Social media pioneer Facebook has withstood the changing tides of digital global advertising for more than two decades. Still reigning with advertising revenue set to top $100 billion this year, and a global advertising audience of 2.2 billion, Mark Zuckerberg’s creation is both the most-populous and best-monetized social media platform in the world.
Is there a learning lesson here for broadcast media?
Perhaps the tale lies in the social media platform’s two-year revival — one fueled by the Asia-Pacific region and its advertisers targeting consumers in regions including Europe and North America. This includes Shein and Temu.
Then, there are “the fruits of AI innovation and a pivot away from targeting in favor of outcomes.”
That’s the conclusion of a new WARC Media review of Facebook’s latest ad revenue and how parent Meta has continued to capture GenZ globally.
While Meta does not split revenue by platform, WARC Media forecasts show that Facebook’s Q3 2024 ad revenue grew 13.2% year-on-year, albeit slower than parent Meta (19.0%).
Facebook is on track to earn $100.1 billion in advertising revenue this year, rising to $112.8 billion in 2026, making it only the second media brand – after Google in 2020 – to exceed $100 billion in global ad revenue.
But, there’s a big caveat here: its share of the global social market is dwindling. In 2013, almost nine in 10 social ad dollars went to Facebook (88.9%). By 2025, ad spend on Facebook will have halved to 38.2%, with Instagram and TikTok, in particular, fast catching up.
Still, Innovation in AI and commerce is drawing retailers of all sizes to boost spend on Facebook. Investment by retailers is set to top $20bn in 2024, per WARC Media forecasts. Meta studies claim that AI tools, such as Advantage+ Shopping Campaign (ASC), drive a 12% improvement in ROAS in two years. More than a third (38%) of Meta spend studied by Fospha went to Advantage+, reflecting a strategic shift of brands prioritising “ease of management” and greater performance gains from AI automation.
Domestically, advertising spend on Facebook is set to grow to $39.5bn in 2024, up 11.6% year-on-year. However, ad revenue growth will slow substantially in 2025 and 2026, per WARC Media’s latest forecast data. This is in stark contrast to Instagram, which is expected to achieve near-20% growth over the next two years. But, while Facebook’s growth has slowed, its advertising business remains twice the size of the US OTT market, four times that of TikTok and commands a 29% share of U.S. retailer spend, according to Sensor Tower.
With an “age issue” facing Facebook just as it is for Radio and TV, there is a learning lesson here that WARC offers.
“To attract a new Gen Z audience for long-term growth, Facebook is prioritizing creators, groups (for communities and information), long-form video (such as Stories and Reels), and moving away from news and political content,” it notes.
With broadcast media’s trust levels, a similar pivot could prove fruitful as both AM/FM and UHF/VHF owners seek to further fortify themselves as future-proof consumer choices.
