Local advertising is poised to surge 16.4%, from $113 billion in 2015 to $132 billion this year, according to a new forecast from Borrell Associates. Key drivers are a $5.5 billion injection from state and local election ads, and $17 billion in additional spending that local businesses are likely to dole out for digital media.
“The ‘X Year’ has arrived,” Borrell says, meaning the lines that represent analog media and digital media will begin to cross. “This year, digital advertising will reach the halfway point, accounting for roughly half of all local advertising expenditures,” the report states.
Radio, according to Borrell, is slated to grab 7.6% of that $132 billion in local ad spend, to the tune of $10.036 billion. And while that represents a slight decline from 2015 numbers, Borrell stresses radio’s perennial assets—the fact that more than 90% of adults listen to radio at least once a week and it remains one of the least-expensive media choices.
Radio is also placing its bets more and more on online media, which is forecast to grow an eye-popping 36.4%, followed by TV (19.7%), cable (5.6%), outdoor (1.6%) and magazines (1.1%). Borrell anticipates steep declines for direct mail (-4.5%), newspapers (-4.6%) and directories (6.2%).
Radio, according to Borrell, is slated to grab 7.6% of that $132 billion in local ad spend, to the tune of $10.036 billion. And while that represents a slight decline from 2015 numbers, Borrell stresses radio’s perennial assets—the fact that more than 90% of adults listen to radio at least once a week and it remains one of the least-expensive media choices.
Radio is also placing its bets more and more on online media, which is forecast to grow an eye-popping 36.4%, followed by TV (19.7%), cable (5.6%), outdoor (1.6%) and magazines (1.1%). Borrell anticipates steep declines for direct mail (-4.5%), newspapers (-4.6%) and directories (6.2%).