Nielsen tracks 2007 trends

2007 may be over but there is much to learn from the past year for online marketers. To help with that Nielsen//Netratings has released a look-behind to track the trends that were in 2007. The research firm tracked everything from popular television shows to how advertisers spent their money during '07.

by Kristina Knight

The top US advertisers for 2007 included Procter & Gamble ($2.62 billion spent, 1% increase), General Motors ($1.36 billion spent, 22% decrease) and AT&T ($1.35 billion spent, 4% decrease). What is interesting about this trend is that with the exception of P&G and Kraft Foods ($800 million spent, 1% increase), all of the top ten advertisers cut back on advertising in 2007.

Some of these advertisers still pushed more dollars online, however, that doesn't change the fact that overall many advertisers cut back on ad spending during the year. This could indicate a downturn in the overall advertising arena as we head into 2008.

One interesting advertising trend was that of product placement. Placement has been around almost as long as television and radio in general but each year more television shows sign on for placement deals. Reality television shows are really beginning to capitalize on product placement with American Idol (4349 placements), Fast Cars and Superstars (3231 placements) and Extreme Makeover: Home Edition (2476 placements) leading the way.

With more viewers watching these reality shows, and with the current writer's strike keeping new episodes of popular sit-coms and dramas in reruns, this could be a good time to invest a little more in product placement deals.