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Record Year for UK Marketing Budget Growth

January 15 2015

In the UK, marketing budgets have increased for the ninth successive quarter, according to the IPA Bellwether report. While growth in Q4 2014 was at a slower rate, the average growth rate for marketing budgets in 2014 was the highest recorded in the survey's fifteen-year history.

Chris WilliamsonThe survey, run by Markit Economics on behalf of the IPA (Institute of Practitioners in Advertising), has taken place quarterly since Q1 2000, with results now reflecting answers from around 300 UK marketing professionals. This quarter's report highlighted a net balance of +6.1% of companies registering an increase in budgets, down from +12.6% in Q3 last year, and its lowest since 2013. (The net balance is calculated by subtracting the percentage reporting a downward revision from the percentage reporting an upward revision).

Supporting the overall increase in marketing budgets, optimism regarding companies' future financial prospects has improved. A net balance of +30.7% of companies indicated they had grown more optimistic compared to three months ago. Confidence regarding wider industry financial prospects also remained positive at +16.2%, although down from +30.4% in Q3, marking the lowest level for six quarters.

All categories recorded upwards revisions to their marketing budgets in Q4 2014, but market research only reported +0.6% growth; compared with Internet (+15.1%); PR (+ 6.6%); direct marketing (+3.9%); events (+2.4%); and sales promotion (+2.4%).

In terms of actual spending plans for 2015/16, 30.6% of companies are anticipating a rise in their marketing budgets, relative to 2014/15 levels. Chris Williamson (pictured), Chief Economist at Markit and author of the Bellwether report, comments: 'The planned increase in marketing budgets for the coming year is more aggressive than anything we've seen since data were first collected back in 2000. However, it's clear that business optimism has cooled, and we're therefore forecasting a further solid rise in marketing and advertising spend in 2015, but expect that 2014 will prove to have been the high-water mark in terms of growth in the current upturn.'

Web site: www.ipa.co.uk .

All articles 2006-23 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas, 2024- by Nick Thomas, unless otherwise stated.

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