Are you making the most of your marketing budget in today’s digital landscape? Let’s face it – we’re all spending more time scrolling, streaming, and clicking than ever before. In fact, we now spend almost two-thirds of our media time in the digital space! For businesses, this means it’s time to take a fresh look at where those marketing dollars are going. By understanding digital habits, you can better connect with your audience and get more bang for your marketing buck.

The Shift in Media Consumption

Digital media now accounts for 65% of total media consumption, representing a significant increase of over 20% the past four years, according to eMarketer. Traditional channels like print and TV continue to lose ground as mobile and streaming platforms surge ahead. With consumers spending most of their media time online, digital channels have not only grown but transformed, creating new opportunities for audience engagement. This fundamental shift in consumer behavior makes digital marketing essential for reaching and engaging today’s audiences.

Allocating Budgets by Channel

The latest data from Statista and eMarketer illustrates where marketing dollars should be spent:

Retail Media and CTV:

Retail media, which encompasses ads within online marketplaces, captured a significant 22% of ad spend in 2024. With CTV at 20.7%, both these channels have proven effective at reaching audiences during peak purchase intent moments. Investing in these channels allows brands to connect with consumers at various stages of the buying journey.

Search and Social:

With search and social projected to finish the year at 3.2% and 10.8% respectively, these digital formats remain essential for targeted reach. Search advertising, which enables brands to capture high-intent consumers, is expected to grow alongside voice and visual search technologies.

OOH and Other Digital Channels:

Out-of-home (OOH) advertising, including digital billboards, is anticipated to grow in 2025. Combined ith other digital channels, these options can amplify campaigns by reaching consumers on the go and reinforcing brand messages beyond the screen.

Declining Investment in Print and Linear TV:

The steady decline of traditional media isn’t just a trend – it’s now a reality. Digital-first and on-demand formats have become the standard for how people consume content. While some legacy campaigns might still include traditional channels, today’s most effective marketing strategies focus on the precision and flexibility that digital platforms provide. The ability to target, measure, and adjust in real-time has made digital advertising not just the preferred choice, but the clear path forward for engaging modern audiences.

Trends Influencing Budget Decisions

Several key trends are reshaping marketing spend:

• Personalized, Privacy-First Advertising: As consumers demand greater privacy, brands must leverage AI-driven personalization within ethical data guidelines. This ensures that content is relevant without crossing privacy boundaries, fostering trust.
• Content Quality over Volume: The “less is more” approach is gaining traction. Rather than saturating all platforms, brands should focus on creating quality content for high-performing channels. This strategy enhances brand perception and optimizes budgets by prioritizing engagement over a vanity metric like reach.
• Multi-Platform Campaign Integration: Modern campaigns are more effective when they’re integrated across digital and physical spaces, such as combining social media with CTV and OOH. This synergy allows for a seamless brand experience across touchpoints, increasing the likelihood of conversion.

Ready to make your marketing budget work harder in 2025? The path forward is clear: your customers live in a digital-first world, and your strategy should too. Smart marketers are seeing great results by embracing current channels like retail media, connected TV, and search – with an eye towards emerging technology like AI as it relates to the consumer. By investing in these digital channels, you’re not just following a trend – you’re meeting your customers where they already are, with messages that resonate at just the right moment. Which is the goal, to run a campaign that works and a key component to that, knowing where your consumer is – and going there.