The advertising industry in Belgium finds itself at an exciting intersection of tradition and innovation. On the one hand, the sector is still actively leveraging television as one of the many analog media formats that have helped reach audiences for decades. At the same time, advertisers also have to navigate the country’s complex political structure and landscape which affects consumer behavior and digital
e in general. Despite the different languages being spoken in the relatively small state, in 2022, Belgium scored first for the
with BBDO’s campaign on eCycling, for client Decathlon. The campaign included six Belgian prisoners involved in an online ride to demonstrate the power of sports to influence lives. Even with this creative success at hand, Belgian advertisers still need to figure out how to jump on the digital bandwagon to entice consumers and remain competitive.
Traditional media dominates the advertising landscape
Traditional media maintains a firm grip on the Belgian advertising landscape. Unlike other Western European markets, such as the Netherlands, which have undergone a fundamental digital transformation over the years, Belgium has not seen a widespread departure from tried and tested linear channels just yet. However, reports indicate that
offline advertising spending in Belgium has been undergoing a slight but gradual decrease, which is expected to continue. Still, forecasts suggest that TV will remain the
leading advertising medium in Belgium for the foreseeable future even though the digital medium has caught up in shares as of 2022. One factor that underscores this estimate is the country's rising number of TV households. Belgian audiences are not cutting the cord as drastically as media users in several neighboring countries, indicating that advertisers can still reach and target millions of viewers with their ad campaigns today.
Digital advertising has plenty of room to grow
The Belgian advertising industry is picking up the digital pace. Despite some noticeable shifts in the allocation of budgets amid the pandemic, the share of
advertising spending devoted to the internet stands at 35 percent as of 2022. Meanwhile, the share surpassed 56 percent in Europe as a whole, indicating that the Belgian market still has some catching up to do despite its overall digital maturity. One digital trend that is increasingly embraced, however, is the use of social media for marketing purposes. Data shows that
social ad spend accounted for 26 percent of total digital display investments. Seeing that social media apps such as TikTok have taken Europe by storm, it would be no surprise to see Belgian advertisers ramp up investments in social media campaigns and other digital channels more vividly in the future.
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