Marketers’ use of AI, online spending, ‘quiet luxury’: 5 interesting stats to start your week

Most marketers have used AI in their current role

Over half (54%) of marketers say they have used AI in their current role. This figure is significantly up from 12 months ago, when just over a third (37%) said they had used the tool in their role.

More than one in five (22%) report using AI multiple times a day in their role, with a quarter (25%) stating they use it a few times a week.

Marketers are more likely to be using AI than professionals in other industries, including finance (16%), engineering (17%), education (22%) and technology (39%).

As well as using AI in their current roles, many marketers are employing the tool when it comes to searching for a new job. Over a quarter (26%) of marketers say they have used an AI tool when completing a job application and more than a third (34%) say they will use it for this purpose in the future.

Source: Hays

UK online spending grows for fifth consecutive month

UK online spending reached £8.5bn in March, a 3.7% increase versus the same month in 2023. This marks the fifth consecutive month of growth for online spending in the UK.

It represents positive progress for the first quarter overall. January saw year-over-year growth of 1.5% and February saw growth of 5%.

While Mother’s Day and Easter buoyed March online sales, sales over the Easter weekend were actually down 6% compared to the same period last year.

The positive progress in online sales may indicate some growing consumer confidence; however, shoppers are leaning on buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) services to spread the cost.

Around £1.35bn of online purchases were made using BNPL services in March 2024, up 8% versus last year. This represents 15.9% of total online spending for the month.

Source: Adobe Analytics

Almost half of British consumers say they spend extra on high quality products

Almost half (48%) of Britons agree they spend extra cash on high quality products; however, just 10% say they like to own or do things that display their wealth, according to new research from Effie and Ipsos.

Around a third of people strongly oppose the idea of doing or buying things to display their wealth, suggesting that people are buying into an idea of “quiet luxury”.

The research also looked at British consumers’ idea of what success means. More people believe that treating people well (82%) is important for getting ahead in life, than those who believe hard work (77%) is important for success.

Almost two-thirds (64%) think skills and talent are important for success in life, while only 22% think coming from a wealthy family can help you get ahead.

While British consumers are more likely to equate kindness to others with success than an affluent background, there is a perceived gap between success and recognition. More than half of Britons (56%) identify as being highly successful, but only a third (34%) feel they are recognised for their successes.

Source: Effie and Ipsos

Online ads ‘most complained about channel’ in 2023

Online ads were the most complained about media last year, with the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) receiving 20,944 complaints in 2023 for around 17,174 ads. This marks a 14% increase on 2022’s numbers.

TV was the second-most complained about media, with 13,604 complaints for 4,399 ads – a 12% increase. Email overtook outdoor ads in 2023 as the third-most complained about media, with 1,210 complaints against 1,058 ads.

In total, the ASA recorded 39,034 complaints regarding 25,041 adverts last year. Some 27,378 ads were either withdrawn or amended thanks to this effort.

Alongside the thousands of complaints the ASA received, the watchdog’s AI-powered Active Ad Monitoring system processed around 3 million ads last year. The ASA projects the system will capture more than 10 million in 2024 across all channels.

Source: ASA

Over two-thirds of marketers think there is ‘room for improvement’ on financial fluency

Almost seven in 10 (69%) marketers think there is “room for improvement” in the industry’s level of financial fluency, according to a poll carried out by Marketing Week on LinkedIn.

The survey of 377 people finds that over two-thirds think more can be done to improve the financial savviness of the marketing industry as a whole and their teams. Furthermore, one in five (19%) say a lack of skills in the area is a “major issue”.

Just 12% of marketers polled believe their industry or team is “definitely” financially fluent.

Source: Marketing Week via LinkedIn