The ISBA findings – published in partnership with Ebiquity and the World Federation of Advertisers – found that 37% of UK marketers are planning to increase their share of branding spend next year, while only 14% are planning to increase their spend on performance.
The global average sees 28% of marketers planning to increase their budgets on performance, while 32% will increase their budgets on brand-building.
Why media budgets matter
It’s useful for marketers and advertisers to be able to make meaningful comparisons about how they are allocating their ad spend. The ISBA report provides a snapshot of the market sentiment and insights to help navigate the evolving media landscape.
“We’re seeing a clear shift in advertiser priorities, with the majority planning to increase their budgets and a strong move towards brand-building and more targeted, data-driven TV formats,”
says Bobi Carley, ISBA director of media relations.
Takeaways
- 65% of UK respondents* anticipate an increase in their total marketing budgets in 2026, which is higher than the global average of 50%; 19% in the UK expect a ‘significant rise’.
- 60% of advertisers plan to reduce their spend on linear TV but 83% expect to increase their investment in addressable and connected TV.
- Two in three marketers envision more integration between media and creative, to include more shared processes, teams and agencies, while only 14% see a shift towards outcome-based pricing models.
- AI adoption is widespread, with 52% of marketers using it for media optimisation, underscoring its importance to the advertising ecosystem.
*The UK results form part of Ebiquity's global analysis across 16 countries with the WFA: 518 advertisers representing over $13 billion in ad spend (£2.9bn ad spend for the 60 who took part in the UK survey). The full UK report is available to members.
Source: ISBA , warc.com