2021 Advertising Stats You Need to Know

2021 was a big year with advertisers, as they managed the impact of the COVID-19 crisis along with growing data privacy concerns.

So, how exactly did advertisers fare in terms of strategy, challenges, and ad spend? To help you prepare for your 2022 strategy, we've gathered 27 stats.

You'll learn which strategies advertisers are leveraging today, which ones they plan to invest in, and the challenges they faced and may face in 2022.

Current Ad Strategies

• 84% of marketers' companies run marketing campaigns and for 42% of respondents, advertising products is one of their main goals. (HubSpot Blog Research)
• This year, print advertising was a low priority for marketers, with only 19% of marketers leveraging it. It was also one of the least effective channels for advertisers. (HubSpot Blog Research)
• Paid social is a top paid channel for marketers. (HubSpot Blog Research)
• In terms of account-based marketing (ABM), paid ads were one of the top three tactics marketers used, behind creating custom content and identifying target contacts/roles. (HubSpot Blog Research)
• In 2022, 21% of marketers plan to leverage paid social for the first time. (HubSpot Blog Research)
• In 2022, around 66% of advertisers plan to respond to data depreciation by 1) learning how to leverage their data in privacy-forward ways, 2) demanding more data transparency from partners, and exploring the adoption and experimentation of artificial intelligence. (Forrester)
• Advertisers plan to leverage AI for privacy-safe targeting, identifying conversion-ready audiences, and dynamic creative optimization (DCO). (Forrester)
• Around 18% of advertisers plan to divest from print advertising and direct mail (HubSpot Blog Research)
• Some advertisers will also divest from physical ads, such as signage and billboards. (HubSpot Blog Research)

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Advertising Challenges

In the past two years, data privacy has become a top concern for both consumers and marketers. In 2020, we faced the death of the third-party cookie, with Chrome blocking this type of data tracking. In September 2021, Apple announced that the IOS 15 update will affect marketers' ability to track user behavior.

All of this has translated into challenges in paid media and many of them listed below relate to data privacy:

• 65% of advertisers are confident in their creative assets while only 26% are confident in their targeting abilities and only 10% in media. (Forrester)
• 87% of advertisers believe traditional targeting and tracking methods are at risk today due to data privacy concerns and policies. (Forrester)
• 64% of advertisers fear a loss of consumer trust in their ads, which can translate into a decrease in brand loyalty. (Forrester)
• Most advertisers (91%) believe consumers expect more personalized and engaging ads. However, 87% of advertisers say stricter data privacy implementations have made it harder to scale personalized ad experiences. (Forrester)
• 85% of advertisers say they have a ton of data but struggle to find privacy-friendly ways to use it. (Forrester)
• In 2021, U.S. advertisers spent $153.2 billion on internet ads, $81 billion more than on TV ads. (Statista)
• Paid media is the number one place advertisers plan to allocate their marketing budget in the next year. (Not Another State of Marketing Report)
• Total ad spending declined year-over-year by 1.2%, driven by a dip in traditional ad spending. (eMarketer)
• B2B digital advertising is expected to reach $12.6 billion in 2022. (Statista)

Ad Spend and Budgeting

• In 2021, U.S. advertisers spent $153.2 billion on internet ads, $81 billion more than on TV ads. (Statista)
• Paid media is the number one place advertisers plan to allocate their marketing budget in the next year. (Not Another State of Marketing Report)
• Total ad spending declined year-over-year by 1.2%, driven by a 15.7% contraction in traditional ad spending. (eMarketer)
• B2B digital advertising is expected to reach $12.6 billion in 2022. (Statista)

Looking Forward

With data privacy becoming a big part of the conversation surrounding paid media, recent data suggests that the big focus moving forward is finding privacy-friendly ways to target users and track performance.

• In 2022, around 66% of advertisers plan to respond to data depreciation by 1) learning how to leverage their data in privacy-forward ways, 2) demanding more data transparency from partners, and exploring the adoption and experimentation of artificial intelligence. (Forrester)
• Advertisers plan to leverage AI for privacy-safe targeting, identifying conversion-ready audiences, and dynamic creative optimization (DCO). (Forrester)
• Around 18% of advertisers plan to divest from print advertising and direct mail (HubSpot Blog Research)
• Some advertisers will also divest from physical ads, such as signage and billboards. (HubSpot Blog Research)
• In 2022, 21% of marketers plan to leverage paid social for the first time. (HubSpot Blog Research)

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