World’s marketers showing highest level of optimism in three years

This is according to the latest World Advertising Research Centre (Warc) report titled ‘The Voice of the Marketer 2025’, which is based on an in-depth survey of 1,000 marketers. 

Warc’s research team says this level of optimism is the highest in three years. However, 72% of respondents see this as dependent on economic conditions. 

Just a third (34%) expect marketing budgets to increase in the year ahead (versus 41% in last year’s survey), although 44% expect budgets to be maintained.  

Some marketers will continue to prioritise long-term growth: 35% expect investment in brand marketing to increase in 2025, while 38% expect investments in performance to increase in 2025. 

Online video and social media 

For the second year in a row, most global marketers expect investments in online video and social media to increase. According to WARC’s most recent Global Ad Spend Outlook, online advertising now accounts for over half (58.7%) of total advertising spend, while legacy media accounts for a quarter (25.3%). 

On average, 34% of surveyed marketers do not currently invest in TV and cinema, compared to only 5% for online video and social media. However, recent research – from Ebiquity and Lumen, as well as Thinkbox – has shown that legacy media outperforms digital channels in attention and effectiveness. 

Most marketers (93%) employ one or more measurement techniques, but the techniques vary. While more than two-thirds (67%) of marketers conduct brand health tracking, less than half (45%) use econometrics and marketing mixed modelling (MMM). 

Comments David Sandstrom, Chief Marketing Officer at Klarna, a company that provides payment processing services for the retail industry: “I do think traditional media, versus the very hardcore performance media, still has an ability to create trust and tell a story. One thing that brands are lacking today is not their ability to optimise their Facebook ads, it is their ability to tell a story.”