As the economy shows steady signs of recovery, companies of all categories have started running TV ads, according to data from TV monitoring agency Audience Research Council (Barc) India.
The latest Barc India report entitled “TV Ad Volumes Insights – The Mid-Year Analysis” states that the ad volume recorded in June 2021 is the highest compared to the same period in 2019 and 2020, despite the impact of the latter wave of COVID- 19. With a 6% increase in ad volume compared to June 2019, 1,839 advertisers and 3,074 brands were aired on television in June this year.
The first half of the year (H1 2021), between January and June, also continued to grow, with ad volumes increasing 12% and 37%, respectively, compared to 2019 and 2020.
Ashish Bhasin, CEO of APAC at Dentsu International, said it looked like advertising was making a comeback, but it wasn’t good for the industry last year.
“I don’t think there’s a V-shaped fix, but every month it looks better than the last. For example, the month of May fell due to the second wave, then June improved in May and July improved in June. In India, advertising is also driven by sentiment, so when sentiment is positive, advertisers are generally optimistic,” he added.
After a drop in June 2020, the automotive sector rebounded strongly in June 2021, with a growth of 74%. The instant ad coincides with the peak of auto sales as restrictions ease across states and more consumers rely on personal vehicles. With 3.94 million seconds in June 2021, the automotive sector is equal to the volume of advertising registered in June 2019. The sector also registered a monthly growth of 128% compared to May 2021.
Likewise, advertising volumes for the telecommunications sector nearly doubled in June 2021 compared to May 2021 and doubled in June 2021 compared to June 2019.
As more and more people prefer to order online rather than fulfilling their own shopping needs, the e-commerce category has also invested heavily in TV advertising. At 15.4 million seconds in June 2021 alone, ad volumes for the e-commerce sector recorded a massive 56% growth compared to June 2019. The category currently represents a 12% share of total ad volume adverts.
The Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) category continued to gain a second lead of 566 million in the first half of 2021, an increase of 40% from the first half of 2019. Advertising volumes for banking, financial, and insurance services (BFSI) increased 7% in the first half of 2019, from 14.5 million seconds in the first half of 2021.
“There has been a strong increase in ad volume from the top three advertisers, and while FMCG continues to dominate inventory, the e-commerce category continues to show strong year-over-year growth. The auto industry is also back”, despite the impact of the second wave. Data for the first half of 2021 shows that while new advertisers have largely focused on television, existing advertisers are still increasing their focus in the medium,” said Aaditya Pathak, head of revenue and client partnership, Barc India.