Advertising expenditure on digital decreased by 26% in April 2020 as opposed to March 2020, according to the data released by AdEx India, a division of TAM Media Research. As per the AdEx data the impression on digital also plunged by 25% as more than 1,000 advertisers stopped advertising in April due to the novel coronavirus pandemic.
In the wake of the fast-spreading pandemic, the central government issued a nation-wide lockdown on 23 March, due to which consumer’s on-ground movement came to a halt. This led to many categories such as tourism, travel, and automobile to limit or altogether stop spending on marketing. However, many other sectors such as laundry, telecom products and personal healthcare, among others saw a steep rise in ad volumes.
| Sectors | % Growth |
| Telecom Products | 2.7 Times |
| Education | 18% |
| Computers | 9% |
| Personal Healthcare | 98% |
| Laundry | 11 times |
| Hair Care | 67% |
| Telecom/Internet Service Providers | 31% |
| Babycare | 12% |
The data also highlighted that in April 2020 (during Covid), 53 categories stopped advertising as opposed to March 2020 (pre-Covid period), bringing the total number of categories to 367 from 420. While many categories stopped advertising on digital during Covid period, 18 new categories entered the digital advertising space in April 2020. Air fresheners, branded atta,
pre and post-wash products, instant soup mixes, dry fruits, among others are the new categories in April. As per the data, Cough Lozenges saw 900 times growth in ad volumes while ad volumes of milk grew 17 times. Similarly, washing powders/liquids grew 11 times while Vitamins/Tonic/Health Supplements saw 4 times growth in ad volumes.
| Rank | ||
| Categories | Pre Covid | During Covid |
| Ecom-Media/Entertainment/Social Media | 2 | 1 |
| Ecom-other Services | 3 | 2 |
| Corporate-IT | 5 | 3 |
| Cellular Phones-Smart Phones | 19 | 4 |
| Ecom-Online Shopping | 1 | 5 |
| Multiple Courses | 18 | 6 |
| Ecom-Education | 14 | 7 |
| Software | 8 | 8 |
| Life Insurance | 11 | 9 |
| Ecom-Gaming | 15 | 10 |
Similarly, over 2500 new advertisers entered the digital advertising space in April 2020 when compared to March 2020. Out of this, Union Bank Of India led the top five new entrants charts followed by Worldwide Media, which is a part of The Times Group. Everest Industries, Delphi Computech and Ayur Sudha Ayurvedic Centre completed the top five new advertisers’ list for the month of April.
Despite the rise in time spent on smartphones, over 1,600 brands stopped advertising in April’20 as opposed to March’20. Out of the total 6,500 brands, more than 3,000 new brands appeared on the digital medium in Apr’20 compared to Mar’20. Amongst the new entrants, Nyati Group emerged at the numero uno position with Amity Future Academy coming in second. Union Bank Of India followed Amity with Worldwide Media Books and Vajram Tiara trailing behind.
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