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2024 has been another transformative year for advertisers.
For much of the year, marketing teams braced for Google’s long-anticipated deprecation of third-party cookies in Chrome…only for the search giant to change its plans for the third time. (At least the preparation wasn’t in vain, as the pivot doesn’t actually change much for marketing teams.)
Meanwhile, generative AI took the industry by storm, and advertisers began to explore how to leverage the technology to drive real impact while avoiding its notable risks.
The TV landscape continued its evolution, with streaming dominating consumers’ (and advertisers’) engagement with the Paris Olympics.
On the regulatory front, industry scrutiny reached new heights: from the TikTok ban bill; to new regulations around consumer privacy, social media, and AI; to the continuation of antitrust cases against Google and Amazon (one of which ended with a ruling labeling Google a monopolist and prompting the US Justice Department to request a forced sale of Chrome).
And we haven’t even gotten into the marketing brilliance behind Charli XCX’s Brat campaign or Nutter Butter’s bizarre yet effective social media strategy! Truly, 2024 was one for the books.
To wrap up the year and set the stage for 2025, we’ve rounded up our most-read articles from 2024. Dive in below to revisit the stories that shaped this past year—and will continue to impact the industry in the year ahead.
From new state-level consumer privacy regulations, to the introduction of a bill that would establish a comprehensive federal consumer privacy framework, to the rise in false advertising lawsuits and regulation, to discussions over how to regulate AI, the regulatory environment evolved considerably in 2024. This comprehensive article explores these developments, as well as how they impact advertising and marketing professionals.
While the oldest members of Generation Alpha are currently only 14 years old, the demographic will outnumber baby boomers by 2025 and garner a whopping $5.46 trillion in spending power by 2029. With these digital natives set to take the market by storm in just a few years, the time for marketing teams to begin understanding them is now. Here, learn how Gen Alpha is poised to transform the ways advertisers connect with their audiences, and see what marketers can do to set themselves up for success.
In April 2024, President Biden signed a bill into law that gives TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, one year to either sell the app to a US company or face a nationwide ban. Despite the lingering risks, TikTok’s transformative impact on the advertising industry endures: Ad spend on the platform has grown 41.2% year-over-year, and it’s projected to grow by another 25.9% in 2025. This piece unpacks the app’s impact on consumers and advertisers from a variety of angles, providing a comprehensive resource for marketers looking to understand both how to make the most of the platform and to navigate the uncertainty surrounding its future.
Gartner has predicted that, by 2026, traditional search engine volume will drop by a quarter due to of the rise of AI-powered chatbots and other virtual agents. While AI is set to transform the search engine marketing landscape, uncertainty remains around just what that will look like and how advertisers can prepare. Here, paid search expert Robert Kurtz, Group VP of Search Media Solutions at Basis, explores what the future may hold and how marketing teams can set themselves up for success.
As generative AI’s use and influence continue to grow, regulators are scrambling to establish frameworks for safeguarding the public from its associated risks. This article examines the current regulatory landscape in the US and abroad and provides guidance for advertisers looking to leverage AI in ethical and compliant ways.
Advertising agencies have been through the ringer in recent years, struggling with economic and financial pressures. These challenges have been compounded by major industry paradigm shifts, like the intensification of signal loss and the rise of AI. To make sense of these evolutions and provide guidance for agency leaders looking to position their organizations to excel in the years to come, we brought together five industry veterans to share their insights and advice.
From automating content creation to optimizing ad targeting, AI is influencing how advertisers approach the fragmented social media landscape. This piece explores how to harness the technology to deliver more personalized and effective campaigns, as well as how to safeguard against the risks associated with some of these AI-driven tools.
As advertisers continue to grapple with signal loss and brace for Chrome’s forthcoming cookie-related changes, they must set up new systems and strategies for approaching campaign measurement and attribution. This article delves into how marketers must reimagine their approach to measurement and evaluates alternative strategies and tools that are better suited to a privacy-first digital environment.
Concerns about social media’s impact on online privacy and mental health have intensified in recent years, particularly when it comes to children and teens. In response, regulators have proposed a variety of new efforts aimed at mitigating these harms. This piece explores the potential implications for advertisers, as well as recommendations for how to approach paid social while staying both compliant and informed.
TV viewing has transformed dramatically over the past decade, evolving from a straightforward experience into a deeply fragmented one. Viewers now navigate a maze of devices, platforms, and content, adding significant complexity to advertisers' work. Here, we explore the rise of convergent TV, illuminating how advertisers can effectively navigate this disjointed and quickly evolving space.
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Looking for insights into the major trends that will impact the advertising landscape in 2025, and how advertisers can use those trends to their advantage? Reality Check: The 2025 Advertising Trends Report covers everything advertisers need to know about the latest in commerce media, CTV, AI, and search.