The start of a new year is a rare opportunity to pause and reflect. What worked? What didn’t? Did you adapt to industry shifts, and more importantly, capitalize on them? Whether your goal is building brand awareness or proving ROI, the real question is: how do you navigate the complexities of 2025’s marketing landscape with confidence and clarity?
You’re not alone in asking that.
To guide you, we’ve released our 2024 Performance Insights & Strategic Investment Guide for 2025. Packed with actionable, data-driven recommendations, this report simplifies the seismic shifts in marketing—from consumer behavior to channel performance—so you can turn insight into impact. Here’s a sneak peek into the trends shaping success in 2025 and what they mean for your business.
Investment and ROI trends – What 2024 taught us
- Keen’s clients increased marketing investments by 15% in 2024, achieving a 4% ROI rise through data-driven, optimized strategies.
- Media spend grew by 16%, resulting in an 8% ROI boost, while trade investments increased by 12% yet saw a slight 1% ROI decline.
- Consumer promotions had the highest spending growth at 23%, though ROI remained unchanged.
WHAT’S IN IT FOR YOU? These trends show a clear shift toward higher-performing media channels, emphasizing the value of strategic, measurable investments—even when results vary by category.
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Staying in the mix – Media choices that deliver
In a landscape crowded with traditional and digital channels, which ones should you prioritize? Here’s what our analysis found:
- Search led the pack, accounting for 26% of spend.
- Linear TV held steady at 20%, despite declining budgets.
- Social and Streaming combined captured 35% of budgets, reflecting their growing impact.
- Digital channels across the board improved profitability.
- Display performed steadily at 11%.
- Emerging tactics captured 7-9%, signaling new opportunities.
WHAT’S IN IT FOR YOU? While the data highlights where audiences are moving, your unique goals and customer needs should shape your strategy.
The funnel conundrum: Top or bottom?
Marketers wrestled with balancing brand-building and immediate performance in 2024, with some surprising trends:
- Enterprise brands ($500M+ spend) leaned heavily into top-of-funnel efforts.
- Mid-market brands balanced their spend almost equally at 47-53%.
- Across all segments, top-of-funnel investments grew, reflecting renewed focus on brand awareness.
WHAT’S IN IT FOR YOU? Even small shifts toward top-of-funnel tactics can pay dividends in 2025, especially for building long-term brand value.
In for the long haul – Decay rate insights
Our analysis revealed critical patterns in marketing impact:
- Short-term impacts peak at 90% of their potential within 12-15 weeks.
- Long-term effects don’t plateau until weeks 75-80, highlighting their sustained value.
WHAT’S IN IT FOR YOU? For quick wins, focus on capturing returns within the initial 15 weeks. But don’t overlook the unmatched value of consistent, long-term investments.
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Linear TV and print still deliver respectable ROI, challenging the assumption that digital channels always outperform traditional media.
Making every dollar count – Marketing ROI benchmarks
Measuring impact is critical for all brands. Here’s what the data showed about ROI across channels:
- Search delivered $1.43 in ROI per dollar spent.
- Linear TV ($1.83) and Print ($2.20) defied assumptions about traditional media’s relevance.
- Display advertising showed strong ROI ($2.02) but lower marginal ROI ($0.83).
WHAT’S IN IT FOR YOU? Use these benchmarks to evaluate your channel mix. The strongest organizations leverage integrated marketing calendars that align timing with robust measurement frameworks, ensuring every dollar works harder.
Your 2025 playbook awaits
From balancing top- and bottom-funnel investments to integrating emerging opportunities into proven strategies, 2024 proved that agility and insight are the cornerstones of success. Mid-market brands are thriving by taking a balanced, multi-channel approach—and you can too. Let us help you make sense of the numbers and translate them into actionable strategies. Dive into our full 2024 Performance Insights & Strategic Investment Guide for 2025 to discover how Keen can empower your marketing decisions and drive growth.
