In spite of mounting economic pressures, it appears the advertising world is still growing, according to latest figures from The Nielsen Company’s Global AdView Pulse report, which found that global advertising spend grew just over 4% in the Q1 2008.
In the period from January to March 2008, ad spending in Africa grew by over 16%, and the Asia Pacific region recorded almost 10% growth. In the more developed regions of North America and Europe, growth was considerably slower – North America’s ad spending figures climbed by just 1% and remained flat in Europe (-0.4%). As a result these two regions lost one point of share respectively to Asia Pacific.
Globally, healthcare retains the majority share of ad spending, with just over 10% of all advertising activity. With 9% of global consumers ranking their health as their biggest concern today, we may see this figure continue to rise. Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) advertising spend is also growing at a significant rate (+6.7%), recording growth across all regions. Advertising spend in the Clothing and Accessories sector grew by 5.5%.
Television remains the highest-grossing medium for advertising spend, recording a 6.9% yearly growth rate globally and growth in every region. Television currently accounts for 60% of global ad spend. Newspapers, representing almost 24% of spend, remained flat (0.4%) and Magazines showed a slight decline globally (-0.9%).
