unicornnews: IPA upbeat for comms industries

And if you’ve now got a taste for good news, then here, have some more.

New figures from the Institute Of Practitioners In Advertising has reported that, while marketing and communication spends continued to decline in the last quarter of 2009, the level of decline was at its lowest since the start of 2008, leading to the trade body expressing renewed optimism for the wider communication industries in the year to come. The part of the so called Bellwether Report that specifically looks a PR and other ‘below-the-line’ marketing activities reported that overall budgets declined 4% in the final quarter of 2009, compared to a 24.4% decline in the previous quarter.

Commenting on the stats, Andy Viner, Head of Media at accountants BDO LLP, who sponsor the survey, told reporters: “These results are good news for the marketing services sector. After nine consecutive quarters of reduced marketing spend, it appears that the rate of decline is at its slowest in nearly two years”.

He continued: “There are a number of indicators to demonstrate that confidence is returning, with companies being upbeat about their own sectors and their corporate performance. Marketing budgets in 2010 are now set to grow, with companies re-thinking their budget allocation. [Though] unsurprisingly, companies are continuing to seek cost effective and flexible options where the return on investment can be measured”.

Posted Tuesday January 19 2010 by Chris Cooke

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