In a rapidly evolving marketing landscape, Nielsen’s seventh Annual Marketing Report sheds light on how marketers are adapting to significant shifts in consumer behavior and technology. Released on May 20, 2025, in New York, this comprehensive report provides insights into the strategies marketers are employing to navigate an uncertain market environment.
Key Trends Identified
The report, based on a survey of over 1,400 global marketing professionals, identifies three pivotal trends shaping the advertising industry in 2025:
1. Investment in Connected TV and Retail Media Networks:
– 56% of marketers plan to increase their spending on over-the-top (OTT) and Connected TV (CTV) platforms, marking a 3% rise from the previous year.
– Retail Media Networks are gaining traction, with 65% of marketers recognizing their growing importance in media strategies.
– Despite a general tightening of budgets, there is a renewed interest in traditional media, with 16% of marketers planning significant increases in their out-of-home advertising budgets.
2. AI-Driven Personalization and Optimization:
– Almost 71% of brands with large advertising budgets (over $1 billion) view AI as a critical tool for personalization and optimization.
– Marketers are leveraging AI to enhance customer experiences and streamline their advertising efforts, despite widespread budget cuts anticipated in 2025.
– The report highlights the importance of AI in maintaining competitive advantage, particularly in regions like Europe where 60% of marketers plan to cut advertising spend.
3. Balancing Brand Awareness and Revenue Growth:
– The report reveals regional disparities in marketing priorities. In North America and Asia-Pacific, the focus is nearly evenly split between brand awareness and revenue growth.
– European marketers prioritize revenue growth (59%) over brand awareness (37%), reflecting a strategic shift in response to economic pressures.
– Latin America shows a slight preference for brand awareness (46%) over revenue growth (41%).
Challenges in Measurement
A significant challenge identified in the report is the struggle to integrate digital and traditional media measurements into a cohesive framework:
– Only 32% of marketers globally report having a comprehensive approach to measuring media spending across channels.
– Latin America and Europe lag behind, with just 29% and 23% respectively achieving holistic measurement.
– The complexity of cross-media campaigns is further compounded by issues like data fragmentation, insufficient tools, and a lack of transparency, especially with emerging channels like Retail Media Networks.
Strategic Insights
Alison Gensheimer, SVP of Marketing at Nielsen, emphasizes the industry’s adaptability in the face of economic uncertainties. Marketers are capitalizing on new platforms like CTV and Retail Media Networks while optimizing media mixes with AI. She underscores the necessity of reliable measurement solutions to navigate the complexities of modern advertising.
The Global Perspective
This annual report, now in its fourth global iteration, draws from a diverse pool of marketing professionals across various industries. Participants in the survey manage substantial marketing budgets, with two-thirds overseeing budgets exceeding $10 million. The insights provided are crucial for marketers aiming to align their strategies with evolving market dynamics.
For more detailed findings and strategic recommendations, the full report is available for download. Stay updated with the latest marketing insights by following martechtrend.com.
Note: This article is inspired by content from https://www.nielsen.com/news-center/2025/nielsen-releases-its-2025-annual-marketing-report-looking-at-the-power-of-data-driven-marketing/. It has been rephrased for originality. Images are credited to the original source.