UK advertising spend hit £10bn during the second quarter of this year – up 13.4%.
That’s ahead of expectations and is partly due to stronger than anticipated digital growth but also as a result of 2023’s relatively weak results.
“Four in every five pounds spent on advertising so far this year has gone towards digital formats, money which has mostly been committed programmatically and which is increasingly leveraging AI tools for further efficiencies,” explained James McDonald, Director of Data, Intelligence & Forecasting, WARC [pictured].
“The strong growth across the online sector in particular during the first half of 2024 has put the UK’s ad market on course for its best year since the millennium, if the post-pandemic recovery year of 2021 is discounted.”
The latest Advertising Association/WARC Expenditure Report revealed that adspend for the first half of the year were also up 13.5% to £19.6bn.
As a result of today’s figures, AA/WARC has upgraded its forecasts of 2024 as a whole, with UK adpsend expected to cross the £40bn barrier for the first time, up 2.9% to £40.5bn.
That would represent an annual increase of 10.6%, with real terms growth for 2024 expected to be 7.9%.
Broken down, the figures showed that online display was up 21.6%; and search 12.7%; out of home was up 17.0%.
The Men’s Euros broadcast saw TV benefit from growth of 9.0% for the quarter, representing the strongest quarter for TV in over 2 years.
Regional newsbrands and magazines had their first growth since the pandemic bounce back of Q2 2022 with increases in spend of 1.9% and 0.5% respectively.
“The advertising industry is once again driving UK growth, helping businesses to compete, promote innovation and support jobs,” said Stephen Woodford, CEO, Advertising Association.
“It is an essential engine of the economy and key to the Government’s central ambition to achieve the highest sustained growth in the G7. Advertising has a vital role in funding culture, media and sport – and the results of Q2 show how advertising can play a fundamental part in supporting the success of events such as the Men’s Euros, the Olympics and the Paralympics.”
