WPP cut its full-year outlook after Q3 organic revenue fell 5.9% to £2.46 billion, its steepest quarterly decline since 2020. New CEO Cindy Rose said the company “hasn’t gone fast enough” to meet client needs and outlined a turnaround focused on AI, operational efficiency, and simplifying its agency network. WPP’s slump reflects broader challenges facing holding groups in the AI era: proving value through speed, integration, and measurable results as brands increasingly turn to self-serve, platform-driven ad solutions.

Digital ad spending in the US healthcare and pharmaceutical industry will grow by 14.2% to reach $9.53 billion in 2020. Growth is being fueled by ads related to COVID-19, including public service announcements, medical supplies and telemedicine.

In a difficult year for digital advertising overall, US travel industry spending will decline faster than any other vertical. It will bring up the rear in total spending and claim the smallest market share of all industries we cover.

The CPG industry will increase its investments in digital advertising this year as strong sales of essential goods and personal care products—particularly on ecommerce platforms—gave advertisers reasons to keep spending during the pandemic.

Digital ad spend by telecom and by computing products and consumer electronics companies will outperform industry averages in 2020. In a difficult year for digital ad spending, they will be two of only three industries to maintain double-digit growth.

In a difficult year for retail sales overall, the US retail industry will remain the largest spender on digital advertising among all verticals, despite a huge deceleration in growth.

The financial services sector will continue to increase its investments in digital advertising this year despite the pandemic. Shifting consumer behavior toward digital banking services and heightened interest in personal finance has given financial services companies good reasons to continue advertising.

Programmatic advertising will account for 83.5% of all US digital display ad dollars, or $57.30 billion, this year. Growth in social, connected TV and over-the-top (OTT) advertising will drive programmatic display to almost $80 billion by 2021.

How will advertising on Facebook evolve at a time when regulators are circling, advertisers are getting restless and consumer attitudes are sliding? This report, informed by extensive conversations with dozens of brand and agency executives, details our expectations over the next 24 months.

Allen Stern, director of programmatic media at ad agency AKQA, speaks about why advertisers should investigate the quality of the data they obtain from third parties.