Caution, Not Cuts: Marketers Plan Steady Or Increased Media Spending.

Despite lingering economic uncertainty, the media buying agency Mediaocean says most marketers plan to maintain or increase spending across the majority of media channels in the second half of the year. That includes spending on radio and audio media. Its survey finds one in four ad buyers expect to spend more on audio advertising during the second half of the year, while a majority of 57% plans to hold the line on what they have already allocated for the year.

“Ad spend is holding strong, in spite of the fact that there’s volatility in the economy,” said Karsten Weide, Principal and Chief Analyst at W Media Research, in a webinar detailing the findings. “The good news is the vast majority of marketers are intending to maintain or increase their advertising spend in the second half of the year.”

Mediaocean says the latest in the twice-a-year survey does show some “softening” compared to the previous survey as 7 in 10 media channels are seeing a rise in the share of the marketers that are planning to decrease investment. But there is a silver lining for radio, putting a larger number of buyers planning to put more into radio and audio advertising in even better light, considering the number is bigger than the prior November survey.

“Overall, while budgets are tightening, most marketers continue to maintain or grow spend — pointing to caution, not contraction,” the report says. Search saw the biggest drop, which Mediaocean says is likely due to the impact of more consumers turning to Gen AI to discover content and products. The biggest increase went to CTV, with 58% of marketers planning to spend more with that channel. Personalization was the top driver of CTV effectiveness, while cross-platform frequency management and measurement were noted as persistent challenges.

Shelby Saville, CEO of the media buying agency Starcom, says there seems to be a “morphing” of all media into video, including audio-first content.

“Podcasting is becoming video as some platforms are realizing that people want to listen to video on their mobile device — but only listening to the audio, as they’re almost treating some video like a podcast,” she said. “You’re seeing a heavy tip to video in terms of what marketers are looking for to just capture that attention, sight, sound, motion, emotional reaction from the consumer. And so the imperative then becomes thinking about things from an omnichannel perspective.”

The findings are based on a survey of 464 marketing professionals conducted in May.

The survey also offers insights into what is on the minds of marketing executives. It shows the use of generative AI tops the list of trends for the second straight wave, with 72% of marketers citing it as a priority — up 15% from the first. Mediaocean says the data shows marketers are moving past experimentation, applying AI throughout the ad lifecycle, from creative production and copywriting to media planning, data analysis, and campaign optimization.

The latest survey finds a third now use AI for copywriting, and nearly half use it for market research and data analysis.

The impact may also be impacting how radio and other mediums are bought in the future. When asked about the anticipated impact of gen AI over the next 12 months, 31% of respondents expect major disruption in creative optimization, while one in four foresee significant change in media planning and buying. Yet Mediaocean also believes that because of legacy systems and workflows in media buying, it thinks AI’s impact will take longer to evolve in that part of the advertising process.

“Disruption is everywhere,” Saville said. “Consumer behavior is changing rapidly, and I don’t think that change is ever going to slow down. So this general volatility and unrest continues, and you’ve got to approach it with an agile mindset of ‘what do we need to do today?’”