The news: Automakers are re-evaluating their relationships with TV advertising as economic pressures mount. The industry’s TV spending dropped 23% in June compared with last year and has shifted away from local advertising, according to iSpot.TV.
By the numbers: Car brands spent a hefty $161.3 million on TV advertising last month with a greater focus on national ads and sporting events.
- The NBA Playoffs were a hotly contested space for auto manufacturers, though scheduling changes diminished the event’s presence in June compared with last year.
- Toyota spent 73% of its $18.7 million national TV spend on newly aired programming, about half of which went to the playoffs.
- 92% of Nissan’s spend with ABC went to the playoffs, as did 43.7% of Kia’s spending.
- Local impressions dropped 3 percentage points to 20.7% compared with last June as automakers focus on national buys.
How we got here: Manufacturers saw diminishing returns from TV ads in the year’s first half and are looking for other places to reinvest their spending, especially in the face of economic uncertainty.
- June’s TV dip isn’t the only sign of auto manufacturers reeling in spending. Linear ad impressions started to drop off as early as February, when spending fell 16% from January, according to Samba TV.
- That dip continued through May, with impressions failing to climb past 7 billion—a low not seen during any month in 2021.
- Last month, Ford also said it’s considering pulling back entirely on its electric vehicle ad spend—a sector automakers have invested heavily in—and said it would instead focus on customer experience.