AA/WARC reaction: 'Don't leave it down to guess work'

New figures from this week’s Advertising Association/WARC Expenditure Report reveal the UK’s ad market recorded a 10.4% increase in investment to a total of £42.6bn in 2024, with online formats growing 13.2%, meaning £4 in every £5 of ad budgets is now spent on digital.

And, while the report also factors in some turbulence for the year ahead, there are still plenty of positives. The report draws its own conclusions, but Decision Marketing quizzes industry chiefs for their take on what it all means for the sector and beyond.

For Joan London managing partner George Fox it is the growth of ad-supported subscription video on demand (SVOD) across streaming services that is the standout factor.

He explains: “Brands now have the opportunity to be more creative with their advertising, tailoring this based on the platform their adverts are running on. As SVOD advertising grows and matures, we can expect to see brands be more playful here.

“It’s also important to note the significance of cinema advertising. The report mentions key moments in 2024, such as Wicked, Gladiator II and Paddington in Peru, and we can expect this to continue. We’ve already seen the Minecraft Movie take a very impressive $816m at the box office, and there’s even more in store throughout the year with the likes of Wicked: Part 2 in November. It’s an exciting time in cinema, and marketers should be paying attention.”

Charlie Oscar chief growth officer Will Frappell, however, reckons the data reflects that while economic uncertainty continues, ambitious brands are not holding back, they are investing in smart, scalable growth channels.

Frappell adds: “The continued momentum in online display, paid social and search, particularly the sharp rise in retail media, shows that performance and precision remain front of mind for CMOs.

“The redefinition of total TV spend to include SVOD, AVOD, and FAST platforms marks a shift in how advertisers are thinking about reach and attention, with the most forward thinking brands shifting to a full funnel approach to customer acquisition.”

For challenger brands especially, this is a moment of opportunity, Frappell reckons, explained that, with digital channels accounting for the majority share of adspend and new formats emerging constantly, there is more scope than ever to punch above your weight. But it also demands sharper strategy, more adaptive creative, and a relentless focus on what drives real business outcomes. Robust full-funnel measurement is key to success.

He comments: “As the market grows at a more modest pace in 2025 and 2026, we expect to see the best performing brands doubling down on agility, full funnel measurement, automation and AI to unlock better efficiency and growth at scale.”

Even so, UniLED Software client services director Gideon Adey insists out of home takes the crown for being the standout growth medium.

He continues: “OOH 7.7% growth is above all other media except for search and online display – and double the growth in TV. This reinforces OOH’s position as a broadcast, high reach medium. Whether deployed for national broadcast, geographically targeted for local impact or displayed temporally to reach the right moment behaviourally.

“Growth in OOH is set to continue in 2025, even against downgraded targets, and OOH is predicted to continue to outstrip other offline media. Growth continues to be driven by digital OOH which now represents 66% of revenues in the UK OOH sector. After all, digitisation has handed OOH multiple opportunities to further accelerate its evolution and increase its share of ad spend.

Adey maintains that the WARC figures show increasing confidence and trust in OOH by advertisers and their agents but also mirror the confidence investors have in the medium – with a flurry of significant financial investments into UK OOH this year. He believes this shows the medium is not a short-term investment play, with companies including Bauer Media Group, Wildstone, and NPIF committing long-term, high-value investments into the sector.

Meanwhile, Azerion UK head of sales Angelique Whittaker says: “It’s really encouraging to see that ad spend on connected TV is now a fully integrated part of overall TV spend; we’ve watched CTV increase its foothold over the past year, making it a solid player increasingly embraced by agencies and brands as they look for additional routes to finding and measuring their audiences in the TV space.

“At the same time, all areas of digital advertising have demonstrated growth, showing the draw of omnichannel.”

Finally, Lumen Research founder and chief executive Mike Follett stresses that while marketers cannot control global uncertainty, they can control campaign effectiveness – and that must be measured, not left to guess work.

He comments: “That’s why it’s marketers recognising attention as the most powerful predictor of success who are the real winners. Attention is the gateway to memory, action, and ultimately, return on investment. These marketers know if people aren’t paying attention, the ad doesn’t stand a chance.

“For example – retail media alone accounted for two in five pounds spent on UK advertising last year. Our recent study found convenience store advertising drives three times more attention than traditional formats and ranks second for brand recall.

“As more budget shifts into digital, brands aiming for ambitious growth, would do well to pay more attention – to attention.”