Global Adspend In 2015 To Increase By 4.9%

A recent report by ZenithOptimedia predicts that global adspend will reach the $545 billion mark by the end of next year, an increase of 4.9%, The Drum reports. The Advertising Expenditure Forecast puts this increase down to the increasingly positive outlook of the world’s economy; however, compared to 2014 – which saw the impact from the World Cup, US mid-term elections and the Winter Olympics – global adspend will in fact be slightly below the 5.1% increase recorded for that 12 month period.

The main force behind this predicted increase will be mobile advertising, which will account for 51% of all new spend between 2014 and 2017 and will grow at around 38% each year, according to the report. This will not be the main driver in the US, however, with digital display due to be so in this market.

The chief executive of ZenithOptimedia, Steve King, stated that: “Mobile technology is creating new opportunities for brands to build relationships with consumers.”

In terms of specific regions, global adspend between 2014 and 2017 is expected to grow by 2.4% in Japan (the lowest amount measured), up to 3.9% in North America, 5.9% in Eastern Europe and Central Asia and 10% in Latin America. For the same regions, adspend inscrease between 2013 and 2014 was at 2.8%, 4.6%, 0.4% and 13% respectively.

Programmatic buying will also lead to a 26% increase in traditional digital display. King said that “programmatic buying is making brand communication cheaper and more effective.”

Social media will also be a huge factor in this increase in spend, as professionals in the industry become more aware of how to effectively advertise on such platforms; “we expect mobile marketing to develop further as other media learn from this example”, King concluded.