WARC Archives

April 19, 2024

The Future of Measurement 2024, part of WARC’s Evolution of Marketing programme, explores major trends and emerging best practices in measurement

18 April 2024 – As cookies are phased out and new measurement techniques come to the fore, 2024 will be a year defined by disruption, uncertainty and experimentation.

According to WARC data, only a small fraction of marketers (2%) are using the following measurement techniques in combination – marketing mix modelling (MMM), experiments, attribution – to assess the full impact of their marketing.

As measurement continues to evolve, WARC, the global authority on marketing effectiveness, has today released The Future of Measurement, a report examining the latest trends and emerging best practices of marketing measurement. The report focuses on four key areas: AI and the growth of synthetic data, the demise of third-party cookies, hurdles in holistic measurement and closing the sustainability gap.

Paul Stringer, Managing Editor Research and Insights, WARC, says: “Amidst the swirl of excitement around Gen AI, another significant inflection point is fast approaching. In Q3 of this year, Google is finally due to phase out third-party cookies. While the threat of cookie deprecation has loomed for some time now, evidence suggests that advertisers are neither fully prepared or aware of the different solutions available.

“With measurement continuing to evolve in several directions at once, marketers find themselves battling multiple headwinds: not only the demise of third-party cookies, but new regulations around sustainability reporting, and, of course, the growing influence and impact of AI. All of which we address in this report.”

Key challenges and trends outlined in The Future of Measurement report, and what marketers can do to keep pace with emerging best practices in measurement are:

Hurdles in holistic measurement: only 2% of marketers are using attribution, experiments and marketing mix modelling (MMM) in combination to measure marketing impact

Most marketers are failing to use the full range of techniques that enable them to measure the full impact of their marketing activities. Data from WARC’s Marketer’s Toolkit survey shows only 2% of marketers are using attribution, experiments and marketing mix modelling (MMM) in combination for measurement, whilst a further 22% say they don’t use any modelling at all.

Guidance highlights three techniques that are critical to holistic measurement. Each technique brings strengths that can offset the weaknesses of the other.

Attribution: The process of assigning credit to the different touchpoints that are found on a user’s path to a conversion. Fast and easy to scale, it gives real-time insight into drivers of performance. But, it is limited to digital channels and is best for measuring short-term impact.
Experiments: Uses randomised controlled experiments to compare the change in consumer behaviour between groups that are exposed or withheld from marketing activity while keeping all other factors constant. It is the gold standard to measure causality but can be difficult to scale.
Marketing mix modelling (MMM): Utilises advanced statistics to give a holistic overview of all channels, sales, and external factors. Can provide a longer-term view of media impact, but can be expensive and requires at least two years of historical data.

AI and the growth of synthetic data: 60% of data used to develop AI and analytics applications will be synthetically generated

Unlike ‘real’ data, which is based on observations from the real world, synthetic data is produced artificially to emulate it using purpose-built mathematical models or algorithms.

Synthetic data has a variety of applications in marketing, including pricing, customer journey planning, competitor analysis and new product development. It also negates customer privacy issues, as it has no personal information attached to it, and can conduct market research quicker and cheaper.

By this year, Gartner has estimated that 60% of the data used in AI and analytics projects will be synthetically generated, and according to Straits Research, the global market for synthetic data generation is projected to grow by 37% between 2023 and 2031.

However, AI-based insights bring new risks to marketing research. Generative AI tools can amplify bias, trigger privacy breaches and deliver inaccurate results. Marketers should develop clear ethics and best practices when working with these tools.

Tim Geenen, CEO and co-founder, Rayn HQ, says: “There are many benefits to [producing synthetic data], from achieving more accurate results, to building new data sets that reflect our diverse society and opening the door to advanced ways of understanding audiences.”

The third-party cookie countdown: Only half (51%) of marketers are prepared for the deprecation of third-party cookies

The phasing out of cookies is due to take place in Q3 of 2024, severely limiting the ability of companies to track individuals online. Yet many marketers are still not prepared. According to a recent survey by IAB Europe, only half are prepared for the deprecation of third-party cookies.

A lack of education and awareness of post-cookie alternatives are a barrier to progress.

As advertisers look to combat signal loss, they will have to get comfortable testing a broad range of targeting and measurement solutions to discover what works best for their business.

Proposed solutions include: contextual advertising, identity solutions, first party data, attention measurement, Google’s ‘Privacy Sandbox’, and predictive audiences using AI.

Closing the sustainability gap: only a quarter (24%) of advertisers are measuring digital advertising emissions

Over the last five years, sustainability has ranked as a top issue by respondents to WARC’s annual Marketer’s Toolkit survey. However, recent research by Scope3 concludes that there has been ‘no evidence of systemic behaviour change’ in the advertising industry to reduce carbon emissions, and according to IAB Europe, only a quarter (24%) of marketers said they are measuring emissions from digital advertising.

The compound effect of these trends is that many marketers are failing to act on sustainability – in objective setting, asset development, supply chain management, consumer messaging, and the measurement of emissions from digital ads.

New regulations and directives in both Europe and the United States coming in 2024 mean companies will need to provide more granular data on their carbon emissions – including those generated by advertising.

Lack of standards is a major barrier to accurate and comparable carbon measurement, although work is underway by the Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM) and Ad Net Zero to create a common currency and methodology.

Research by Magna, Lumen and Adelaide suggest that advertising in high quality media environments with higher engagement generate lower carbon emissions.

January 19, 2024

WARC releases The Future of Media 2024 highlighting trends in media planning, advertising investments and the media ecosystem

17 January 2024 – After a challenging 2023, WARC Media predicts global advertising spend will double its growth in 2024 with spend expected to top $1 trillion for the first time. Just five companies – Alibaba, Alphabet, Amazon, Bytedance and Meta – are forecast to attract over half (51.9%) of global advertising spend this year as their ad revenues rise by 10.7%.

Key to this growth is the adoption of artificial intelligence (AI). However, the growth of AI raises challenging questions about media quality and the future of advertising on the open internet.

With concerns around media quality affecting all aspects of media planning and buying, The Future of Media 2024 report takes a look at platform power in the era of AI, the current state of linear TV, the future of attention measurement, and the growth of in-game advertising.

Paul Stringer, Managing Editor, Research & Insights, WARC, says: “As marketing budgets rebound in 2024, uncertainty swirls around where best to direct investments in media, the role of AI in planning, and how to assess media quality.

“And as politics temporarily engulf culture with impending elections in several major economies, and the threat of low-quality AI generated content looms large, media environments that can offer suitable guarantees around brand safety will take on extra value.

“With this report we aim to provide insights and data enabling marketers to be better equipped to make informed decisions and plan for success in the year ahead.”

Key trends outlined in The Future of Media 2024 are:

AI-based advertising solutions grow but force advertisers into trade-offs

Walled garden platforms are expanding their reach and influence in advertising, thanks in part to the adoption of new AI-based capabilities, such as Meta’s Advantage+ and Google’s Performance Max.

While this has generated a fair deal of excitement among advertisers, these trends have also prompted fresh concerns about advertising transparency and increased speculation about the future of advertising on the open web.

For agencies and brands, transparency should be prioritised when working with AI-based tools, AI-generated content is a threat to media quality and brand safety, and brands should take steps to protect their investments in open web advertising.

Linear TV consumption continues its gradual decline but age matters

Linear TV (broadcast and cable) consumption has been in gradual decline over the last decade, particularly with young audiences. Despite remaining the most trusted medium, there is a sense that this decline has accelerated over the last year.

According to WARC data, global Linear TV ad spend decreased by 5.4% in 2023 and data from WARC’s 2024 Marketer’s Toolkit shows that only 18% of marketers worldwide plan to increase their investment in linear TV this year, while 39% plan to withdraw spend.

However, actual time spent consuming TV only declined on average by 3 minutes daily (2.7%) in 2023. WARC Media forecasts global linear TV consumption to decline by a further 2 minutes per day (1.9%) in 2024, meaning people will continue to spend more time with linear TV than streaming video, streaming music, or listening to podcasts.

Dave Campanelli, EVP/Chief Investment Officer, Horizon Media, says: “We hear a lot about “linear is dead.” People are still watching linear TV. They tend to be older, but they are still watching linear TV. And it’s 50% of this whole pie. Our budgets need to represent that, depending on your age segment and who you’re going after.”

Attention measurement at a crossroads

An increasing number of brands and agencies are embracing attention measurement as a means of assessing creative and media quality. However, a lack of common standards and substantial evidence are two potential barriers to attention measurement achieving widespread adoption and legitimacy.

A common criticism of attention measurement is that it is strongly biased towards visual media. The top tools used across all companies are eye tracking (50%), survey-based ad recall (46%), tuning duration/dwell time (42%) and facial coding (42%).

The need to understand how attention works across different media channels and formats is resulting in more research and the building of new models of media quality. Brands and agencies should scrutinise vendor tools and methods, conduct their own experiments into attention to determine its value to their advertising, and prove the business effects of attention.

Karen Nelson-Field, Founder and CEO, Amplified Intelligence, said: “It’s clear that the industry needs more robust evidence [for attention measurement] to convince CFOs and procurement teams that low-cost media doesn’t necessarily equate to efficiency. When we focus on business effects and align with the goals of CFOs, the industry as a whole will benefit.”

The growth of in-game advertising

With a global audience of over 3 billion, gaming has developed into one of the most popular and pervasive forms of entertainment in the world, but remains a largely untapped opportunity for brands. Research by IAB estimates that gaming accounts for 5% of advertiser budgets.

Offering increasing amounts of ad inventory and a highly engaged and diverse audience, there are shifts taking place across the wider gaming industry that signal the potential for further growth:

(1) major acquisitions such as Microsoft’s $69bn purchase of Activision and Sony’s purchase of Bungie and Savage Game Studios; (2) the continual leveraging of gaming IP in new TV and movie releases; (3) the growth of cloud-based game streaming services; (4) investment from new entrants such as Netflix, Amazon and Bytedance.

PWC estimates that video game advertising revenues will be worth $91 billion in 2024, meaning gaming would be the 5th largest channel by advertising spend, behind search, social media, linear TV and retail media.

According to WARC’s Marketer’s Toolkit Survey 2024, more than half (51%) of advertisers plan to increase their investments in gaming next year, but authenticity and integration are key to success.

The Future of Media 2024 is based on exclusive data from WARC Media and findings from various research studies, including WARC’s Marketer’s Toolkit global survey of 1400+ marketing executives, plus expert analysis from WARC contributors. It is part of WARC’s Evolution of Marketing programme helping marketers address major industry shifts to drive effective marketing, and follows the recent publication of The Voice of the Marketer 2024, The Marketer’s Toolkit 2024 and The GEISTE report.

A complimentary sample of The Future of Media 2024 is available here. WARC members can read the full report.

Complementing The Future of Media 2024 and associated reports, a series of podcasts are also available.

January 19, 2024

Renowned brands including ANZ Bank, Google, Lenovo, Livspace, MYOB and leading agencies from across APAC represented

10 January 2024 – The juries are announced for the WARC Awards for Asia Pacific 2024 in association with LIONS.

Celebrating marketing with strategic brilliance and effective impact, this regional competition will be judged rigorously by top industry experts from leading agencies and renowned global and local brands.

John Bizzell, Awards Lead, WARC, said: “To judge the very best strategic and effective marketing campaigns in Asia-Pacific, we have convened a stellar group of extremely knowledgeable and highly respected professionals from across the region to bring expertise and cultural insight to the judging process.”

The WARC Awards Asia Pacific 2024 juries are:

Brand Purpose, Business-to-Business, Cultural Impact, Customer Experience, Instant Impact, Long-term Growth categories

Dean Chadwick, Chief Marketing Officer, MYOB, Australia – jury chair
Astrud Burgess, Chief Marketing Officer, ANZ Bank, New Zealand
Gary Chi, CEO, Dentsu Creative, Taiwan
Gautam Ramdurai, Group Marketing Manager, Ads Marketing, Google, APAC and Advisor-in-Chief, Snowbird, Singapore
Joy Santos, Chief Strategy Officer, Leo Burnett Manila, Philippines
Kimberlee Wells, CEO, TBWA, Australia
Rui Nago, Chief Strategy Officer, Grey, Japan
Suzzane Zhang, VP, McCann Worldgroup Advisory, APAC & Head of Strategy, McCann Worldgroup China, Mainland China
Thien Thanh Nguyen, CEO, Edelman, Vietnam & Thailand

Channel Integration, Channel Pioneer, Partnerships & Sponsorships, Path to Purchase, Use of Data categories

Sindhuja Rai, CEO, Wavemaker, APAC – jury chair
Arindam Bhattacharyya, Chief Strategy Officer, Dentsu, Indonesia
Arsalan Mohsin, Chief Marketing Officer, One Group, Pakistan
Connie Chan, CEO, OMD, Mainland China
Ines Cha, Head of Creators & Media Co Partnerships, YouTube Japan, Google Inc., Japan
Joshua Lee, National Head of Digital & Data, Zenith Media, Australia
Kartikeya Bhandari, Chief Marketing Officer, Livspace, India
Sharon Soh, Chief Planning & Audience Officer, UM, APAC

Strategic Thinking category (new)

Bhaskar Choudhuri, Chief Marketing Officer, Lenovo, APAC – jury chair
Cleef Chong, Global Planning Director, MullenLowe, Global
David McIndoe, Chief Strategy Officer, Saatchi & Saatchi, New Zealand
Hun Choi, Executive Vice President, Solution Division, Cheil Worldwide, South Korea
Jaslin Goh, Chief Marketing Officer, PayMe by HSBC, Hong Kong SAR
Nomfundo Msomi, Executive Strategy Director, CHEP Network, Australia
Reiko Ogata, Chief Branding Director, Dentsu Inc., Japan
Susie Xu, Head of Brand Strategy, Ogilvy, Mainland China

The juries will award Gold, Silver and Bronze accolades across the 12 categories. They will be guided by the frameworks of the WARC/LIONS Creative Effectiveness and B2B Effectiveness Ladders, which provide a consistent and universal benchmark.

The jury chairs of all the regional awards – Asia Pacific, Europe, Middle East and Africa, Latin America, and North America – will form a super jury to award the highly sought after Grands Prix, the ultimate recognition of marketing success, selected from all the regional Golds.

More information on The WARC Awards and jury bios here. Download the entry pack here.

Key dates for The WARC Awards 2024 are:

Entry deadline: 6 February 2024
APAC and other regional winners announcements: 20-25 May 2024
Global Grand Prix winners announcements: Cannes Lions Week 2024

May 6, 2022

Eight Big Tech platforms (Alibaba, Alphabet, Amazon, Baidu, Meta, Microsoft, Netflix, and Tencent) are on course to account for 10.0% of all worldwide ad investment by 2030

WARC Global Advertising Trends: Big Tech’s growing share of the post-COVID ad economy

5 May 2022 – A new WARC analysis of advertising investment by eight major digital platforms has underlined the importance of ‘Big Tech’ to the health of the global ad economy. These findings are published today by WARC, the international marketing intelligence service, as part of its WARC Media suite.

Advertising expenditure by Alibaba, Alphabet, Amazon, Baidu, Meta, Microsoft, Netflix, and Tencent in 2021 totaled $46.6bn (+49.4% year-on-year), accounting for 6.0% of all ad investment globally. On the current trajectory, Big Tech’s share of global ad spend will surpass 10.0% by 2030.

Big Tech’s spending on advertising is also growing faster (+49.4%) than categories such as media and publishing (+34%), technology and electronics (+26%), and retail (+21%). Analysis by WARC found that Big Tech contributed more than a tenth (10.4%) of all global ad spend growth in 2021.

Amazon becomes the world’s biggest-spending advertiser

In 2009, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos infamously asserted that “advertising is the price you

pay for having an unremarkable product or service.” Fast-forward to 2021 and Amazon invested $16.9bn in ads (+55.0% year-on-year), the most ever spent by a single company within a 12-month period.

However, Amazon’s expenditure model appears to be self-funding: investment in advertising helps Amazon to draw shoppers to its e-commerce platform, which in turn increases the revenue it gains from retail media ads – as well as ad spend on products like Twitch and Freevee.

The second-largest advertiser within Big Tech is Alibaba, which invested $8.8bn (+84.4%) in 2021. Fuelled by China’s flourishing e-commerce market, Alibaba has grown its share of total spend in the Big Tech category from 2.9% in 2014 to 19% in 2021 – exceeding Google-owner Alphabet in total ad investment ($7.9bn, +47.0%) for the first time.

Among the companies analysed by WARC, Microsoft shows the lowest commitment to advertising. It invested $1.5bn in 2021, a sum that has remained stable since 2016. However, this may change in light of the prospective acquisition of gaming company Activision Blizzard and Microsoft’s growing ambitions in the metaverse space.

Big Tech’s ad spend as a percentage of total sales declines

While Big Tech companies are investing vast sums on advertising in absolute terms, these platforms are also growing revenues at a remarkable rate.

In many cases, Big Tech brands are investing a lower percentage of total sales in advertising. These businesses do not feel bound by rules to maintain levels of ad spend relative to total sales, as one might find in categories such as CPG or automotive.

The notable exception is Facebook-owner Meta, which has accelerated its ad investment.

Meta’s ad spend as a percentage of sales has grown from a mere 0.8% in 2017 to 2.5% in 2021.

Alex Brownsell, Head of Content, WARC Media, and author of the report, says: “Big Tech businesses have come a long way from being ad investment sceptics, to ranking among the biggest-spending advertisers in the world. As their dominance of the mobile-first digital commerce marketplace increases, so too their share of total global ad spend is likely to grow.

“It underscores that, while digitally-native brands can succeed in the short-term without the support of ad spend, long-term success often depends upon a willingness to invest in performance-enhancing and brand-building advertising.”

Latest Market Intel

Americas

Latin America records the strongest decline in Netflix subscribers
59% of urban Americans choose shorter travel trips in 2022
One in four Mexicans have used a buy now pay later service in Q1 2022

Asia Pacific

China and South Korea lead e-commerce sales
80% of online urban Indians follow influencers on social
Australian linear TV audiences show strong growth in 2021

Europe, Middle East and Africa

One-third of gaming revenue in EMEA is from advertising
Polish consumers show the highest levels of concern about inflation in EMEA
A third of chain retail sales in the UK were online in 2021

Global Ad Trends, a bi-monthly report which draws on WARC’s dataset of advertising and media intelligence to take a holistic view on current industry developments, is part of WARC Media, an enhanced dedicated independent and objective one-stop online subscription service which rigorously harmonises, aggregates, verifies and evaluates data from over 100 reputable source, empowering media decision makers to build strategies with precision.

March 23, 2022

17 March 2022 –- The final WARC Ranking, Effective 100, the ultimate independent global benchmark of the world’s most awarded campaigns and companies for effectiveness, is now announced.

Compiled by WARC, the international marketing insights company, the Effective 100 Ranking is produced by combining the results of the industry’s most important effectiveness award shows around the world throughout 2021, and acts as a benchmark for excellence in effectiveness, allowing marketers to compare their performance with that of their peers.

The awards tracked are determined by a worldwide industry survey and in consultation with the WARC Rankings Advisory Board.

#1 Campaign: Crazy Dreams for Nike by Wieden+Kennedy Portland / Publicis Sapient Seattle

Sportswear brand Nike celebrated its 30th anniversary of the Just Do It campaign by refreshing its original sense of rebellious self-belief. Starting with a tweet from Colin Kaepernick, it showed how athletes today were using that same spirit to move sport forward, and the world with it.

In second place is A Dad’s Job by FP7 McCann Dubai and Initiative Cairo for Home Centre. The furniture retailer tackled the taboo topic of single mothers to create impact with its Father’s Day campaign in the United Arab Emirates. In third place is Meddle in the New Zealand Election by Special Auckland for Every Kiwi Vote Counts. The campaign harnessed the power of social networks to mobilise overseas New Zealanders to vote in the country’s 2020 election.

Special Auckland for Every Kiwi Vote Counts

#1 Creative agency: FP7McCann Dubai

FP7 McCann Dubai retained its top place for a third consecutive year with five campaigns ranked in the top 100 including three in the top ten, for Home Centre, Babyshop, Donner Sang Compter, Mastercard and Spinneys / Lebanese Breast Cancer Foundation / American University of Beirut Medical Center.

Tarek Miknas, CEO, FP7McCann MENAT, said: “Nothing pleases me more than FP7McCann winning for creative effectiveness. As a commercial art, by definition, we need to deliver on both Creativity and Effectiveness or we are not doing our job. There is no greater honor than to be recognized for both. I thank our brave partners and our incredible agency talents that together made this come to fruition.”

Ogilvy Sydney rises from #7 last year to claim second place, with five campaigns ranked for Whitelion, KFC (x3) and Huggies. Wieden+Kennedy Portland in 15th place in North America in 2021, takes third place globally with its hugely acclaimed Crazy Dreams campaign.

#1 Media agency: Zenith Bogotá

Zenith Bogotá is up from #36 last year to claim pole position. PHD Auckland, last ranked #34 in 2019, is now in second place globally. PHD New York, is up from its previous position of #43 in 2021 to claim third place.

#1 Digital/Specialist agency: Publicis Sapient Seattle

Having worked on the top campaign Crazy Dreams, Publicis Sapient Seattle is in first place. Edelman New York takes second position having last been ranked #7 in 2020. Newcomer to the Rankings is InHype Dubai, straight in at #3.

#1 network: McCann Worldgroup

For the fourth consecutive year, McCann Worldgroup retains its #1 ranking as the most effective network. Eight creative and digital/specialist agencies in the top 50 contributed to its total points, including FP7 McCann Dubai and McCann Manchester which ranked #1 and #8 in the creative agency list.

Suzanne Powers, Global President & Chief Strategy Officer, McCann Worldgroup, said: “It’s incredible to see, once again, our teams’ passion, smarts and ingenuity as they drive the most impactful work in the world in partnership with our clients. We are so proud of all of them and honored by this recognition”

Climbing up the network ranking is Ogilvy, up from #4 in 2021 to claim second place. BBDO Worldwide is in third place.

#1 Holding company: WPP

WPP is ranked #1 for a fourth consecutive year. Omnicom Group remains in second place, a position held since 2019. Interpublic Group is in third place for six years in a row.

Mark Read, CEO, WPP, said: “The real success of great ideas lies within the results they produce. Our strong agency representation across the three rankings – including MediaCom NY named top media agency, Ogilvy and Mindshare coming first creative and media networks respectively, and WPP topping the media and effectiveness holding company rankings – is testament to the hard work of our amazing teams who are delivering the tangible outcomes that our clients demand.”

#1 Brand: McDonald’s

Fast-food chain McDonald’s is the most effective brand for the third consecutive year, with two campaigns ranked in the top Effective 100 for two markets – US and New Zealand. Burger King, up from #6 last year, now takes second place. KFC is third place, down from #2 last year.

Morgan Flatley, Global Chief Marketing Officer, McDonald’s, said: “We are beyond excited to be ranked as #1 most effective brand in the world by WARC. Receiving this recognition for the third year in a row is especially meaningful, as it underscores our relentless effort to deliver effective marketing, powered by brave creative choices and underpinned with genuine human insight. At McDonald’s, our marketing community is focused on delivering “Feel-Good Moments” to our fans in a way that builds both our Brand and our business. I’m proud to work alongside a team of world-class marketers and agency partners that show creative courage, every day and are focused on building deeper and more meaningful connections with our customers. This is an important recognition of all of their hard work.”

#1 Advertiser: AB InBev

Following its success as #1 advertiser in the Creative 100, the brewing giant AB InBev also now takes top position as the most effective advertiser, rising up from seventh position last year. Unilever is ranked #2, and Restaurant Brands International climbs to third, up from #17 last year.

Pedro Earp, Chief Marketing Officer, AB InBev, said: “We are honored to be recognized as number one in both creativity and effectiveness. Anyone can have ambition but systemizing it throughout an organization on a global scale requires more than just ambition. It requires a change in culture, supported by a system of processes, tools and capabilities, along with an ecosystem of strong creative partners, in order to pull it off. I’m proud of what our team has accomplished by addressing real consumer and customer needs and delivering strong business results.”

#1 Country: USA

USA retains its place as the most awarded market in the world for effectiveness, a position held since the introduction of the WARC Effective 100. China and India remain second and third respectively, the same positions held for the past two years.

The top ten most highly ranked campaigns and companies in the 2022 WARC Effective 100 are:

Top ten world’s most awarded campaigns for effectiveness

Rank	Campaign Title	Brand	Agencies	Points
#1	Crazy Dreams	Nike	Wieden+Kennedy Portland / Publicis Sapient Seattle	100.0
#2	A Dad’s Job	Home Centre	FP7 McCann Dubai / Initiative Cairo	94.6
#3	Meddle in the New Zealand Election	Every Kiwi Vote Counts	Special Auckland	57.6
#4	Moldy Whopper	Burger King	INGO Stockholm / DAVID Miami / Publicis Bucharest	51.4
#5	Project AgroBanking	UCash / Shwapno	Grey Dhaka	50.6
#6	Rephrasing Parenthood	Babyshop	FP7McCann Dubai / InHype Dubai	44.9
#7	Blood Unity	Donner Sang Compter (DSC)	FP7McCann Dubai / McCann Health Dubai / FP7McCann Beirut	44.3
#8	TheTravis Scott Meal	McDonald’s	Wieden+Kennedy New York / Narrative Los Angeles / OMD Chicago / Burell Chicago / The Marketing Store Chicago	44.2
#9	Rooftops Farms	Knorr	FP7McCann Cairo / Magna Cairo	43.6
#10	#ChickenWars	Popeyes	GSD&M Austin	43.3

Top ten world’s most awarded creative agencies for effectiveness

Rank	Agency	Points
#1	FP7McCann Dubai	234.6
#2	Ogilvy Sydney	115.5
#3	Wieden+Kennedy Portland	113.0
#4	Special Auckland	99.4
#5	Ogilvy Mumbai	94.2
#6	Colenso BBDO Auckland	89.5
#7	FCB New York	85.8
#8	McCann Manchester	79.0
#9	Publicis Bucharest	71.5
#10	BBDO New York	71.3

Top ten world’s most awarded media agencies for effectiveness

Rank	Agency	Points
#1	Zenith Bogotá	68.5
#2	PHD Auckland	63.1
#3	PHD New York	58.3
#4	MediaCom Sydney	58.2
#5	Wavemaker Mumbai	44.8
#6	Havas Media Lisbon	40.2
#7	Mindshare Shanghai	37.1
#7	Wavemaker Chicago	37.1
#9	Carat New York	36.8
#10	Mindshare Moscow	36.4

Top ten world’s most awarded digital/specialist agencies for effectiveness

Rank	Agency	Points
#1	Publicis Sapient Seattle	100.0
#2	Edelman New York	52.1
#3	InHype Dubai	34.6
#4	Arc Worldwide Chicago	33.7
#5	Digitas Chicago	32.7
#6	Havas Sports & Entertainment Paris	30.0
#7	Twiga Digital Kyiv	28.7
#8	BlueFocus Digital Beijing	28.6
#9	Symmetry Digital Karachi	28.0
#10	Digital Moscow	26.7

Top ten world’s most awarded networks for effectiveness

Rank	Network	Points
#1	McCann Worldgroup	863.6
#2	Ogilvy	777.6
#3	BBDO Worldwide	702.7
#4	Dentsu International	510.5
#5	DDB Worldwide	471.6
#6	IPG Mediabrands	419.7
#7	OMD Worldwide	419.0
#8	TBWA Worldwide	368.4
#9	Leo Burnett	341.2
#10	VMLY&R	318.9

Top ten most awarded holding companies for effectiveness

Rank	Holding company	Points
#1	WPP	2162.8
#2	Omnicom Group	2018.8
#3	Interpublic Group	1700.9
#4	Publicis Groupe	1377.2
#5	Dentsu	531.3
#6	Havas Group	382.6
#7	Stagwell	153.6
#8	BlueFocus	108.9
#9	Accenture	96.2
#10	ADK	7.1

Top ten world’s most awarded brands for effectiveness

Rank	Brand	Points
#1	McDonald’s	313.1
#2	Burger King	271.2
#3	KFC	212.5
#4	Nike	117.5
#5	Aldi	102.7
#6	Home Centre	94.6
#7	Dove	79.9
#8	Mastercard	79.6
#9	IKEA	69.8
#10	Pepsi	69.2

Top ten world’s most awarded advertisers for effectiveness

Rank	Advertiser	Points
#1	AB InBev	436.2
#2	Unilever	409.1
#3	Restaurant Brands International	316.8
#4	McDonald’s	313.1
#5	Procter & Gamble	272.7
#6	Yum! Brands	239.6
#7	PepsiCo	236.7
#8	Mondelēz International	192.6
#9	Landmark Group	141.7
#10	Nestlé	131.1

Top ten world’s most awarded countries for effectiveness

Rank	Country	Points
#1	USA	1649.3
#2	China (Mainland)	997.2
#3	India	607.1
#4	Colombia	491.6
#5	New Zealand	460.2
#6	Russia	454.7
#7	United Kingdom	440.2
#8	Australia	403.5
#9	United Arab Emirates	389.5
#10	Canada	377.2

Summing up, David Tiltman, SVP, Content, WARC, said: “A common theme in this year’s Effective 100 was a desire to go beyond educating or engaging consumers. We see judges awarding effective campaigns that change behaviour and encourage participation, across both commercial and not-for-profit campaigns. Nike encouraged young athletes to Dream Crazy; Every Kiwi Vote Counts got New Zealanders living abroad to vote; UCash / Shwapno convinced Bangladeshi farmers to convert fresh produce into money; and Donner Sang Compter reinvented bloodletting to enable donations.”

The WARC Effective 100 has been compiled by applying a rigorous, unbiased and transparent methodology.

The WARC Effective 100 Ranking can be viewed in full here. It includes the world’s top 100 awarded campaigns for effectiveness, top 50 creative, media and digital/specialist agencies, agency networks, brands, advertisers, countries and top holding companies. The campaigns, case studies, credits and subsequent insights reports are available to WARC Rankings subscribers.

The WARC Effective 100 is part of a suite of Rankings, which includes the WARC Creative 100 and the WARC Media 100 announced earlier this week.

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March 22, 2022

16 March 2022 –- WARC Rankings – Media 100, the ultimate independent global benchmark for media excellence, is now released featuring the most awarded campaigns and companies in the world.

Compiled by WARC, the international marketing insights company, the Media 100 is produced by combining the results of the industry’s most important global and regional media award shows tracked throughout 2021. The awards tracked are determined by a worldwide industry survey and in consultation with the WARC Rankings Advisory Board.

#1 Campaign: Undercover Avatar for L’Enfant Bleu by Havas Sports & Entertainment Paris

French child welfare association L’Enfant Bleu harnessed the power of Fortnite, the hugely popular video game, by creating an undercover in-game avatar enabling children to confide their concerns about abuse during lockdown. The impact of the campaign resulted in the French government working on solutions to turn video games into new ways to identify abused children.

In second place is Dogvertising for Pedigree by MediaCom Zagreb and Go2Digital Zagreb. The campaign delivered personalised advertising by DOOH technology based on dog detection. In third is Media That ‘Eats’ Pollution for Volkswagen by PHD London. To launch VW’s first fully-electric vehicle, the ID.3, they painted OOH ads using a unique air purifying paint.

#1 Media Agency: MediaCom New York

With five highly placed campaigns in the top 100 for Ally, Uber, Walgreens and Duracell, MediaCom New York has stormed up the rankings to claim global pole position. Mindshare Shanghai is in second place with eight campaigns ranked. PHD London rises to third place, up from 40th, with two campaigns, including Media That ‘Eats’ Pollution ranked #3.

Sasha Savic, CEO, MediaCom US, said: “Topping the WARC Media 100 is a defining moment for MediaCom U.S., and we could not be more honored for the recognition.

Delivering transformative campaigns is all down to our amazing people working with some of the most ambitious marketers in the world. I am most proud that the #1 ranking comes from wins across our breadth of expertise, whether data creativity, content partnerships, gaming, or social impact. My sincerest thanks to every person at MediaCom in the U.S., our clients, and our partners. This one is all yours.”

#1 Media Network: Mindshare

For a second consecutive year, taking top place is Mindshare, with seven agencies in the top 50 contributing to its tally of points. Hot on its heels and closing the points gap is MediaCom in second place and PHD Worldwide is in third, up from fourth.

Adam Gerhart, Global CEO, Mindshare, said: “The WARC 100 isn’t just about a single awards show or one campaign – it’s a celebration of being the best of the best and we’re delighted to be recognised as the most creative media network in the world for the third year running! We couldn’t do it without the unwavering energy of our teams and the liberating collaboration of our partners and clients, so thank you to everyone for helping us to continue to create media experiences that have an impact and change the world.”

#1 Holding Company: WPP

No change for the top three networks for the past five years, with WPP retaining its pole position, Omnicom Group in second place and Interpublic Group in third.

#1 Brand: L’Enfant Bleu

Newcomer to the WARC Rankings, French child welfare association L’Enfant Bleu is top brand with its outstanding and impactful campaign Undercover Avatar. Pedigree is in second place following a three year absence from the top 50. Online US bank Ally enters the the top 50 brands for the first time in third position.

Pauline Grison, Communications Director, L’Enfant Bleu, said: “L’Enfant Bleu is very proud to be #1 brand and #1 campaign in the WARC Media 100 Rankings with “Undercover Avatar”! More than a communication campaign, this device allowed us to come into contact with hundreds of children in danger in less than a month. After this period, we were much more visible in the media, and had a 200% increase in calls from witnesses of child abuse. This honour is therefore really symbolic for all these children.”

#1 Advertiser: Unilever

Multinational consumer goods company Unilever retains its number one spot for the third consecutive year. Brewing giant AB InBev, moves up one place to second. The Government of New Zealand, which has steadily climbed the Media 100 Rankings over the past couple of years, is now in third place.

Conny Braams, Chief Digital and Marketing Officer, Unilever, said: “It’s excellent to see Unilever featured in the top three of both the WARC Media 100 and Creative 100 Rankings. Retaining the number one spot in media excellence for the third year in a row is testament to the world-leading expertise of our Global Media team and agency partners, who seamlessly navigate a dynamic media landscape to build brands and drive conversion at the same time.”

#1 Country: USA

No change in the top three from last year, with USA retaining its #1 ranking, followed by the UK in second place and China in third.

The top ten most highly ranked campaigns and companies in the 2022 WARC Media 100 are:

Top ten world’s most awarded campaigns for media

Rank	Campaign Title	Brand	Agencies	Points
#1	Undercover Avatar	L’Enfant Bleu	Havas Sports & Entertainment Paris	158.9
#2	Dogvertising	Pedigree	MediaCom Zagreb / Go2Digital Zagreb	133.3
#3	Media That ‘Eats’ Pollution	Volkswagen	PHD London	100.0
#4	Animal Crossing	Ally	MediaCom New York / Anomaly New York	90.1
#5	The Unsaid	Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency	Clemenger BBDO Wellington / OMD Wellington / Fuse Auckland	87.7
#6	Boards of Change	City Of Chicago	FCB Chicago	76.4
#7	Ladies, Rule The Road	Can-Am	Touché! Montreal	75.9
#8	Unite Against Covid-19	Unite Against Covid-19	OMD Wellington	73.9
#9	The Bread Exam	Spinneys / Lebanese Breast Cancer Foundation / American University of Beirut Medical Center	McCann Paris / FP7 McCann Dubai	71.8
#10	Men+Care Commit to C.A.R.E. Now	Dove	Mindshare New York	70.7

Top ten world’s most awarded agencies for media

Rank	Agency	Points
#1	MediaCom New York	219.0
#2	Mindshare Shanghai	197.3
#3	PHD London	191.0
#4	Mindshare Mumbai	178.1
#5	Havas Sports & Entertainment Paris	158.9
#6	Touché! Montreal	156.5
#7	OMD Wellington	136.3
#8	MediaCom Zagreb	133.3
#9	Mindshare Ho Chi Minh City	129.6
#10	MediaCom Connections Tel Aviv	114.6

Top ten world’s most awarded networks for media

Rank	Network	Points
#1	Mindshare	876.6
#2	MediaCom	862.1
#3	PHD Worldwide	780.8
#4	IPG Mediabrands	536.4
#5	OMD Worldwide	529.4
#6	Havas Media Group	370.8
#7	Dentsu International	263.6
#8	Wavemaker	238.1
#9	MullenLowe Group	215.3
#10	FCB	210.9

Top ten most awarded holding companies for media

Rank	Holding company	Points
#1	WPP	2241.0
#2	Omnicom Group	1623.3
#3	Interpublic Group	1205.7
#4	Publicis Groupe	689.7
#5	Havas Group	546.1
#6	Dentsu	263.6
#7	Stagwell	76.6
#8	Hakuhodo DY Group	30.5
#9	Accenture	25.0

Top ten world’s most awarded brands for media

Rank	Brand	Points
#1	L’Enfant Bleu	158.9
#2	Pedigree	143.5
#3	Ally	143.2
#4	Volkswagen	141.2
#5	Dove	112.7
#6	adidas	107.0
#7	Can-Am	106.7
#8	KFC	93.9
#9	Burger King	92.8
#10	Netflix	82.6

Top ten world’s most awarded advertisers for media

Rank	Advertiser	Points
#1	Unilever	426.1
#2	AB InBev	190.9
#3	Government of New Zealand	171.0
#4	L’Enfant Bleu	158.9
#5	Mars	157.0
#6	Volkswagen Group	146.9
#7	Ally	143.2
#8	BRP	125.3
#9	Yum! Brands	122.8
#10	Procter & Gamble	121.4

Top ten world’s most awarded countries for media

Rank	Country	Points
#1	USA	1359.6
#2	United Kingdom	921.2
#3	China (Mainland)	420.3
#4	Canada	386.3
#5	India	382.5
#6	Australia	370.8
#7	Turkey	351.7
#8	Vietnam	257.7
#9	France	255.6
#10	New Zealand	200.3

Summing up, David Tiltman, SVP, Content, WARC, said: “The WARC Media 100 shows the growing influence of gaming on the media landscape. More clients are showing an understanding of the nuances of gaming beyond simple product placement or ads in games. Top campaign L’Enfant Bleu created an avatar within video game Fortnite that allowed children at risk of abuse to talk in confidence without their parents’ knowledge, and Ally Bank created a virtual island within the Animal Crossing game and created its own ‘turnip exchange’ to demonstrate its ‘smarter way to bank’ credentials to Millennials.”

The WARC Media 100 has been compiled by applying a rigorous, unbiased and transparent methodology.

The WARC Media 100 Ranking can be viewed in full here. It includes the world’s top 100 awarded campaigns for media, top 50 media agencies, agency networks, brands, advertisers, countries and top holding companies. The campaigns, case studies, credits and subsequent insights reports are available to WARC Rankings subscribers.

The WARC Creative 100 has been announced and can be viewed here. The WARC Effective 100 will be revealed on 17 March.

March 17, 2022

WARC Digital Commerce powered by Edge by Ascential launches with first-of-its-kind ‘How to win on Instacart’ report

WARC dComm IndexTM – a new proprietary data-led benchmark for brands to measure themselves against category competitors across digital commerce platforms

March 11, 2022 – COVID-19 created the perfect environment to force a step-change in how Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG) brands distribute their products. As a result, by the end of 2023, WARC forecasts retail media to be worth $137bn globally – double its 2020 take. Edge by Ascential predicts media spend on eCommerce will account for 58% of global chain retail sales by 2025.

Against this backdrop, WARC, the global authority on marketing effectiveness, has today released the first of a new series of digital commerce benchmarking studies: How to win on Instacart, the leading online grocery platform in the US, with particular practices for brands.

These unique reports combine the marketing expertise of WARC with the specialist eCommerce knowledge of sister company Edge by Ascential, to provide marketers and agencies with the analysis and insights needed to build marketing strategies for the major digital platforms.

Amin Mrini, VP WARC Digital Commerce, said: “The worlds of Marketing and Digital Commerce are converging and it is imperative to understand how the major digital commerce platforms intersect with creativity and media investment, and the impact this has on brand and performance marketing.

“For ‘How to win on Instacart’, we’ve taken a deep dive into the data of five hypercompetitive product categories to uncover how to play, who is winning, and where there is room for improvement. These insights will help marketers and agencies future-proof for success on the platform.”

At the core of this and subsequent deep-dive eCommerce reports, is the WARC dComm IndexTM, a proprietary data-led benchmark that allows brands to measure themselves against category competitors across major digital commerce platforms.

This first report, focusing on Instacart, provides performance metrics for Food, Non-Alcoholic Drinks, Beauty & Personal Care, Baby Products, and Household Supplies.

Key insights uncovered in ‘How to win on Instacart’ are:

Build an Instacart strategy fit for the platform

Instacart has rapidly grown into the second-largest grocery ecommerce platform in the US taking 45% of market share, making it a priority for CPG brands and their marketers. However, many brands are still finding their way on the platform, particularly when it comes to maximising their presence and optimising retail media spend.

Audit availability and look to get into the basket early

Availability is key as Instacart will offer an alternative if a brand is out of stock. However, across categories there remains opportunities to expand availability in more stores, delivering a significant uplift in revenue. Getting into a consumer’s basket can have lasting benefits: after a first shopping trip, the ‘buy it again’ widget becomes very important for site users.

Review search performance

Instacart’s search algorithm has a different level of complexity than those of Walmart or the Amazon Marketplace. Results from the WARC dComm IndexTM show how hard it is to dominate organic search across the site. Paid search is growing in importance and brands should investigate its opportunities. As seen across retail media, prepare for rising costs as competition mounts.

Learn to live with the paradoxes

For CPG brands, many of the rules that apply to other channels do not apply to Instacart:

The consumer experience on Instacart is controlled by the retailer.
If a retailer’s ability to monitor its inventory at the store level is poor, the brand is even more in the dark.
New products will only be available on Instacart once a retailer has it in stock.
Instacart does not provide sales data at retailer level, making it hard for brands to understand the impact that Instacart has on their retailer revenue numbers.
Retail media spend on Instacart is often attributed to the ecommerce or digital advertising budget, which doesn’t get credit for incremental purchase orders from retailers.

Stay in touch with a changing platform

Instacart is evolving fast in a changing market. It announced in January that it would launch specific pages for brands to feature content and showcase products, allowing a much richer content offer within its site. It is also building display ad formats alongside its search ad formats. This may benefit smaller brands less able to compete in paid search as the major players ramp up spend. Any Instacart strategy is going to need to evolve over time.

Brand leaders on Instacart

The WARC dComm IndexTM for Instacart reveals the following as brand category leaders: Tide (household), Coffee Mate (non-alcoholic drinks), Similac (baby products), Oral-B (beauty and personal care) and Philadelphia (Food).

Summing up, WARC’s Amin Mrini, said: “Our analysis found that the main key drivers of brand growth on Instacart are ‘physical availability’ – that is, the number of stores products are available in, and levels of stock in-store. And few CPG brands are able to dominate organic listings across the platform, making paid search an important consideration.”

A complimentary copy of ‘How to win on Instacart’, including Instacart fundamentals, insights from the WARC dComm IndexTM, category rankings and deep-dives is available to download here.

Subsequent reports on Amazon, Walmart, Target and Kroger, as well as quarterly updates, interactive tools, best practices, data points and benchmarks will be released throughout the year and will be available to WARC Digital Commerce subscribers.

February 14, 2022

Europe saw a decreased rate of growth across all key indices contrasting with increased rates in the Americas

Introduction to WARC’s Global Marketing Index

The WARC Global Marketing Index (GMI) provides a unique monthly indicator of the state of the global marketing industry by tracking the rate of growth or decline across current trading conditions, marketing budgets and staffing levels polled monthly from a panel of 1000+ marketing executives.

Key insights – January 2022

For the second month, the Headline Global Marketing Index (GMI) has seen a decrease from 65.4 to 64.3. All three regions, Europe, Americas, Asia Pacific, remain in growth, however the index value in Europe has seen a contraction from 63.2 in December to 61.7 in January, the lowest index value across regions. The index value in APAC saw a slight increase from 67.1 to 67.6 whilst the index value in the Americas saw an increase from 65.7 to 66.7.

Takeaways – January 2022

Europe sees a decreased rate of growth across all key indices contrasting with increased rates in the Americas.

Staffing levels continue to show increased rates of growth globally.
Global trading conditions maintain growth.
Radio budgets fall into decline for the first time since June 2021.

WARC’s GMI – Methodology

Our global panel consists of experienced executives working for brand owners, media owners, creative and media agencies and other organisations serving the marketing industry. The panel has been carefully selected to reflect trends in the three main global regions: Americas, Asia Pacific and Europe.

The Global Marketing Index results are calculated by taking the percentage of respondents that report that the activity has grown (“Increasing”) and adding it to one-half of the percentage that report the activity has not changed (“Unchanged”). A value of 50 indicates “no change” from the previous month. The more distant the index is from the amount that would indicate “no change” (50 points), the greater the rate of change indicated. Therefore, an index value of 58 indicates a faster rate of increase than an index value of 53, and an index value of 40 indicates a faster rate of decrease than an index value of 45.

Panel outreach

Those currently working for a brand owner, media owner, creative or media agency – or any other organisation serving the marketing industry – can take part in our panel. The monthly questionnaire is easy to complete – there are just a few questions and these can be answered intuitively and without recourse to files. It will take the average panellist less than two minutes to complete the questionnaire each month. The full report is shared with participants.

January 31, 2022

London, January 27, 2022: The latest Advertising Association/WARC Expenditure Report has outlined an even greater recovery for the UK’s advertising market than previously expected, with revised estimates for growth in 2021 standing at 26.4% to reach a total of £29.7bn.

The new findings – published today – upgrade October’s projection for 2021 (+24.8%) by 1.6 percentage points, equating to the strongest year in UK ad market history. This is supported by the actual data released for Q3 2021, showing adspend of £7.3bn – the largest-ever summer spend on record.

New forecasts also show total investment for 2022 is set to rise by 8.5% to £32.2bn – meaning the UK market will have expanded by more than a third since 2020. A bright start to the year contributes to an upgrade of almost one percentage point for 2022 growth, while sectors especially hit by the Covid-19 pandemic – such as cinema and out-of-home – will expect to see a continued recovery.

In addition, these recovery projections are supported by international data from WARC which expects the UK’s bounce-back in 2021 to be the largest across any major international ad market – including the USA, France and China – while outstripping the global rate by more than 12 percentage points.¹

Best-ever summer confirmed in 2021

Actual figures released by AA/WARC confirm adspend rose 23.2% during Q3 2021 to a record £7.3bn – three percentage points and £183m ahead of forecast. All media recorded double-digit growth in Q3 2021 following the previous year’s decline, as the summer period saw the return of key sporting moments such as the Euros, Olympics and Paralympics along with the easing of Covid-19 restrictions.

Triple-digit growth was confirmed for cinema (+655.9%) to £20.2m, marked by the September release of James Bond’s No Time to Die, while out-of-home saw an increase of 62.6% to £270.4m. Regional newsbrands saw online ad revenue overtake print for the second quarter running, as online revenue grew to £67.5m (+55.7%) with combined investment of £132.7m (+22.4%).

2022 market will have grown by more than a third since 2020

UK adspend is expected to continue to rise to £32.2bn this year as current projections anticipate 8.5% growth, including strong recoveries for cinema (+201.1%) and out-of-home (+26.8%). Continued growth is also expected from the largest advertising channels, including search (+11.1%), online display (+8.3%) and TV (+5.3%) as consumer habits gained during the pandemic are expected to be retained.

The latest figures suggest Q1 2022 also looks to be stronger than expected (particularly within TV) and overall adspend is now forecast to grow 12.6% year-on-year, compared with 10.5% previously.

Stephen Woodford, Chief Executive, Advertising Association said:

“UK advertising has seen a remarkable recovery from the coronavirus pandemic, racing ahead of key international markets with spend expected to cross the threshold of £30bn this year. A strong advertising market is a key indicator of the UK economy’s growth, with every £1 spent on advertising generating £6 GDP. The latest AA/WARC report brings welcome news not just for our industry but for the wider economy, as advertising investment is a key lever for businesses to capture new markets and drive their recovery.

“It is all the more important therefore that the Government recognises the need to support industry-led skills training to complement the demand for digital skills required to keep this market booming.”

James McDonald, Director of Data, Intelligence & Forecasting, WARC said:

“The latest verified data support our previous estimation that 2021 was the strongest year for the UK’s advertising market since monitoring began. Encouragingly this momentum appears to have sustained into the new year, with the impact of the Omicron variant on advertising trade appearing to be reasonably muted across the majority of sectors.

“While inflation is set to act as a headwind on both the consumer and media buyers alike in the coming months, we have little reason to believe that the UK’s ad market won’t achieve growth of 8.5% this year – well ahead of the average recorded during the decade preceding the outbreak”

Media	Q3 2021 year-on-year % change	9M 2021 year-on-year % change	2021 forecast year-on-year % change	Percentage point (pp) change in 2021 forecast vs Oct	2022 forecast year-on-year % change
Search	18.7%	36.7%	31.0%	+0.9pp	11.1%
Online display*	20.5%	32.8%	26.9%	+1.5pp	8.3%
TV	28.9%	30.6%	26.1%	+3.2pp	5.3%
of which VOD	33.9%	39.4%	37.5%	+3.4pp	13.7%
Online classified*	36.8%	31.6%	25.8%	+1.2pp	3.9%
Out of home	62.6%	14.2%	25.4%	-2-2pp	26.8%
of which digital	68.7%	24.8%	35.7%	-2.4pp	35.4%
Direct Mail	23.4%	21.0%	17.1%	+6.8pp	-6.8%
National newsbrands	25.4%	11.7%	10.9%	+3.3pp	1.4%
of which online	22.8%	22.4%	17.4%	+4.2pp	6.4%
Radio	30.7%	28.9%	21.7%	+4.0pp	4.0%
of which online	49.7%	54.5%	41.4%	+6.7pp	10.7%
Magazine brands	22.3%	24.4%	20.4%	-1.2pp	-3.0%
of which online	41.0%	62.2%	45.9%	+4.0pp	-1.0%
Regional newsbrands	22.4%	7.8%	7.8%	+0.4pp	-6.1%
of which online	55.7%	37.0%	33.2%	+8.2pp	0.9%
Cinema	655.9%	-57.0%	70.0%	-18.0pp	201.1%
TOTAL AD SPEND	23.2%	30.8%	26.4%	+1.6pp	8.5%

Note: Broadcaster VOD, digital revenues for newsbrands, magazine brands, and radio station websites are also included within online display and classified totals, so care should be taken to avoid double counting. Online radio is display advertising on broadcasters’ websites.

Source: AA/WARC Expenditure Report, January 2022

The Advertising Association/WARC quarterly Expenditure Report is the definitive guide to advertising expenditure in the UK with data and forecasts for different media going back to 1982.

¹ International adspend is calculated in USD. Projected figures for 2021 growth: UK (36.0%), global (23.8%), China (23.8%), France (23.6%), USA (21.7%).

December 10, 2021

WARC’s Spotlight US: DEI in US marketing: How it’s progressing – and how it isn’t

NEW YORK – December 7, 2021 – A year on from the release last year of WARC’s Guide to brand activism in the Black Lives Matter era, WARC’s just-launched Spotlight US measures industry DEI progress, and what it takes to maintain momentum.

Cathy Taylor, US Commissioning Editor, WARC, says: “There is so much work to be done towards DEI in the marketing industry that the subject needs continued commitment and revisiting. Whether the issue is hiring and retaining talent, or how consumers respond to ads that feature diverse portrayals, the underpinnings of the argument for diversity – both in terms of staffing and marketing output — increasingly center on data.

“The evidence and data outlined in this latest Spotlight just published, highlights that despite some positive advances, overall DEI in media, marketing and advertising is lagging.”

Key themes highlighted in WARC’s Spotlight US: “DEI in marketing: How it’s progressing – and how it isn’t” are:

US consumers want to see diverse portrayals in online ads, but brands don’t necessarily deliver

A study conducted earlier this year by Meta found that 65% of US consumers expect brands to promote diversity and inclusion in their online advertising, but 53% “feel they do not feel fully represented in online advertising today.” But despite some brands being slow to act, the study found that campaigns on Facebook with more diverse representation tend to have higher ad recall compared with campaigns featuring a single traditional representation.

Why brands and media owners should invest in content that reflects diversity

US TV content is becoming more diverse, but as Robert Vélez, Senior Director/Multicultural at Vevo notes, this content is more likely to be found on streaming platforms than on broadcast or cable: “Because of its ability to target on a more granular level, advertising against premium video and OTT programming is one of the most effective ways to build a relationship with an audience, and it’s also where programming featuring a more diverse set of characters is likely to be.” Read more here.

Robert Vélez Vevo — Robert Vélez, Senior Director/Multicultural at Vevo

Vélez advises that brands and agencies should either place more media investment in minority-owned media or invest in the plethora of new programming from more established media players that both reflects and is attractive to diverse audiences.

Latinx, in particular, are becoming a major force

By 2050, nearly one-in-three Americans will be of Hispanic origin, according to Pew Research Center; in California, Latinx have outnumbered white people since 2014. As a group, Latinx are reshaping American mainstream pop culture, from food, sports and fashion to politics, music, and late-night television.

Roberto Fonfría, Founder of the Miami agency El Autobus

This market is no longer just a piece of the US market: it is becoming the market, with $1.7 trillion in spending power. Without a long-term, focused strategy for the Hispanic market, marketers not only miss out on a huge opportunity, they risk the growth and success of their brands, notes Roberto Fonfría, Founder of the Miami agency El Autobus, (Anchor Worldwide).

The marketing world doesn’t match demographic reality

Diversity levels have increased in the US marketing industry, but there is still progress to be made. Recent data from the ANA (Association of National Advertisers) and AIMM (Alliance for Inclusive and Multicultural Marketing) showed almost 31% of those now employed in the marketing sector are from a non-Latinx white group.

However, diversity within the industry still lags behind that of the wider US population meaning marketers do not fully represent the audiences they hope to reach. The report found that only 5% of senior marketers are Black, 8.9% are Latinx and 11.7% are Asian Americans, which is disproportionately high. Other data shows that over time, representation for non-whites erodes on the way up the corporate ladder. Pam Yang, Co-founder of Agency DEI, says: “Between each level of influence, white talent gains 4-9% in representation. Starting with 63% in the Professional level … white representation jumps to 84% at the C-Suite/Officer level.”

There are problems with hiring, and retaining diverse talent

As the marketing community looks to become more representative, much of the focus has been on hiring, but representation alone does not mean inclusion and equity. A recent study by VMLY&R found that appraisal systems are potentially not set up to enable success for Black people, while Asian people in advertising appear to be getting “stuck” at a certain managerial level. Organizational systems need examination and recalibration to begin yielding equitable opportunities at scale to empower and enable success.

Building out a talent pipeline may start at the community level

There are many approaches on how to tackle these issues. One is the model of Huenited Collective, a group founded in Cincinnati by local marketing executives who are building out the infrastructure to bring diverse talent into its marketing community at scale.

Huenited Collective’s Co-Founder, Sean Ruggles of the Katalyst Group, says the Collective hopes to bring scale to DEI efforts across companies, because it’s business imperative: “As a collective, first we have to drive awareness of career possibilities through strategic partnerships, secondly recruit diverse talent with a focus on continued growth and equitable leadership opportunities, and thirdly build partnerships and facilitate membership that fosters this diverse talent to showcase their skillsets, as well as provide development.” Read more here.

To be truly equitable, there’s a need for Diversity Operating Systems

All of the issues raised in this Spotlight ladder up to a more encompassing truth – that diversity needs to be infused into the marketing industry rather than cobbled on. Davianne Harris of sparks & honey, says: “DEI must be woven into the fabric of the organization. Instead of solely building diverse teams, we need to build Diversity Operating Systems that embed equity into the daily rhythm of the work product and experience.” Read more here.

Read here a round-up of this latest Spotlight US by WARC’s Cathy Taylor. WARC’s Spotlight US is a bimonthly series which focuses on a timely industry topic facing brands in the market. It comprises a capsule collection of commentary, tackling the topic from a range of angles. Contributors to the series are industry experts offering on-ground insights to what’s working or developing.

WARC’s Spotlight series consists of a mixture of free content and content for WARC subscribers, and covers Australia, China, India, Southeast Asia and US.

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