Online advertising in Ireland continued to grow significantly in 2012, rising by 12.3% to reach €148.2m, according to the latest IAB PwC Adspend Study.
If one includes the spend on mobile advertising, which is now included in the study for the first time, the overall spend on digital advertising in Ireland amounted to €158m in 2012.
According to the IAB PwC report, paid-for-search advertising with companies like Google, Yahoo and MSN amounted to €66.6m in 2012. This has grown by 24% year on year and it accounted for 45% of the total digital spend in Ireland, a trend which is mirrored in other European markets.
Display advertising, meanwhile, accounted for approximately 34% of the overall digital market with a spend of €50.6m in 2012, an increase of €2.8m on 2011. The growth was fuelled by an increase in the amount spent on formats like pre-roll video advertising, display ads on social media sites and home page takeovers. According to the figures, display advertising on social media sites grew by 9% to €6.3m. Classified advertising, meanwhile, amounted to €29m, a 13% on 2012.
For the first time, the IAB has also included spend on mobile advertising. Most analysts have singled out mobile marketing and advertising as one of the key areas for significant growth over the coming years. In 2012, mobile adspend reached €9.9m, with display and SMS/MMS advertising accounting for 82% of this while mobile search accounting for 18%.
The IAB PwC survey also shows that FMCG advertisers are the top spending category in online display spend with a category share of 15% of the total spend. Finance is in second position at 12%, followed by telecommunications firms with 11%. In the classified category, the motor industry accounted for 36% of total classified spend, followed closely by property/recruitment in second place at 34%.
Commenting on the study, Suzanne McElligott, CEO of IAB Ireland, said: “A key takeout from our 2012 study is the increased adoption of display advertising by FMCG marketers as an important driver of brand awareness. IAB is also delighted that mobile adspend is now tracked in the 2012 study, this data will enable brands to grow their digital spend with informed strategy in 2013. Another finding is that Irish advertisers are increasingly using video and new innovative display formats which feature enhanced interactivity in their integrated campaigns.”
