UK adspend increased by 2.4% in the first quarter of 2013 to £4.14bn. This follows a strong performance in 2012, as adspend broke through the £17bn barrier, the most spent on advertising in the UK since 2007.
Updated forecasts now predict total adspend growth of 2.6% in 2013, followed by a rise of 4.9% in 2014.
The AA/Warc Expenditure Report claims to be the definitive measure of advertising activity in the UK. As the only impartial source of quarterly adspend figures and forecasts, with both a total market and individual media breakdowns, it is considered the most reliable picture of the industry by advertisers, agencies and media owners.
Tim Lefroy, Chief Executive of the Advertising Association said: “A pound spent on advertising returns six pounds to GDP. These figures don’t just reflect growing confidence, they represent an important investment in the recovery.”
Q1 2013 Expenditure Report highlights
• Q1 growth was fuelled by an 11.1% increase in internet spend, driven by the continued strong growth of mobile advertising.
• TV spot advertising also increased ahead of trend in Q1 2013, rising by 5.6%.
• Total adspend across newsbrands and magazine brands fell by -7.9% and -11.6% respectively, but these declines are forecast to slow in 2013/14, spurred by strong growth in digital revenues for each channel.
• Following a strong Olympic year, out of home spend grew by just 0.1% in Q1 2013 and is predicted to decline for the year as a whole, but the rate of decline has been cut from -2.1% to -1.5%, with the forecast for 2014 lifted from 3.9% to 4.6%.
• Of the other media, cinema increased 1.6% in Q1 2013, direct mail fell by an estimated 1%, and radio fell by 2.9%.
*Internet data for Q1 2013 is a Warc estimate. Excludes TV VOD, digital adspend for newsbrands and magazine brands
** Direct mail data for Q1 2013 is a Warc estimate
This year saw an important change in methodology that allows subscribers to the AA/Warc Expenditure Report to view the impact of online adspend for newsbrands, magazine brands and TV. This approach is a truer representation of today’s media landscape and provides a view of adspend that is relevant to agencies, advertisers and media owners now and into the future.
