The world’s top advertisers rebounded from 2020 pandemic gloom to a 2021 recovery boom, but spending growth slowed this year—and 2023 could be rough.
Ad Age World’s Largest Advertisers 2022 shows who’s up (and down).
Advertising had a remarkable resurgence from the depths of the pandemic, but overall spending growth has fallen sharply this year, according to Ad Age Datacenter’s analysis of year-to-date financial disclosures from global marketers.
Top line: Go here for quick links to rankings and charts.
Deep dive: Go here for analysis of ad spending for global marketers.
A weakening digital ad market could put pressure on marketing spending at internet media firms, where “efficiency” is the new watchword.
For the first time, the world’s two biggest advertisers are internet companies—one from the U.S., the other from China. Both are under pressure to cut costs, raising questions about what happens to their marketing budgets going forward.
As marketers navigate the faltering economy, spending moves vary markedly. One financial services firm boosted marketing spending by 55% in the first nine months of 2022—on top of a 78% increase in 2021. Another financial firm slashed third-quarter spending 33%—reversing a 32% increase in 2021.
