The latest IPA Bellwether shows an icy frost has gripped the UK marketing and media sector ahead of the first Autumn Budget from the new Labour Government.
Will it lead to a big freeze, or just a winter pause for the sector?
Ross Cafferkey, Founder Research Clever
“After a strong year for market research budgets, uncertainty ahead of the budget seems to have had an impact on the sector, as with many other areas of marketing.
“However, around three quarters of respondents said there was actually no change to their market research budgets, which is much more akin to what we’ve experienced at Research Clever.
“As marketing strategies are being put together for the year ahead, many of our clients are using market research to support their plans, so we’ve actually seen a spike in enquiries in recent days.
“As Paul Bainsfair says, this seems to be more of a “pressing pause” than a chop – there will always be a place for strong and useful data, nimble agencies and effective marketing.
“As I write, the day’s news is that the rate of inflation has fallen further than analysts predicted, showing some more green shoots. So, I’ll be watching what happens in Q4 with interest but not with pessimism.”
