As a highlight, 2009 will mark the fifth year in which direct marketing has captured more than half of all advertising spend nationwide. This figure is up to 54.3 percent from last year’s 52.7 percent, and is forecasted to remain above 53 percent for the next five years.
In 2010, total direct marketing ad spending is expected to increase 2.7 percent, yielding $153.3 billion overall.Although the direct marketing share of total advertising continues to increase, ad budgets of all types suffered in 2009. Due to decreases in corporate profits, consumers economizing, belt tightening by businesses, and limited credit options, direct marketing advertising expenditures are predicted to fall to $149.3 billion in 2009, a decline of 11.2 percent compared to 2008. However, direct marketing is still performing better than general advertising which fell to $125.7 billion, down 14.2 percent from 2008. “Direct marketing is now a bigger slice of an overall smaller marketing pie,” added Wurmser.
Economy Begins Slow and Uneven Recovery, Second Half of 2009 and into 2010
Future economic growth will be slow, but is expected to be positive in the third and fourth quarters of this year.
Direct marketers should expect DM-driven sales revenue to decrease, nearly proportionate to ad spending, by 10.9 percent in 2009, reaching $1,738 billion from an actual $1,951.7 billion in 2008. For 2010, sales generated from direct marketing are forecasted to grow by 3.5 percent to $1,798 billion. Several broad sectors are expected to realize above-average direct marketing sales growth in 2010, including Financial Services, Retail Trade, and Manufacturing, Resources.
