2009 Promo Industry Trends Report
In a year challenged by battering economic conditions and skittish consumers, marketers are hanging on. Promo's annual report reveals that even though most categories experienced decelerating growth in 2009, spending was projected to grow, even if ever so slightly, for P-O-P, coupons, loyalty programs, sampling and games, contests and sweepstakes. Two trouble spots were premiums and licensing, which experienced significant declines. Overall spending on these consumer promotions was projected to dip -0.7% to $45.8 billion for 2009, according to the VSS Communications Industry Forecast.
Another bright spot, branded entertainment — which includes event sponsorship and marketing, paid product placement and advergaming and Webisodes — was forecast to grow 3.6% in 2009 to $22 billion, VSS said. The Promo report also takes a look at other categories used by promotion marketers, including social and mobile marketing, e-mail and direct mail.
This year, promotion will continue to benefit from the move away from mass media and advertising to alternative strategies that target consumers where and when they prefer.
COUPONS
Now in Vogue
It's official: It is now cool to clip coupons. Coupon redemption declined steadily between 1999 and 2006, when the number of coupons people turned in...
Why People Clip Coupons
Some 37.4% of consumers said they are clipping more coupons than last year because they need to stretch their budgets...
DIRECT MAIL
Direct Pressures
Rising paper costs, rising postal costs, the plunging fortunes of financial services providers and the possible elimination of Saturday mail deliveries...
On Target
Spending on e-mail marketing will hit $13.4 billion this year, according to Veronis Suhler Stevenson's latest Communications Industry Forecast. That constitutes...
ENTERTAINMENT
Pride of Placement
If you wonder why branded entertainment is on the rise just think about your own viewing habits. Chances are you're spending less time watching broadcast TV and more time with niche cable channels or Internet TV...
EVENTS
Slow Growth
Despite slower growth, U.S. event marketing and sponsorships was the largest branded entertainment category in 2009. It was forecast to grow 3.6% to...
GAMES
Spending up by a Nose
Games and sweepstakes spending increased just a smidge to $1.870 billion in 2009, from $1.868 billion in 2008, according to the VSS Communications Industry...
INTERACTIVE
Online Goes Mainstream
To paraphrase Homer Simpson, interactive marketing is there anything it can't do? Well, yes, and that's why spending on U.S. digital marketing will make...
LOYALTY
Faithful Following
Spending on loyalty programs was forecast to grow to $2.19 billion in 2009 from $2.18 billion in 2008, according to the VSS Communications Industry Forecast...
MOBILE
On the Move
“Mobile is the future — and it always will be.” For the past decade, that has pretty much summed up both the potential value of running campaigns directly to users' handsets, and the seemingly endless stumbling blocks that kept mobile marketing from being more than an interesting side-project...
P&I
Slipping and Sliding
The stormy economy has put a hurtin' on promotional products sales. The third quarter of 2009 saw promotional products sales drop 10.9%...
RETAIL
Shopping Trip
Spending on P-O-P, the largest consumer promotions category, increased 2.2% to $20.79 billion in 2008, as in-store media with its ability to reach a captive...
SAMPLING
Steady Growth
Spending on product sampling had been growing steadily since 2003. However, the growth pace slowed significantly in 2008, rising to $2.20 billion and...
SOCIAL MARKETING
Friendship Counts
If you can figure out a foolproof way to estimate the amount that U.S. brands will spend on marketing within social media this year or next, kindly let...
