The gambling and retail sectors posted the biggest growth in advertising expenditures during the three months ending September 2024, new data shows, bucking a trend in which more than half of all recorded sectors cut their marketing spending.
Fresh data from the Communications Authority of Kenya (CA) shows that advertising spending in the betting and gaming industry grew 136 percent to Sh2.5 billion up from the Sh1.1 billion spent during the quarter ended June this year.
In the retail sector, advertisers raised their spending by 127 percent to hit Sh533 million up from Sh235 million spent during the three months to June.
Other sectors that recorded significant increments in spending during the period included clothing, fabrics, and footwear which posted an 84 percent jump from Sh23 million to Sh42 million, as well as media whose expenses rose 49 percent to Sh3.5 billion up from Sh2.4 billion.
“Specifically, TV has the greatest spending, with radio coming in second. Media have the highest spending on TV while Financial Services on radio. Corporate and multi-brand have the highest spending in print,” wrote CA in its latest audience measurement and industry trends report.
“The predominant allocation of advertising spending is directed towards free-to-air TV, highlighting its central role in the advertising landscape. This emphasis on free-to-air TV underscores its effectiveness in reaching a wide and diverse audience.”
Sectors that witnessed advertising budget cuts during the period included office equipment and supplies which posted a 95 percent dip, beverages (55 percent), veterinary and agriculture (43 percent), transport (41 percent), and communications (35 percent).
Others were household (34 percent), financial services (21 percent), property and building (16 percent), pharmaceuticals (11 percent), as well as corporate and multi-brand and foods which reduced expenditure by six percent and five percent respectively.
Overall, media accounted for the largest share of the total ads expenditure during the review period at 19 percent, followed by gambling and financial services at 14 percent and 12 percent respectively.
Companies in the media industry include media houses, film producers, publishers, among others.
On the year-to-date advertising trends, the CA data indicates that while electronic media showed positive trends, overall media buying witnessed a seven percent drop at the end of July 2024, before rebounding to a positive growth trend with a 16 percent rise in August, before another seven percent jump in September.
