"In 2017, I worked up the courage to call my mum and deliver some devastating news. After ten whole years of study, work experience and three years of medical school, I had decided I no longer wanted to be a doctor. It took her a while to get over not being able to tell people her son was saving lives."
"I walked away from what she saw as a noble career that changes the world. I've always disagreed with her. Marketing is noble. It keeps pubs and planes full. It turns 25p cans of cola into £2 cans of Coca-Cola. It literally creates GDP out of thin air. This is why it hurts to admit that the marketing machine is failing."
"We've never spent more on advertising. But it's never done less. Spend up, effectiveness down Global ad spend is about to hit $1trn in 2025, up nearly 30% in real terms over the past 15 years. More brands, more ads, more cash. But the results aren't there. Peter Field's Crisis in Creative Effectiveness showed that creatively awarded UK campaigns no longer grow market share like they used to."
Global advertising expenditure is approaching $1 trillion in 2025, rising nearly 30% in real terms over 15 years while measurable effectiveness declines. Research indicates creatively awarded campaigns no longer deliver the market-share gains they once did, and a 1,256-campaign study across multiple markets finds falls in awareness, distinctiveness, trust, fame and consideration. Platform-level ROI has dropped, with Meta returns reportedly halving from $4 to $1.75 per dollar. Creativity remains the dominant driver of profitability, with Ehrenberg-Bass attributing roughly 75% of success to creative choice. Industry practices and allocation decisions are implicated in the worsening productivity of advertising spend.
Read at The Drum
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