Marketing Consulting Services NAICS 541613

Apr 29, 2025 - Streaming Services Offer New Era of Ad Buying

• With about 85% of US households now subscribing to at least one streaming service, per Statistica data, media buying is now firmly entrenched in a new era of advertising. The once dominant ad market of broad-based distribution through linear television and radio has given way to digital ad buys on streaming services that are more demographically targeted and provide advertisers with better data to track success. The move to streaming is also changing how ads are created, shifting away from a simple 30-second filmed spot to campaigns with more interactive features designed to engage the consumer, who is no longer a captive audience. Downsides of streaming ads include a highly fragmented audience, high cost depending on the streamer, and concerns about potential fraud and a lack of transparency about the audience being reached.
• Employment and wages were both down in the marketing consulting industry in January 2025, reflecting advertising industry consolidation, a growing adoption of AI, and stagnant hiring. Employment fell 3.6% year over year in January 2025 and wages for non-supervisory employees dipped 0.8% to an average of $41.66 per hour. The massive merger between ad giants Omnicom and Interpublic Group, which will be the world’s largest advertising company, is expected to control about 30% of the dollars among all media-buying agencies. The combined firm plans about $750 million in cost cutting, which will include headcount. Omnicom had already cut its US workforce by 11% in 2024, a loss of about 2,800 industry jobs. In addition, AI is taking over more of the heavy-lifting of research and creative services, reducing the need for headcount, and the industry is hiring more pre-MBA graduates who have lower starting salaries.

• The media marketing landscape in the US is shifting away from a focus on TV and AM/FM radio advertising as consumers increasingly prefer digital audio formats with shorter commercial breaks, per an ad trend report from SiriusXM. Between 2010 and 2020, consumers’ time on digital audio media increased 183% while time spent on television decreased 43% in the same period. According to Edison Research, digital audio has 214 million monthly listeners, 75% of those listeners are age 12 and up, and they average 4.8 hours a day on digital audio content. The trend opens opportunities for marketers to increase spend in the market, which offers more targeted demographic reach and detailed consumer information. Per Statistica, the US digital audio market is estimated to reach $7.1 billion in 2025 and will reach $9.6 billion by 2030.
• Small and medium-sized business owners (SMBs) are increasingly buying Connected TV (CTV) digital advertising as the cost of ads on streaming platforms decreases. SMBs have long relied on cheaper and more traditional local cable and local linear broadcast outlets to advertise products and services. The cost-per-thousand viewers on three of the biggest streamers - Amazon, Disney+, and Hulu - is down to about $40, a competitive price point for SMBs. In addition to its lower costs, CTV allows smaller businesses to better target specific demographics and audiences on streamers than they could on traditional linear television. It is estimated by industry leaders that SMBs are now spending at least 15-20% of ad budgets on CTV. Businesses such as local auto dealers, legal services, and healthcare providers are just a few examples of the types of SMBs embracing streaming advertising the most.