US Adspend Down In First Half Of 2008
Total US measured advertising expenditures in the first six months of 2008 declined by 1.6% year on year, according to the latest data from TNS Media Intelligence.
“Advertising expenditures started to contract in March, well before the September turbulence on Wall Street renewed concerns about the health of the economy and possible collateral damage to the ad market,” said Jon Swallen, SVP Research at TNS Media Intelligence.
“Second half results, particularly for television media, will be bolstered by the Summer Olympics and political elections. However, sustained improvement will most likely depend on a turnaround in consumer spending that rejuvenates corporate profits and encourages marketers to expand their advertising efforts.”
Dean DeBiase, CEO of TNS Media, said: “While expenditures are certainly indicative of the challenges being presented by the economy, they also suggest the continuation of the long-term trend of marketing dollars migrating to media such as the internet, cable TV and syndication that provide the ability to more effectively target specific audiences.
“With advertising budgets and CMOs under pressure and uncertainties continuing to exist relative to consumer spending, it appears marketers are placing an emphasis upon enhanced efficiencies for their brands and the ability to engage with well defined audiences to ensure ever greater return on investment.”
Every one of the 19 measured media types posted weaker year-over-year performance in the second quarter as compared to the first three months of 2008. For the half year, internet display advertising expenditures increased 8% as marketers continued to expand their online programs. Cable TV (+3.1%) and Syndication TV (+10.2%) were aided by limited exposure to the TV writer’s strike. Outdoor ad spending was up by 1.8%.
| Percent Change in Measured Ad Spending: Jan-June 2008 vs. Jan-June 2007 (1) | |
| Media Sector – Media Sector (Sectors and types listed in rank order of spending) | %Change |
| TELEVISION MEDIA | -0.4% |
| Network TV | -2.4% |
| Cable TV | 3.1% |
| Spot TV (2) | -4.4% |
| Spanish Language TV | -0.1% |
| Syndication – National | 10.2% |
| MAGAZINE MEDIA (3) | -1.8% |
| Consumer Magazines | -1.8% |
| B-to-B Magazines | -5.9% |
| Sunday Magazines | 4.8% |
| Local Magazines | -2.8% |
| Spanish Magazines | 7.1% |
| NEWSPAPER MEDIA | -7.4% |
| Local Newspapers | -7.1% |
| National Newspapers | -9.5% |
| Spanish Newspapers | -11.0% |
| INTERNET (4) | 8.0% |
| RADIO MEDIA | -6.5% |
| Local Radio (5) | -7.5% |
| National Spot Radio | -7.4% |
| Network Radio | 3.4% |
| OUTDOOR | 1.8% |
| FSIs (6) | 2.0% |
| TOTAL | -1.6% |
| (1) Figures are based on the TNS Media Intelligence Strategy multimedia ad expenditure database across all TNS MI measured media, including: Network TV (6 networks); Spot TV (101 markets); Cable TV (52 networks); Syndication TV; Hispanic Network TV; Consumer (PIB) Magazines (215 publications); Sunday Magazines (6 publications); Business-to-Business Magazines (317 publications); Local Newspapers (144 publications); National Newspapers (3 publications); Hispanic Newspapers (51 publications); Network Radio; Spot Radio; Local Radio; Internet; and Outdoor. Figures do not include public service announcement (PSA) data. | |
| (2) Spot TV figures do not include Hispanic Spot TV data | |
| (3) Magazine Media includes Publishers Information Bureau (PIB) data | |
| (4) Internet figures are based on display advertising only | |
| (5) Local radio includes expenditures for 32 markets in the US | |
| (6) FSI data represents distribution costs only | |
The top 10 advertising categories in the first quarter of 2008 spent a total of $36,336.3 million, down 0.7% from a year ago. Automotive was the top-spending category at $6,478.4 million, a decline of 11.2% as the industry continued to grapple with a sales slowdown. Automotive expenditures have now declined for twelve consecutive quarters.
A recent report from Nielsen Monitor-Plus also found that US advertising spending for the first half of 2008 declined slightly compared to the same period last year (see US Adspend Declines Slightly In First Half Of 2008).