Look for 2024 to be a boom year for advertising. That’s the consensus from a variety of research firms and big ad-agency holding companies, which say the growth drivers will include retail media (such as advertising on Amazon and commerce-related sales on vertical websites), as well as strength in digital advertising, sports and connected television. In addition, the U.S. presidential election will produce a torrent of political advertising spending.
Among the advertising companies issuing forecasts earlier this month were Dentsu, Group M, and Magna. Digiday summarized the predictions here. The three agency holding companies’ predictions join a flurry of other forecasters that also see growth in advertising spending in 2024.
Dentsu announced that it is expecting a 4.6% increase in global ad spend next year—specifically, an increase of $33 billion to $752.8 billion. The Americas region is expected to grow by 5.8% next year, outpacing the global rate, and overtaking Asia-Pacific as the most dynamic region, according to Dentsu. travel and transport, and pharmaceuticals are expected to be the fastest growing sectors, growing at 7.5% and 7.4%, respectively, Dentsu reported.
“From generative AI to evolving tech landscapes, Dentsu’s Global Ad Spend Forecasts unravel a dynamic media ecosystem shaped by elections and industry dynamics for a year of unprecedented change,” the report stated.
For its part, Group M is slightly more bullish, and offers a higher total number for ad spend. The company forecasts a 5.3% increase in global ad spending, compared to an increase of 5.8% for 2023 totaling $889 billion (excluding U.S. political advertising). North American advertising in 2024 is forecast to total $360.4, according to Group M, excluding the impact of U.S. political advertising.
The Group M prediction is that retail advertising will increase by 8.3% in total spend in 2024.
Magna, the intelligence unit of the Interpublic Group of Companies, reported seeing ad spending re-accelerate in the second half of 2023, and foresees ad revenue to increase in 2024 by 7.2%.
Meanwhile, the somewhat unexpected economic strength in the U.S., combined with lower inflation in 2024, will drive global ad spend to rise 7.2% to total $913 billion, and even higher—at 8.4%—in the U.S. Backing out cyclical ad spending—the U.S. presidential election—in the U.S. market, spend will increase by 5.9%, Magna said.