Omomia Omosomi, Lead Economist and Researcher at PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), has reiterated the importance of the digital economy in ensuring the growth of the global advertising sector.
Omosomi said this at the ongoing National Advertising Conference (ARCON) in Abuja with the theme: “Marketing Communication as an Enabler of National Transformation.”
”Data is very integral for decision-making across various sectors of the economy. Lack of accurate and adequate data is one of the biggest challenges we face in our economy.
”It is one of the issues that has affected both the public and private sectors in making accurate decisions that help move the economy forward,” she said.
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She said the global advertising spend, according to PWC Global, was estimated to reach one trillion dollars by 2027.
”Historically, the advertising industry grew by about eight per cent, from $571.4 million to $825.9 million in 2022. And it is estimated to reach about $874.5 million at the end of 2023. Part of what is driving the global advertising sector is the digital economy,” she said.
According to her, the COVID-19 pandemic shifted how we work, do business and interact due to the lockdown effect on industries, companies, and businesses.
Omosomi said the pandemic led to an expansion of the online community because a lot of people moved from offline to online.
She said the move made businesses look at creative ways of staying afloat while leveraging digital platforms to drive business decisions and economies.
”That shift has not returned as more people are still working online, with many companies still trying to get their employees back to normal work,” the economist said.
Omosomi said based on a World Bank report, the digital economy made up more than 50 per cent of the global Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
She said it grew 2.5 times faster than the previous 10 years and more than the GDP of the physical world.
The economist said the digital economy was, by this, more or less the future for our economy.
“It would be a good way for us experts in the marketing communications industry to reposition ourselves to take advantage of the digital economy’s opportunities,” she said.
According to Omosomi, the United States holds the largest advertising market globally in terms of size, while China, the second largest, is expected to grow faster.
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”Regarding advertising spending, Africa remains the smallest regional advertising market globally, with less than five per cent of global spending.
”Nigeria, as of 2022, controls about 7.1 per cent of the total African market, and it is the fourth largest market in Africa in terms of advertising spend, following Kenya, South Africa, and Egypt,” she said.
