Advertising Perceptions: Online ad spend to rise, offline to fall

Marketing research company Advertising Perceptions has released the latest data from its survey of marketing executives into their planned ad spend over the next six months.

by Helen Leggatt

The results show that while online and mobile will continue to see healthy ad spend rises, most executives plan to decrease ad spending on traditional channels. The slowing economy is causing marketing executives from both agencies and inhouse teams to take a hard look at their ad spending.

"Every conversation that we are having with clients is about what they need to do, what they can hold off on and what are the contingency plans," said Audrey Siegel, executive VP-director of client services for independent media agency TargetCast (via AdAge.com). "It's not that there is a conversation about not advertising, but there is definitely an air of vulnerability and a concern."

Nearly three-quarters of marketing executives, surveyed back in April/May of this year, said they planned to up their online ad spend over the next six months and just 4% expected a decrease. Mobile, too, was expected to increase by 53% and cable 28%.

The news isn’t so good for traditional marketing channels such as print, television and radio. Forty-four percent of executives planned a decrease in newspaper ad spend, 34% plan a decrease in radio ad spend and television ad spend looks set to take a 30% hit.