Marketing industry worth more than food and accommodation to Australian economy claims new report
The Communications Council has claimed the advertising industry is worth almost as much to the Australian economy as the internet and digital industries, using figures generated in a new report by Deloitte.
The report, Advertising Pays: the economic, employment and business value of advertising, says while direct spending on advertising is worth just $12.6bn annually, the flow on effect of advertising is worth more than $40bn and is larger than the size of the accommodation and food services industry, or 2.5% of GDP.
Advertising employment supply chain means more than 200,000 benefit from advertising
The report suggests that while only 56,000 people are directly employed in the industry, the flow on effect to other parts of the economy through supply chain support and ancillary services not connected with the creation of ads means that more than 200,000 have their employment supported by the industry in some way.
John O’Mahoney, partner at Deliotte, said that the study showed the impact of advertising well beyond what people might expect.
“Advertising is often overlooked as an economic driver and yet it is responsible for driving more than $40bn of growth,” O’Mahoney said.
“Advertising provides strong incentives for business to be more innovative and to offer better products and more competitive promotion in their efforts to win market share.”
The report looked at the impact of the industry across a range of sectors from retail to government and extrapolated the economic and employment benefits that resulted based on a range of factors.
It noted the role of the industry as a force for social good and the impact that it had on areas such as health with smoking and road safety campaigns.
‘Important data’: Hale
Tony Hale, CEO of the Communications Council, said it was the first time such an extensive report had been commissioned by the council.
“This is important data for the industry as it helps us understand the major role advertising plays in driving the economy and creating jobs in Australia,” Hale said.
“It also recognises the power of advertising as a force for social good, referencing advertising’s ability to raise awareness of, and influence behavioural change around issues such as road safety, public health and tourism.”
The report also looked at the value of brands in their own right, noting that the top 100 brands were worth a combined $128b.
“A good portion of that national asset is generated by advertising that creates, builds and enhances brand value,” the report said.
By taking into account “…other parts of the economy through supply chain support and ancillary services not connected with the creation of ads…” it is in fact double counting this extended reach with other industries. In other words, to say this extended economy is dependent on ad spend is dubious at best and draws a very long bow when arriving at the $40b figure. Using the reports logic, why stop there, why not extend advertising’s reach to every product or service purchased? That should push the ad industry’s value towards $500b.
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