the accounts while you're away, and what you'll bring back that the team can use. Work through it in that order. It's built to allow "Standard is enough" and "not this year". Both are answers.

Part 1. Relevance, before spending anything

Open the confirmed list. Three rows.

If two of the three rows have a real name and a real question, keep going. If not, come back when more names have landed; the list updates until the doors open.

Part 2. The passes, exactly

Standard covers the plan above. Three requests, the floor, every session, the reception. Everyone on the floor can be requested from a Standard pass.

Premium earns its difference if the Basic level of the Match App gets you meaningfully more of the requests you want accepted, or the half-day activity puts you in a small group with people you couldn't otherwise reach. Ask what Limited allows before paying for Basic.

Platinum is a working pass for someone holding a run of meetings: the lounge as a meeting room, playback for the sessions you'll miss. Second trip, for most buyers.

The test for any upgrade: name the specific person or room it gets you. Can't? Don't.

Part 3. The whole-trip budget

Your figures. Nothing is estimated for you, and the pass is not the total.

Part 4. The work left behind

Early November is the run-up to peak for most ecommerce accounts. The plan for cover is what makes the time-away argument credible, to a manager or to yourself.

• ☐ Holiday campaigns built and scheduled before you leave.
• ☐ A named person covering the accounts, with what they can decide alone and what they escalate.
• ☐ Alerts and rules in place: spend caps, pacing, the two things that would need a human within an hour.
• ☐ Two fixed check-ins a day from Rome, and nothing else; the point of being there is being there.
• ☐ Follow-up time blocked in the week you return.

Part 5. The two routes

The manager route. The case for your manager is on the previous page: two paragraphs, pre-filled with event facts, cost and time away, with space for your three conversations and the share-back. Send it with Parts 1 and 3 of this guide filled in.

The self-funded route. Set a personal ceiling before you look at options, so the decision is made by the plan and not by the checkout page. Then run Part 1 honestly: if the relevant people and a real question aren't there for you this year, the guide's answer is "not this trip," and that's a better outcome than a badge and a drawer of cards. If they are, Standard, three requests, and the plan below.

Part 6. The visit plan

• Three target conversations from Part 1, requested through the Match App once you hold a pass. Targets, not bookings; some accept, some don't.
• Two backups for the declines.
• Sessions: pick from the agenda when it's published; the speakers page says who's on stage and why they might matter to you.
• The floor: exhibitor stands don't need a request. Walk up with the question written down.
• Follow-up time: the day after you return, before delivery swallows it.

Part 7. The take-home

What the team gets, written before you go so it's honest.

One page, shared within a week. It's the line that makes the trip accountable, and accountable is what gets it approved next year too.

We update this kit from time to time as confirmations, prices and event details change. This page is current as of 12 September 2026.