Social now top ad channel as brands ignore privacy fears

Social media giants have shrugged off major concerns over their privacy policies – typified by huge fines for Facebook, WhatsApp, TikTok, X and Instagram – with the channel overtaking paid search last year to become the biggest by ad investment, and forecast to reach $247.3bn in 2024, up 14.3% year-on-year.

So says WARC Media’s latest Global Advertising Trends report, which follows separate data from GWI that reveals time spent with social platforms has increased by 50% since 2014, from an average daily consumption of 95 minutes to 152 minutes in 2024, and according to data.ai, worldwide user numbers across social platforms have risen 169% since 2014.

In the UK, social media advertising spend grew 15.6% year-on-year in 2023, and is forecast to reach £8.8bn in 2025. Much of this growth is attributed to rising spend on social video formats, up 20.0% year-on-year, according to IAB UK.

WARC Media head of content Alex Brownsell said: “Much of social media’s success has been driven by Meta’s remarkable renaissance. However, social’s stronghold on budgets can also be seen in TikTok’s rise, and a return to double digit ad revenue growth at Snapchat and Pinterest.

“However, with this dominance comes challenges, such as rising advertising loads in social environments, and the impact of AI on media planning. In this report, we take a holistic view of the global social media landscape, which shows no sign of losing momentum.”

The reports shows both Facebook and Instagram grew by more than 20% year-on-year in Q1 2024, and Meta is forecast to earn $155.6bn in ad revenue this year, representing a 63.0% share of global social spend, fuelled by a wave of investment from Chinese exporters, and the popularity of its AI tools. According to WARC Media, Meta is set to overtake global linear TV in advertising spend terms in 2025.

Tools like Meta’s Advantage+, which automate aspects of creative and media planning, are becoming increasingly popular with advertisers. However, some brands have complained of erosion to campaign efficiencies.

WARC Media forecasts TikTok will earn $23.1bn this year. The +18.3% year-on-year increase marks a significant slow-down from the 87.8% growth rate it clocked up last year, despite the introduction of new search and shopping ad formats. Given TikTok’s unique popularity with Gen Z audiences, many advertisers in the US will be hoping a ban does not come into effect.

Meanwhile, Pinterest is set to enjoy a 17.3% year-on-year increase in ad revenue in 2024, while Snapchat is forecast to grow 13.7%. This strong growth of both platforms is attributed to a refocus and leaning into their respective strengths.

At the other end of the spectrum, X’s ad revenue in 2024 is predicted to decline by 6.4% globally and 5.1% in the US. However, compared to its startling 46.4% decrease in 2023, it marks something of a stabilisation for the Elon Musk owned platform, largely due to political ad spend. However, marketers remain concerned with brand safety and X’s much publicised issues with bots.

But the leading social platforms are becoming increasingly homogeneous. As TikTok prepares to launch a photo sharing app, Notes, and Meta invests in AI search tools, social platforms are converging in the advertising formats and commerce functionality they offer to brands.

PHD Global global head of social Rachel Morman said: “AI offers incredible new opportunities for [social advertisers], delivering multi-advertiser contextual ads, but that may not be suitable for all brands – such as those that need to heavily consider exclusivity and adjacency.” Her counterpart at GroupM Gillian Collison added: “The challenge remains to enable brands to leverage their own data and analytics to understand target audiences at a deeper level, enabling personalised experiences across all mediums.”