Digital commerce, personalisation, ad spend: 5 killer stats to start your week

Global ad growth set to slow

Global ad spend growth is set to slow next year as the global economy weakens and geopolitical uncertainty continues.

Growth is forecast to fall to 3.9% next year and 2.1% in 2021. That compares to growth of 5.7% in 2018 and 4.8% this year.

That still means the total global ad market will about to $628bn in 2020, and close to $700bn when direct mail and directories are included.

TV spend is expected to increase by 1.8% next year, slower than the global average and meaning its market share will decline. Internet-related advertising is forecast to grow by 11% in 2020 and account for 52% of global spend.

Source: GroupM

Most marketers to abandon personalisation efforts

By 2025, 80% of marketers who have invested in personalisation will abandon their efforts due to a lack of ROI, the challenges of customer data management, or both.

More than a quarter (27%) of marketers believe data is the main obstacle to personalisation because of weaknesses associated with data collection, protection and integration.

Personalisation comprises around 14% of marketing budgets, on average. But more than one in four marketing leaders cite technology as a major hurdle to personalisation.

Source: Gartner

Shoppers aiming to reduce their environmental impact this Christmas

Almost three-quarters (71%) of shoppers plan to take specific action to reduce their environmental impact over the Christmas shopping season.

More than half (55%) plan to buy more loose fruit and vegetables, while 34% want to avoid buying products that have a lot of excess packaging. Additionally, 32% intend to buy more locally produced items, while 31% will seek out products with easily recyclable packaging.

Source: IGD

54% of digital commerce projects deemed unsuccessful

More than half (54%) of digital commerce projects are deemed unsuccessful.

The main reason for this is a lack of customer alignment (34%), poor logistics (29%) and insufficient investment (29%). Some 51% of digital commerce leaders don’t believe their organisation invests enough in commerce, while 28% say digital projects move too quickly and lack strategy.

Despite this, 79% of digital commerce leaders say they feel ready to take advantage of opportunities in the space. These include a better chance of growth in their industry (20%), better ability to compete (20%) and alignment with customer demands (16%).

Source: Wunderman Thompson Commerce

The accuracy of political ads

Some 87% of UK adults believe it should be a legal requirement for factual claims in political adverts to be accurate. Just 5% think it should not be, while 7% don’t know, according to a YouGov survey of 1,600 consumers.

This number is highest among people who vote for the Liberal Democrats in 2017, at 97%, followed by Labour voters on 92% and Conservative voters on 86%. Nine in 10 (90%) of those who voted for remain in the 2016 EU referendum also think political ads should be accurate, compared to 87% of those who voted leave.

Source: The Coalition for Reform in Political Advertising