COI ‘must play its part in helping reduce the deficit’

Following news that a freeze has been placed on government advertising and marketing spend, the Central Office of Information (COI) has released its annual report and accounts for 2009/10.

The government spent a total of £531 million on marketing and communications during the last year, which is down £9 million from the year before. Advertising expenditure accounted for £193 million of this total, down from £211 million in the previous year – a decrease of 9.5%. Digital advertising expenditure rose to £44 million – an increase of 10% – and accounted for 18% of total advertising spend.

Mark Lund, COI’s chief executive said: “COI must play its part in helping reduce the deficit. This year we are more focused than ever on achieving outcomes at a much lower cost. We anticipate more partnerships with brand owners, media owners and civic groups, as well as increasingly innovative approaches to joining up paid-for and other media channels.”

The report goes on to highlight the COI’s attempts to make savings for the government. It was able to negotiate a 47.7% reduction in media costs against recognised industry benchmarks, which is a saving of £204 million. This is in addition to the £52 million savings made across a range of other services including publications, direct marketing and events.

The report also shows that the COI prioritised three areas during 2009/10, which were evaluation, digital engagement and behaviour change.