This year’s study therefore delivers the following key findings:
Marketing budgets remain stable
The average marketing budget and the number of employees in marketing have hardly changed at the companies surveyed compared to 2023. Trade fairs and customer events remain the central budget item, followed by investments in paid media, i.e. paid advertising.
Positive future expectations
Despite the existing uncertainties, most of the companies surveyed expect a budget increase or at least a maintenance of the current budgets for the next three years. “In view of the massive price increases in all areas and the great dynamics in marketing channels and tools, this ultimately means hardly any scope for expanding activities,” explains Ramona Kaden, Managing Director of bvik. Lead generation to acquire new customers, website optimization and brand positioning are at the top of the priority list for 2024.
Search engine advertising and social paid, but also print ads in demand
In addition to the undisputed top position of trade fairs and customer events in face-to-face format, the study shows a trend towards digital channels in the area of paid advertising. Over half of the advertising budget goes to search engine advertising (for example Google Ads) and paid social, i.e. ads in social networks such as LinkedIn. But print ads are also still in the advertising plan, with a 27 percent share of the budget. More than half of the companies surveyed are planning to increase their paid media budget in the next three years.
In the current study, the bvik also examines overarching structural issues. 75 percent see marketing as an internal service provider, for example for the sales and HR departments. For 68 percent of those surveyed, the marketing departments are primarily responsible for brand and communication in strategic and operational terms.
“Marketing should make a measurable contribution to the success of a company quickly and sustainably,” emphasizes Professor Hannes Huttelmaier from the Technical University of Würzburg-Schweinfurt. “This is not an easy task, especially in the current economically, geopolitically and technologically challenging times. A clear view of strategic priorities and intelligent resource allocation are of crucial importance here.”
Here there are all the results of the study.
