Advertising Services Market Statistics and Forecasts

This article was written by our expert who is surveying the industry and constantly updating the business plan for a marketing agency.

Who wrote this content?

The Dojo Business Team

A team of financial experts, consultants, and writers

We're a team of finance experts, consultants, market analysts, and specialized writers dedicated to helping new entrepreneurs launch their businesses. We help you avoid costly mistakes by providing detailed business plans, accurate market studies, and reliable financial forecasts to maximize your chances of success from day one—especially in the marketing agency market.

What is the current global market size and growth rate?

The global advertising services market in 2025 is about $0.99–$1.08 trillion, growing mid-single digits.

This level is up from roughly $816 billion in 2024, reflecting resilient demand for measurable, performance-oriented campaigns across search, social, video/CTV, and retail media. Digital formats account for most of the value, with spend concentrated in platforms that offer precise targeting and closed-loop attribution.

The 2025 growth rate is around 4–5%, supported by ongoing digitalization, retailer and marketplace ad networks, and continued migration of brand budgets into video and mobile. Macro risks remain, but diversified vertical demand and SME onboarding help stabilize growth.

For a new marketing agency, these numbers confirm a very large, expanding addressable market where specialization and proof of ROI can win accounts.

You’ll find detailed market insights in our marketing agency business plan, updated every quarter.

How has the market evolved over the past five years, and what drove growth?

The industry pivoted decisively to digital in the last five years, with programmatic and AI moving to the core of buying and optimization.

Advertisers shifted budgets toward formats with transparent performance data, while creative became modular and feed-driven across social and retail environments. Agencies retooled around analytics, first-party data strategy, and always-on experimentation.

Key drivers included mobile video scale, social commerce, privacy-aware measurement, and the rise of creator/influencer activations integrated with paid media. E-commerce expansion and retail media networks further accelerated budget reallocation.

As a marketing agency, building capability in data governance, incrementality testing, and creative automation is now table stakes.

This is one of the strategies explained in our marketing agency business plan.

Which regions and countries lead today—and how will this change in five years?

North America and Asia-Pacific lead in absolute spend, with the U.S. and China far ahead of other markets.

Latin America is the fastest in percentage growth, while APAC drives long-term expansion on the back of mobile adoption and SME digitalization.

Which channels have the largest shares and how will they grow?

Digital channels dominate with ~68–73% of global spend in 2025, and they keep gaining share.

Search, social, online video/CTV, and retail media lead growth, while TV, print, radio, and OOH vary by market maturity and measurement.

How is the shift from traditional to digital affecting revenues and margins?

The shift to digital raises addressability and measurement, supporting better ROI and healthier agency margins when capabilities are strong.

Agencies that invest in AI, analytics, and creative automation capture more value through efficiency and performance fees, while pure-buying margins compress under competition and transparency demands.

Commoditization pressures increase on basic media buying, making differentiation through strategy, analytics, and creative essential for profitability. Client expectations for incrementality proof and brand safety add delivery complexity but also justify premium retainers.

For a marketing agency, margin expansion hinges on packaging data products, creative ops, and testing frameworks—not just discounts on media.

We cover this exact topic in the marketing agency business plan.

What is the projected CAGR for the next 5–10 years?

The global market is projected to grow at ~4–7% CAGR through 2033, with digital sub-segments growing faster.

Within digital, online video/CTV, retail media, and certain social/commerce surfaces may compound at high single to low double digits given format innovation and closed-loop measurement. Traditional channels trend flat to down in share, varying by country and audience cohort.

This implies healthy, sustainable expansion rather than hyper-cyclical spikes, which suits agency planning for headcount, tooling, and training. It also underscores the need to specialize around high-growth digital surfaces to outperform the average.

Plan resourcing around scenarios: base case ~5% CAGR, bull case near 7%, bear case ~3% with macro softness.

It’s a key part of what we outline in the marketing agency business plan.

Which industries will spend the most, and what trends shape demand?

Retail, FMCG, technology, automotive, and financial services lead global ad spending, with healthcare and entertainment rising fast.

Retail and e-commerce budgets expand around retail media and product-feed video, while FMCG leans into omnichannel reach with shopper integrations. Tech, finance, and auto target high-value conversions with data-rich, privacy-compliant journeys.

Entertainment/media schedules surge around streaming releases and live events, and healthcare reallocates into digital education, telehealth, and localized targeting. Category-specific compliance and brand-safety requirements shape channel mix and creative constraints.

For a marketing agency, vertical playbooks and compliant creative workflows are decisive advantages in winning and retaining clients.

Get expert guidance and actionable steps inside our marketing agency business plan.

Which technologies are creating new opportunities in advertising services?

• AI for targeting, bidding, and creative generation/testing, improving ROAS and speed to market.
• Programmatic and real-time bidding that unify planning across display, video/CTV, audio, DOOH, and retail media.
• AR/VR and immersive formats for product demonstration, virtual try-ons, and experiential storytelling.
• Influencer/creator marketing with standardized brand safety, measurement, and commerce integrations.
• First-party data infrastructure and clean rooms enabling privacy-compliant activation and incrementality testing.

Who are the leading global players, and how much revenue do they control?

Large platforms (Alphabet, Meta, Amazon) and global agency groups (WPP, Omnicom, Publicis, Interpublic, Dentsu) dominate revenue flows.

Platforms capture the majority of digital ad dollars through search, social, video, and commerce media, while holding companies aggregate services across media, creative, and data.

What challenges and risks are impacting the industry right now?

• Privacy regulation (e.g., GDPR/CCPA) and signal loss (third-party cookies, identifiers) complicate targeting and attribution.
• Ad fraud and invalid traffic require verification, pre-bid controls, and robust anomaly detection.
• Brand safety and suitability in user-generated and streaming environments need rigorous controls.
• Economic uncertainty prolongs procurement cycles and creates flight-to-performance behavior.
• Talent and tooling gaps around AI, data governance, and creative ops increase delivery risk.

How are consumer behaviors (mobile-first, social engagement) shaping strategy and budgets?

Mobile-first usage and social/video engagement push budgets into short-form video, creator partnerships, and shoppable surfaces.

Advertisers prioritize platforms with high watch time and purchase intent, aligning creative to vertical video and sound-on formats. Commerce features and retail media connect exposure to sales outcomes with closed-loop data.

Streaming habits accelerate CTV adoption, blending brand and performance with household-level measurement. Messaging and community mechanics (DMs, groups, lives) influence always-on content programs and service design.

For a marketing agency, success depends on creative iteration speed, audience signal quality, and disciplined experimentation frameworks.

This is one of the many elements we break down in the marketing agency business plan.

What regional differences should agencies plan for (developed vs. emerging markets)?

Developed markets keep the highest absolute spend, while emerging markets deliver faster percentage growth and rapid digital adoption.

APAC is the long-term growth engine, Latin America is the near-term % growth leader, and EMEA is mixed with strong U.K. momentum.

How does the digital shift change overall industry revenues and margins?

Digitalization concentrates spend in measurable, high-intent environments and supports service revenue mix with analytics and creative ops.

Agencies that bundle data products, testing, and creative iteration earn higher effective margins than those relying on media arbitrage. Performance pricing (e.g., outcome fees) aligns incentives but requires strong measurement and brand-safety practices.

Operational leverage emerges from AI-assisted planning, trafficking, and QA, while senior talent focuses on strategy and client impact. Investment in privacy-by-design workflows reduces risk and unlocks enterprise contracts.

For a marketing agency, the path to margin expansion is capability depth, not inventory discounts.

You’ll find detailed market insights in our marketing agency business plan, updated every quarter.

What are the expected growth trajectories by channel mix (forecast view)?

Digital continues to outgrow legacy channels as video/CTV, social/creator, and retail media scale faster than the market.

Traditional TV declines in share as audiences migrate to streaming; OOH digitizes; radio and print remain niche but can be effective locally.

Conclusion

This article is for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial advice. Readers are encouraged to consult with a qualified professional before making any investment decisions. We accept no liability for any actions taken based on the information provided.

Sources

1. WPP Media — TYNY Midyear 2025
2. IMARC — Global Advertising Market
3. Dentsu — Ad Spend Forecast
4. DataReportal — Global Advertising Trends 2025
5. Statista — Ad Spending by Market
6. Statista — APAC Ad Spending by Country
7. Precedence Research — Digital Ad Spending Market
8. TBRC — Advertising, PR & Related Services
9. PwC — Global Entertainment & Media Outlook (Insights)
10. AdSpyder — Top Global Ad Agencies