Report: Marketers Shift Tactics Amid Budget Cuts

RADIO ONLINE | Tuesday, May 20, 2025 | 9:52am CT

Nielsen

Marketers around the globe are recalibrating their strategies in 2025 as economic uncertainty, evolving technologies, and shifting consumer behavior reshape the advertising landscape, according to Nielsen's 2025 Annual Marketing Report.

The survey of 1,400 senior marketing professionals finds that 54% of global marketers plan to reduce ad spending this year, marking a significant reversal from 2024's growth. Despite the cuts, brands are finding new ways to stretch their dollars -- emphasizing performance campaigns, digital platforms, and more efficient media mixes.

Yet, radio continues to quietly deliver strong returns, especially in hybrid strategies that blend digital and traditional formats. While often underrated in perceived effectiveness, Nielsen's data shows that radio ranks fourth globally in average ROI -- surpassing many higher-profile digital channels.

"Marketers tend to invest in channels they perceive to be effective, but that perception doesn't always match reality," the report notes. "Radio continues to prove its worth, especially in mid-to-lower-funnel use cases."

Despite ongoing growth in digital -- particularly streaming, social media, and CTV -- some sectors remain grounded in traditional media. Healthcare and pharmaceutical brands, for instance, rely on formats like radio and TV to reach older audiences and navigate strict ad regulations.

In the U.S., traditional media remains especially resilient. TV and radio accounted for 56% of total ad spend in 2024, Nielsen reports, underscoring their continued value in delivering broad reach and brand credibility.

Still, the media landscape is shifting. Investments in streaming and connected TV (CTV) are rising, with 56% of marketers globally planning to increase OTT/CTV budgets this year. And retail media networks (RMNs) are rapidly becoming full-funnel solutions, not just bottom-of-the-funnel sales drivers.

Marketers also face challenges in campaign measurement. Only 32% say they are measuring media spend holistically across digital and traditional channels, a drop from 38% last year. The report warns that fragmented tools and siloed teams are holding back accurate cross-media analysis.

Nielsen calls for broader adoption of deduplicated cross-platform measurement to accurately evaluate channel performance and media mix efficiency.

"Marketers know they need accurate reach and frequency metrics to measure their cross-media campaigns, as well as ROI to prove their worth," the report concludes. "But many are still struggling to bring digital and traditional channels into a holistic measurement framework."

As marketers continue to adapt to uncertainty, those who balance short-term performance with long-term brand building -- and leverage the full spectrum of media, including radio -- are more likely to emerge stronger.