Like many industries during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, digital advertising and media have suffered greatly over the course of 2020. Furloughs and layoffs skyrocketed among global marketers during the past year, with an estimated 35,000 agency jobs cut and more expected to be lost in 2021. National TV advertising is where much of the advertising was cut during the early parts of the pandemic, with research showing a roughly 7.9 percent decline in advertising during 2020. Still, with vaccine news driving consumer confidence over the last few months of 2020, many are expecting a sizable recovery heading into 2021. Data and research show how leading marketers are expecting a strong rebound in the U.S. this year, and how the continued rapid acceleration into the digital world will change marketing and advertising for the coming ears.

While the digital transformation may be a savior for marketing and advertising efforts online and on social media in 2021, the decline of more traditional forms of advertising may only quicken. According to Magna Global, in 2019 and 2020, digital forms of advertising continued to see growth in sales—even during the totality of the current COVID-19 pandemic. The decline in advertising came primarily from linear sources like TV, print and radio. Overall, 2020 saw a decline of nearly 18 percent in advertising sales—a heightening of the already downward trend over the last decade. TV advertising sales saw a 12 percent decline, while print and radio advertising saw appalling 25 percent declines over the last year. The rebound of these traditional forms of media are also unlikely to be strong, particularly when compared with advertising on social media and digital spaces. Ultimately, key marketing decision makers may look to move further into digital advertising as opposed to linear forms in 2021, especially as more people abandon TV, print and radio for digital services like streaming and social media.

Read more at: How Digital Advertising Will Change in 2021 (newsweek.com)