68% of marketers prioritised retail media advertising in 2024: Report

Nielsen has released its 2025 global media planning report. With the media landscape now so fragmented and complex, the report aims to help advertisers and publishers navigate their way through an ecosystem that is more nuanced and multifaceted than ever before. 

To help marketers plan advertising strategies for 2025, the report identifies three main trends that are reshaping how brands connect with audiences. 

Firstly, the report reinforces the need to find the right mix of traditional and emerging digital media channels when creating media plans. Whilst the channel mix becomes more complex, balancing investment across traditional and emerging channels is difficult but necessary. Despite the rise in streaming, and the growth of Connected TV (CTV) devices, the report states that traditional TV remains a significant part of global media consumption, showing remarkable resilience in the face of digital competition. But there is no one-size fits all approach, with some markets, for example Poland, remaining strong in traditional TV viewership and only having approximately eight per cent of its audiences’ time spent streaming, which is in sharp comparison to that of the U.S. at 40 per cent of total TV time. As a result, media strategies must be nuanced and adaptable as traditional and digital platforms continue to coexist. 

The second trend centres around retail media advertising and the opportunities that are now available for brands to reach shoppers at the point of purchase on retailers’ digital platforms. This rapid area of growth offers new opportunities and is evolving, now holding a prominent position in global marketing strategies. Retail media advertising is increasing in importance across the globe with an example of this being that for the five months inclusive from August to December 2024, there was a steady month-on-month growth in Amazon retail media ad spend in Japan. Retail media offers advertisers and publishers another channel to utilise beyond traditional digital and offline media platforms.

Finally, with the difference between how generations consume and interact with media, the third trend identified looks at the planning required for this shift in global media consumption habits. Whilst this is not a new phenomenon, the trend reiterates the importance of both how content is consumed, and now also how it is produced, distributed, and monetised. The media industry must continue to account for older generations as they can typically be heavy consumers of traditional media, and reflect this with an advertising strategy that understands the value of differing media types. 

Alison GensheimeR, Head of Global Marketing, Nielsen, commented, “Media landscape fragmentation combined with platform convergence, is creating new opportunities for advertisers to effectively reach their audiences. Cross-media measurement and personalization are possible, requiring new data sources and methodologies allowing brands to drive more meaningful and beneficial engagement with consumers. The insights from this report help the industry take advantage of these new opportunities.”

Key Highlights

Balancing traditional and digital Media

• Connected TV (CTV) and streaming services have seen substantial growth, particularly in the U.S., where 40% of total TV time is now spent on streaming.
• However, traditional TV remains strong, with only 8% of viewing time spent on streaming in Poland in early 2024.

• 77% of U.S. households have access to CTV devices, highlighting further growth potential.
• Recommendation: Advertisers must adopt market-specific strategies that balance both traditional TV and digital streaming to maximise reach.

Rise of retail media advertising

• 68% of global marketers consider retail media more critical to their strategies in 2024 than in previous years.
• Amazon ad spend in Japan has shown consistent month-over-month growth, highlighting a shift in digital advertising trends.

• In the U.K., 30% of top electronics advertisers allocate 20% of their media budget to Amazon, whereas 12 out of 30 leading cosmetics brands invest minimally in retail media.
• Recommendation: Brands should leverage first-party data and advanced analytics for targeted retail media campaigns tailored to industry-specific trends.

Generational shifts in media consumption

• Younger audiences (ages 2-34) in the U.S. spend over 60% of their TV time on streaming services.
• In Thailand, Gen Z reports the lowest traditional TV viewership at 47%, while the 55+ demographic remains the strongest audience at 62%.

• Older viewers consume significantly more total TV hours, reinforcing the need for age-segmented strategies.
• Recommendation: Advertisers should implement cross-platform strategies with targeted content suited to distinct generational preferences.

Insights for advertisers

• Integrate traditional and digital media planning to reach diverse audiences effectively.
• Retail media advertising must be industry-specific, ensuring optimal resource allocation and campaign effectiveness.
• Cross-platform measurement tools are essential for evaluating the impact of campaigns across different age groups and media types.
• Consumer targeting must go beyond demographics, incorporating behavioural insights for more personalised engagement.

This report underscores the growing complexity of global media planning and provides strategic recommendations for brands looking to optimise their advertising efforts in 2025.