New report suggests global ad spending is on the rise

According to a report published by Zenith Media, it is estimated that global ad spending is expected to rise by 4.7 per cent in 2019, up from the previously forecast four per cent in December 2018.
The new report outlines marketers’ growing investments in digital advertising formats, particularly when considering social media and online video which are also expected to grow.
Online video is forecast to grow by 19 per cent by 2021, and social media by 14 per cent, demonstrating a shift away from traditional advertising mediums.
Zenith investigated the growth of out-of-home advertising (OOH) that is being used by advertisers, which has surpassed the predicted growth of TV advertising.
This agrees with the recent data released by the Out of Home Advertising Association of America showing OOH ad spend grew 4.5% in 2018 to reach $8 billion, a record high for the format.
The US has topped the list for largest global advertising spending, racking up 37 per cent of the total global spend, with its spending increasing to five per cent from 2.9 per cent.
The report detailed: “We expect the US to be by far the largest contributor to global ad spend growth between 2018 and 2021, adding US$32bn to the market. China will be in second place, adding US$16bn, and India in third, adding US$5bn.”
For affiliates, this demonstrates that a combination of both digital and traditional advertising methods may be the most effective approach to raising brand awareness among their communities.
The report specifically highlighted how small enterprises and challenger brands are fighting for consumers’ attention with more established brands, which may result in larger brands altering their digital strategies in order to compete.
“Internet advertising will exceed a quarter of a trillion dollars for the first time this year,” said Jonathan Barnard, Zenith’s Head of Forecasting and Director of Global Intelligence. “The speed of internet ad spend growth continues to surprise us, as small businesses and digital challengers provoke established brands to up their game.”
“Brands with more than a niche market share still need interruptive advertising at scale to acquire new customers,” said Ben Lukawski, Zenith’s Global Head of Strategy.
“As more communication takes place online, the challenge for brands is to build distinctiveness through frequent short-term exposure, rather than the occasional but longer exposures common to traditional media.”
The report concluded: “Challenger brands do not rely on digital advertising alone, and are establishing themselves as prominent advertisers in offline media, particularly television and out-of-home.
“Spending by these digital-native brands is helping to prop up global television ad spend, which is roughly stable despite rapid declines in traditional television viewing in key markets like the US and China.”