Andrew Raso 10 December 2020

Where consumers go, advertisers follow.

So many businesses are reaping the rewards of online advertising. How can you do the same?

These online advertising statistics provide the magic key.

Use these insightful statistics to inform your digital advertising strategy.

Already got your pay per click or social media advertising strategy ready to go? These stats could be just what you need to win over the boss and score more budget.

To help you navigate the numbers, we’ve grouped the statistics into a few handy categories. Skip to the areas that you need, or simply devour them all.

Online advertising investment statistics

How much are marketers and advertisers investing in online advertising? Where is it increasing? And most importantly, how does your investment compare?

  • Digital spending will grow 2.4% worldwide in 2020, the first time on record that growth has been in single digits.The $332.84 billion total for 2020 (shown in the graph below) represents $36.11 billion less spending than eMarketer’s pre-pandemic forecast. (eMarketer)

    Image Source: eMarketer

  • For contrast, in 2019, global digital ad spend rose by 17.6% to $333.25 billion, accounting for roughly half of the global ad market. (eMarketer)

    Image Source: eMarketer

  • Digital display advertising spending in the United States amounted to $35.24 billion US dollars and is expected to reach $52.76 billion by the end of 2020. (Statista)While the Coronavirus pandemic has affected digital ad spending globally and many industries have experienced a decline, some industries are still producing relatively standout increases in ad spending. (eMarketer)

    Image Source: eMarketer

  • At least 70% of media buyers still have “2021 ad dollars in flux.” Buyers that are looking ahead predict a 5.3% uptick for 2021 compared to 2020. (IAB 2020/2021 Covid Impact on Advertising)In short, the pandemic has impacted advertising budgets, but digital advertising is still considered essential for most brands and retailers (Digital Media Solutions).Digital advertising offers brands the opportunity to get in front of their target audience at exactly the right time. With COVID-19 accelerating digital adoption for brands and consumers, optimised digital marketing strategies have the potential to overtake traditional advertising and dominate the advertising landscape in the near future.

Online advertising ROI statistics

Need to sell in your strategy to the powers that be? These ROI statistics will you help build a winning business case.

  • Omnichannel strategies drive an 80% higher rate of incremental store visits for local businesses. (Think With Google)
  • Over 70% of marketers fail to target consumers with behavioural data. (Invespcro)
  • 88% of digital display ad dollars in the US are forecasted to be exchanged programmatically by 2021. Advertisers are predicted to spend $98 billion on programmatic advertising in 2020 alone, which will make up 68% of their total annual digital media advertising spend. (Zenith)
  • Programmatic ad revenues now account for 80% of all digital display advertising revenues in the United States with companies benefitting from its cost efficiencies. (Smart Insights)
  • Mobile internet advertising revenues are growing year-on-year, standing at 39.7% in 2018. (Smart Insights)
  • One company generated 500% growth in return on ad spend (ROAS) and a 200% drop in cost per click (CPC) for paid advertising.
  • Another company achieved 256% more clicks and 70% lower cost per click using PPC, resulting in attracting more clients who were looking for their products. Find out how.

Google Ads PPC statistics

Google Ads has been around for nearly two decades. So, how powerful is the platform really? Does it still hold the crown for paid ads?

Let’s dive in…

  • Google’s net US digital ad revenue is estimated to generate $39.58 billion in 2020, a decline of 5.3% from $41.80 billion in 2019. This marks the first time Google will have an annual decline in ad dollars, bringing Google’s share of the US digital ad market to 29.4%, down from 31.6%. (eMarketer)
  • Businesses make an average of $2 in revenue for every $1 they spend on Google Ads. (Wordstream)
  • Across all industries, the average cost per click (CPC) in Google Ads is $2.69 on the Search Network and $0.63 on the Google Display Network. (Wordstream)
  • The average click-through rate (CTR) in Google Ads is 3.17% for the search network and 0.46% on the display network. (Wordstream, 2018)Hint: Nail your ROI with these Adwords bidding strategies.
  • Gmail ads with an open rate around 2% have a CPC of around $1 USD. That number drops to less than 20 US cents for ads with an open rate above 25%. (Wordstream)

Advertising platform statistics

Investing in Google Ads is a great way to get your business in front of more people. But, Google Ads is not the only player out there – so which other online advertising and digital media platforms should you be looking at?

 YouTube

  • YouTube’s worldwide advertising revenues amounted to 5.04 billion U.S. dollars in the third quarter of 2020, representing a 32 percent year-over-year increase. (Statista)
  • YouTube overall represents a steady 11% of Google’s net US ad revenues. (eMarketer)
  • Paid YouTube mobile advertising is 84% more likely to receive attention than advertising on TV. (Think with Google)
  • Nearly 79% of marketers think YouTube is the most effective platform for video marketing. (Hootsuite)
  • 43% of new customers buy something they saw in a YouTube ad. (Contently)

Amazon

  • Amazon is predicted to increase its US ad revenue to 13 billion this year, growing 23.5% when compared to 2019. (Business Insider)

Social media advertising statistics

Social media can play a big role in the purchase journey right up to the point of purchase, but what role do ads play in this journey? And what social media platforms are worth your time and budget? Should you be creating Instagram ads, YouTube ads, Facebook ads – or all three?

Take a look at the following social media advertising statistics.

  • 3.96 billion people use social media today, which accounts for roughly half (51%) of the global population. (Digital Marketing)
  • On average, digital consumers worldwide spend an average of 144 minutes a day on social networks and messaging. (Statista)
  • 72% of internet users say they find new products and brands through paid social ads. (Hootsuite)

Facebook

  • Facebook is the world’s third most-visited website, outranked only by Google and YouTube. (Zephoria)
  • An average Facebook user clicks on 11 ads per month, and 94% of Facebook’s revenue comes from mobile advertising. (Hootsuite)
  • Facebook also accounts for 80.4% of US social referral share to ecommerce sites, and earns 40% of annual digital display revenue. (Hootsuite)

Instagram

  • According to a Bloomberg Intelligence report, Instagram was worth $100 billion by 2018. (Bloomberg)
  • As of January 2020, there are nearly 1 billion monthly active users on Instagram. (Ad Espresso)
  • It is estimated that Instagram brought in $2 billion in ad revenue in Q2 2018. Studies anticipate this rising to as much as $7 billion by Q3 2020. (Business of Apps)
  • Instagram ad revenue as a share of Facebook ad revenue is projected to rise from 9% in 2017 to 30% in 2020. (Business of Apps)
  • 1 in 3 Instagram users have made a purchase after discovering a new product or service on Instagram. (AdEspresso)
  • Around 75% of Instagram users are expected to take action on at least one ad at some point. (Hootsuite)

Pinterest

  • Pinterest’s active user base grew 26% to 335 million last year, with revenue topping $1 billion. Pinterest attributes its growth to an increase in demand from new advertisers and advances in its conversion optimisation products.
  • Advertisers can reach more than 169 million people on Pinterest. (Hootsuite)
  • People on Pinterest are more than 2X as likely to say Pinterest ads feel more personalised than ads on other platforms. (Pinterest)

WhatsApp

  • 42% of WhatsApp users agree they tend to buy brands they see advertising, however 26% say they use an ad blocker because most ads are annoying and irrelevant. (GlobalWebIndex, 2019)

Mobile advertising stats

You know about the growing importance of mobile and mobile advertising to engage your target audience, but what are the key mobile advertising statistics every marketer should know in 2022?

  • Digital advertising revenue in the United States grew by 15.9% in 2019 compared to 2018, from 107 billion to 124 billion U.S. dollars. A year earlier was the first time the figure surpassed 100 billion dollars, owing to the increase in mobile advertising and the emergence of new channels and media formats. (Statista)
  • Mobile internet advertising revenues reached $86.7 billion in 2019 which represented a 24% increase over 2018 revenues of $69.9 billion. (IAB)
  • Showing up in mobile search ad results can increase brand awareness by 46%. (Think with Google)
  • Is your brand showing up on mobile devices? Appearing in mobile search ad results can increase brand awareness by 46%. (Think with Google)
  • Two-thirds of consumers can recall a specific brand they’ve seen advertised on mobile in the past week, and 20% make weekly purchases based off digital ads. (Business Wire)
  • Ever wondered how long it takes to form an emotional connection? It takes the human brain less than a half-second to engage with mobile advertising and trigger an imprint, positive or negative. (Mobile Marketing Association/The Advertising Research Foundation)

Online advertising channels

Search ads, display ads, programmatic, AR, native – with so many different online advertising formats and types out there, it’s tough to know where to invest your budget.

These online advertising statistics provide insights into the latest advertising trends.

  • A tiny 8% of users account for 85% of clicks on display ads. (Invespcro)
  • Consumers view native ads over 50% more than banner ads, because they don’t “feel” like traditional ads. (Sharethrough)
  • Native ads are driving engagement: they registered an 18% higher lift in purchase intent and 9% lift in brand affinity responses compared to banner ads. (Sharethrough)
  • The average conversion rate for all pop-up ads is 3.09%. (Sumo)
  • Augmented Reality (AR) ads boast conversion rates in the 20–80% range, with a number of major brands like Nike, Gucci, Ariana Grande, and Sephora growing their audience base and building brand loyalty through AR ads. (Adweek)
  • In 2019, advertisers in the United States spent nearly $60 million on programmatic digital display advertising. By 2022, expenditures are expected to increase to nearly $95 million. (Statista)
  • 60% of consumers said they’ve looked up a product or service after hearing an ad during a podcast, and 25% have purchased a product they discovered through a podcast ad. (Adobe Digital Insights)

Video advertising statistics

Research by Global Web Index shows that using social video as a marketing strategy appears less intrusive than ads and allows brands more opportunities in communicating their message and building engagement.

So, which video ads work and why?

  • Video has outperformed all other formats across desktop and mobile, with revenues growing 6.6% and 65% year-on-year respectively. (Smart Insights)
  • In 2016, Wyzowl found that 61% of businesses were using video as a marketing tool. That rose to 63% in 2018, 81% in 2018, and 87% in 2019. and to 87% in 2019. (Wyzowl)
  • 92% of marketers who use video say that it’s an important part of their marketing strategy. (Epigroup)
  • 89% of marketers say that video gives them a good ROI. (Epigroup)

Image Source: Wyzowl

  • 48% of marketers create 4+ videos every month (Tubular Insights)
  • Mobile video consumption rises by 100% every year. (Insivia)
  • More than 1 in 3 social video viewers have watched videos made by brands on any device online in the past month. (Global Web Index, Social Video Report)
  • Social video viewers have an above average likelihood for clicking on sponsored posts on social networks or sharing posts from a brand. (Global Web Index, Social Video Report)
  • Customers want video! 96% of people have watched an explainer video to learn more about a product or service. (Wyzowl)

Image Source: Wyzowl

  • Nearly 75% of respondents cited viewability and brand lift as the metrics that would most influence their online video advertising tactics. (Invespcro)
  • When it comes to completion rates, “mid-roll” video ads placed in the middle of a video scored the highest at 97%, followed by “pre-roll” ads (74%) and “post-roll” ads (just 45%). (Invespcro)
  • What video length works best? 20-second ads have the lowest completion rate of 60%, with 15-second and 30-second ads scoring much higher at 84% and 90% respectively. (Invespcro)
  • Viewers who watch TrueView ad to completion or for at least 30 seconds were 23 X more likely to visit or subscribe to a brand channel, watch more by that brand, or share their video. (Think with Google)
  • Audio or no audio? A massive 81% of consumers turn the sound OFF video ads. (Optinmonster)
  • 95% of YouTube ads are audible, compared to 15% of Facebook video ads. (Hootsuite)Google cites an improvement in brand awareness, ad recall, and consideration for audible and viewable ads:

Image Source: Google

  • By 2021, video advertising is predicted to grow into a $22 billion industry. (eMarketer)
  • By 2022, online videos will make up more than 82% of all consumer internet traffic – 15 times higher than it was in 2017. (Cisco)

Audience behaviour statistics

What will hold back the success of your online advertising strategies? Not knowing your audience.

Take a look at the top user behaviour trends here.

  • 40% of internet users globally use an ad-blocker today, with APAC leading the way. (Global Web Index, Ad Blocking Behavior Report 2019)
  • 48% of ad blockers report “too many ads” as their main reason for blocking ads, with 47% saying the ads are “annoying or irrelevant” and 44% saying the ads are “too intrusive”. (Global Web Index, Ad Blocking Behavior Report)
  • 82% of smartphone users consult their phones while in a store. (Think with Google)
  • 73% of consumers say they dislike pop-up ads. (HubSpot)
  • 49% of people say they click on text ads, compared to 31% for Shopping ads and 16% on video ads. (Search Engine Land)
  • 70% of consumers prefer to learn about products through content rather than through interruption-based advertising, which is why native advertising is a powerful option. (Content Marketing Institute)

Over to you

Now that you know the latest statistics around online advertising, you can apply them to your ads campaigns for better results.

If you’re looking for more insights and tips on how to create winning advertising campaigns and digital marketing strategies in 2022, we’ve created an eBook that tells you how.

Download your own Digital Marketing Game Plan – it’s completely FREE!

About the Author

Andrew Raso

Andrew Raso, Co-founder and Global CEO of Online Marketing Gurus, has been instrumental in transforming the agency from a start-up into a $15 million global powerhouse. Since co-founding OMG in 2012 with colleague Mehrdad Hedayati, Andrew has leveraged his deep expertise in SEO and digital marketing to drive OMG’s expansion across Australia, the US, and Singapore.

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