As war in the Middle East continues to unsettle the global economy, UK businesses are upping their marketing budgets in the face of uncertainty, according to the latest IPA Bellwether Report. The survey found that a net balance of +7.3 percent of UK marketers raised their total marketing spend in Q1 2026.
The net balance (derived from the proportion of marketers who increased their budgets during the quarter, minus those that decreased their budgets) represents the highest level of upward revisions since Q2 2024. It also marks a notable increase from the previous quarter, when a net balance of 0 percent increased their marketing budgets.
Investing in media
As part of that renewed positivity came a return to growth for main media budgets (+4.5 percent), which had remained flat for the three prior quarters. Video also bounced back from its -5 percent net balance last quarter, rising to +5.7 percent of respondents upping their video bugets during Q1. Meanwhile +5.7 percent of marketers upped their other online advertising budgets, offsetting negative net balances for audio (-3.4 percent), published brands (-8.5 percent) and OOH (-11.3 percent).
In addition, events and PR budgets were revised upwards by a net balance of +14.7 percent and +6.0 percent respectively, while market research (-8.5 percent) and other marketing (-8.9 percent) were both in negative territory.
“These latest Bellwether results defy wider geopolitical uncertainty and signal a bullish start to the year for UK marketing investment,” said Paul Bainsfair, Director General of the IPA. “Looking at the detail, it is pleasing to see that budgets for main media are up. The evidence is being heeded, even in tougher conditions, cutting back on advertising risks long-term damage. It is therefore welcome news that UK companies are holding their nerve and investing to stay front of consumers’ minds, strengthen their brands and drive future growth.”
Lifting the mood
The survey further demonstrated a slightly more optimistic outlook from marketing executives for the year ahead, with +3.0 percent expecting their marketing budgets to increase over the coming year. And while just +0.6 percent were optimistic about their own company’s financial outlook, this figure represents a marked improvement from the -19.0 percent reported in the previous quarter.
Asked about the financial prospects for the broader industry, sentiment was more pessimistic at -21.0 percent. However, the IPA noted that this marks the highest level in five quarters, “signalling that while industry-wide confidence is still fragile, the mood has improved.”
On the economic front, the war in the Middle East has prompted cuts to GDP forecasts, projected consumer spending and business investment, but recovery is expected in 2027 (1.4 percent GDP growth) and into 2028 (1.6 percent GDP growth). And the outlook for advertising spend has also improved, with growth for 2026 being upwardly revised from 1.5 percent to 2.5 percent, according to the latest S&P Global ad spend forecast. Ad spend is then projected to hit 2.7 percent in 2027, and 2.9 percent in 2028.
“After the caution seen in previous quarters, it is heartening to see optimism both in the Q1 numbers, and also for the FY 26/27 period,” said Amy Lawrence, Head of Digital, EMEA at Publicis Imagine, and Chair of the IPA Digital Marketing Group. “The renewed confidence in video spend and the slight slowdown in other online spend suggests marketers are moving beyond short-term performance fixes, which often come with tougher economic times, towards more balanced, brand-building investment, giving the impression of a reset in priorities. It will be interesting to see how this continues to play out amidst ongoing global economic turmoil.”
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