Euro marketing budgets on the up
European marketing budgets increased for the first time in 11 months in March signalling marketers are becoming more optimistic about the economic outlook, according to the latest Warc Global Marketing Index, published a day after a separate study predicts European ad spend will return to positive growth in 2014.
Warc’s latest survey of 1,225 global marketers shows marketing budgets increased in all global regions in March, offering what it claims is the most positive outlook for global trading conditions in a year.
For only the second time since the monthly Global Marketing Index (GMI) began in October 2011, European marketers reported net growth in budgets, with an index value of 50.5 – a 1.7 point increase from February.
Suzy Young, data and journals director at Warc, says: “The latest GMI data are encouraging for marketers worldwide. Confidence also appears to be returning in Europe, which is reassuring in light of fresh concerns regarding economic stability in the Eurozone.”
The Index tracks marketers’ expectations including staffing levels, budgets and trading conditions.
Separately, Carat has predicted a 3.7 per cent increase in global ad spend this year rising to 5 per cent growth in 2014.
Ad spend in Western Europe is expected to return to positive growth of 1.8 per cent in 2014 and improve this year to -0.3 per cent growth up from -3.2 per cent in 2012.
In the UK Carat forecasts a 2.7 per cent uplift in ad spend in 2013, up from 2.2 per cent last year, driven by TV (up 1.2 per cent) and digital (up 10 per cent). UK ad spend growth is set to accelerate in 2014 to 4.4 per cent.
The media group expects digital advertising to achieve 20 per cent market share by 2014, increasing its share of total ad spend by around 2 per cent each year.
