US consumer spending that dipped last year after four years of double digit growth is expected to rise once again this year leading to increase in spending on US branded entertainment. According to the PQ Media Global Branded Entertainment Marketing Forecast 2010-2014 released last week United States still remains the world’s leading market accounting for over 45 % of the world’s big biz entertainment.
Releasing the report Patrick Quinn CEO of PQ Media said “The cascade of new media platforms and technologies have led to significant changes in consumer media use, which has forced brands to rethink long-held beliefs about effective strategies to reach target audiences.” With a complex myriad of content available through the internet, mobile devices, video, television and traditional print media and new ways of engaging the customer with games, shows and social media, media buying has become a strategic decision making
The total ad spend on Television, Video, internet and other media platforms that had declined in the year 2009 by 2.8% to $3.6 billion due to the global economic crisis is expected to rise this year. The spending on branded entertainment including consumer events, road shows, celebrity sponsorships and paid advertisements in the media is projected to rise by 5.3% during the year, and grow at a 9.2% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) during the 5 year span 2009-2014 .China will however be the fastest growing market in this segment with a 19.1% CAGR.
One of the most interesting forecasts of PQ media is the Word of Mouth WOM advertisement that is expected to cross $2 billion this year and $3 billion by 2013. Its remarkable CAGR of 14.5% is possibly due to the emergence and impact of one to one communication through e mail and social media. Consumer packaged goods are the biggest users of WOM followed by food and beverages, financial services advertisement, business to business, electronics and telecommunication and retail.
The WOM report which is divided into two sections content and service and ancillary products had more to cheer about. Word Of mouth spending on content and services grew with WOM strategy and consulting remaining the largest segment at $832 million . Whereas WOM is indeed highly relevant and still to be fully capitalised, the impact of social media has possibly not been fully computed and integrated with the feature. The unpaid word of mouth promotion in the social media today is phenomenal today though facebook and twitter have still to learn the means to monetise and capitalise its impact. Over the next few years this segment should mature and result in quantum jump, if the growth in the number of social media users are a measure of things.
I love to write on anything and everything under the sun from Project Management to Poetry, Economics to Travel and Technology. But most of all I love to write about our planet earth, about which you can read more in my blog Ecology to Economics. You may also meet me at http://www.twitter.com/ecothrust
Read other articles by Sandip Sen
