Advertising in India to touch pre-pandemic levels by 2022: Report

The Indian advertising market will recover to pre-pandemic levels by 2022, growing at 12.4%, stated a report from advertising firm Dentsu. This will be led by TV and digital versus a long recovery for print, cinema and outdoor and radio platforms. Share of digital advertising has grown rapidly, from 20% in 2019 to 29.4% in 2021, and is expected to reach 32.7% by the end of 2022.

The report which puts out advertising spend forecast for Asia Pacific (APAC) said that ad spend in the region will rise past pre-pandemic levels, a year sooner than previously predicted. Australia and India are forecasting particularly high growth rates in 2021. However, China is expected to exceed pre-pandemic levels of ad spends this year.

Overall, ad spend in APAC is projected to grow by 8.0% to touch $229 billion in 2021. This growth is slightly slower when compared with the global ad spends which are expected to grow at 10.4.% to touch $634 billion. India is the fifth fastest-growing ad market globally in 2021 after Canada, the US, Australia, and UK.

The report highlighted that after a steep 12.9% decline in 2020, advertising spend in India is forecast to grow at 10.8% in 2021 to reach $9 billion. TV continues to be the most popular media in India, with a leading 40.9% share of spend that shows resilience despite the pandemic and a 7.7% growth compared to 2020 spending.

Ashish Bhasin, CEO APAC, Dentsu international, said, “India is expected to see a resurgence in digital advertising spend though TV is still the main contributor with a 40.9% share.”

The findings of the report suggested that the pandemic-induced decline in advertising spend during 2020 has proved less severe than anticipated in APAC. The 6.2% rise in digital spend last year is forecast to grow by 12.8% in 2021 to reach $124.5 billion, representing a 54% share of total ad spend in the region. Forecasts for social (33.4%) and video (10.8%) will also rise, with search growing at 7.8% to reach S$23.1 billion in 2021.

Offline/linear ad spend will see a return to growth of 2.8% to $104.8 billion, following a 15% decline in 2020. However, it is predicted that spend levels in APAC will remain below pre-pandemic levels in 2021.

While regional live events such Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics Games continue to be a significant driver of growth in linear TV ad spend, the Dentsu data suggests a shift towards CTV (Connected TV) and OTT (over-the-top) platforms.

With restrictions lifting on social activity, OOH will see a bounce back post impact of the pandemic, rising 7.5% in 2021 in the region. Cinema has a slightly longer recovery, with a further decline in 2021 (-5.0%) but expected to bounce back in 2022. Radio will also see growth (4.3%) in 2021. Print is seeing a slight decline in 2021 (–2.7%) and expected to continue declining in 2022, as it continues to evolve towards new modes of digital delivery.