Print media sees strong recovery in ad volumes; services, education top contributors

The fading shades of black and white seem to be regaining brightness as the print media sees a strong rebound in advertisements from a sharp decline because of the pandemic.

Ad volumes on the print medium registered a 93 percent spurt in the July-September period from the April-June period this year, according to AdEx India, a division of TAM Media Research, a television audience measurement analysis firm. The firm monitors over 700 newspapers and more than 180 magazines.

Ad volumes had dropped 47 percent during the second COVID wave. Advertising spend had dropped 43 percent to Rs 10,350 crore last year from Rs 18,164 crore in 2019.

On a quarter-on-quarter basis, print ad volumes increased 37 percent this year from the July-September period in 2020.

The surge in ad volumes owes primarily to services and education sectors. Twenty out of the 27 sectors in print media saw positive growth during the three months to September 2021, compared to the same period a year back.

From the retail sector, clothing/fashion and consumer durables/home appliances entered the top-10 list with a positive shift in their ranks. Four out of the top-10 growing categories were from the retail sector which saw 4.6-fold growth in the one year under review.

Among the top growing categories, e-commerce saw the maximum rise in ad volumes with a 12-fold on-year surge.

In terms of advertisers, SBS Biotech and Maruti Suzuki India maintained their top two ranks. New entrants to the top 10 list of advertisers include Titan Company, Reliance Retail, Think & Learn, and Fiitjee.

When it comes to brands, LIC was the top brand in July-September this year followed by Maruti Car Range. Aakash Byjus’ and Winzo Games were the new entrants to the top 10 brands league. Among the top 100 brands, 23 were from the auto sector, which had seen a sharp drop in ad volumes across mediums in the COVID impact. The top 100 brands accounted for nearly 29 percent of the ad volumes in print media.

Print media was hit hardest in the 2020 pandemic, followed by television, outdoor and cinema. Now, with the advertising market showing signs of recovery, experts believe, print will see a strong resurgence.

Media buyers also noted that the demand for print has been 30 percent higher this year than in 2020.