U.S. communications spending, including PR, advertising and marketing services, will rise 5.2% this year to hit nearly $1.2 trillion in a return to spending not seen since the economic downturn as consumers and business embrace digital technology, according to a forecast by Veronis Suhler Stevenson.
Traditional marketing, buoyed by political campaign spending on PR and word-of-mouth marketing, is expected to rise 4.2% this year to $75.9B.VSS said it expects a 4.2% compounded annual growth rate through 2016, a cycle that includes two presidential elections and a mid-term election cycle, as well as “strong growth” in PR and WOMM, and a turnaround in B2B promotions, hitting $89.3B in 2016.
PR and WOMM grew 12.4 percent to $6.41 billion in 2011, the report found.
John Suhler, president of VSS, said digital is now a “constant and significant factor” in every sector and sub-segment of the U.S. communications industry. He forecasts digital-related spending to become 40% of the overall communications spending in the U.S. by 2016.
Traditional consumer advertising, by comparison, will post a modest 2% gain this year to $146.6B, said VSS, as gains from the Olympics, broadcast TV, and broadcast and satellite radio are tempered by declines in newspapers, magazines and local consumer directories. Advertising overall, however, is expected to post the largest compounded annual growth rate through 2016 of 6.1% as Olympics, political ads and the shift to digital ads flows to the sector.