According to data recently released by Kantar Media, total advertising expenditures in the first quarter of 2010 rose 5.1% from a year ago and finished the period at $31.3 billion, marking the first increase in quarterly ad spending since Q1 2008 and the largest gain since Q1 2006, as the ad market finally experienced a long-awaited rebound.

According to a new survey conducted by Harris Interactive, commissioned by Coupons.com, "well-heeled, educated and urban shoppers are taking advantage of coupons and searching for them online..." The survey also found that men are embracing coupons to rake in the savings. 51% of adult males have used a coupon in the past six months. Not only are they using coupons, but 36% of men responded that they even have a designated place to keep their coupons, and they're just as likely as women to clip and tell: 18% of men have told a friend about a coupon they found online.

According to the recent Starch Information Sources Study, sponsored by The Canadian Business Press to measure the effectiveness of specialized business publications versus other information sources, the Internet has become the disrupter among the major trade publications in virtually every industry sector. And, recognizing that Canada is generally a microcosm of the U.S. marketplace, it is hoped that the data developed in this study bear a relationship to trends in the U.S. to assist in market and media planning.

Reflecting growing signs that the U.S. economy is back, radio delivers its best results in quarter-to-quarter revenue comps since Q1 2007 with a +6% overall increase to $3.687B. This gain represents the highest posted in nearly a decade, according to the recent study by the accounting firm of Miller, Kaplan, Arase & Co. reported by the The Radio Advertising Bureau with more than 6,000 member Radio stations in the U.S. and over 1,000 member networks, representative firms, broadcast vendors, and international organizations.

A recent study Epsilon revealed that a large majority of recent purchasers reported that they would not purchase the same brand again. Less than 60% of consumers indicated a strong likelihood of repurchase. Auto insurance purchasers reported the highest likelihood of repurchase of the brand; Credit cards had the lowest reported likelihood of re-selection. The study gathered data across seven product categories including televisions, computers, hotels, auto insurance, mobile devices, communication services and credit cards. How consumers perceive and interact with marketing communications is driving specific behaviors and attitudes, says the report.

According to a new Arbitron study, more than 70% of the U.S. population, or 181 million, have viewed a digital video display out of home in the past month, while 52% of the population, or 135 million, have viewed digital video display in the past week. Digital video in public venues reaches more Americans each month (70%) than video over the Internet (43%) or Facebook (41%). The report notes that DOOH video dwarfs many prominent new media and marketing platforms. More American teens and adults have seen a digital video screen at a public venue in the past …

According to the findings of a new Adweek Media/Harris Poll of 2,140 U.S. adults surveyed in April, 2010 by Harris Interactive, 74% of Americans say when a celebrity endorser gets involved in a scandal, it doesn't impact the way they feel about the brand or brands they endorse. 22% say they feel worse about the endorsed brands and 5% say they feel better about them.

According to the FedEx Office third annual Signs of the Times national small business survey, small business owners are eager to lead the charge out of the country's protracted recession, with 72% saying they will be the driving force behind the U.S. economic recovery in 2010. 51% of the small business owners polled say their businesses have already, or will fully, recover by the end of this year. This optimism is a marked improvement over the survey's findings last year, when 54% of respondents indicated they were very concerned about the economy's impact on their business.

A recent study from mobile audience media company JiWire revealed that, of the roughly 1,000 smartphone users surveyed, 52% claim they have acted on an advertisement in an app and 18% have made a purchase directly from an ad in an app in the last month. Their new report "examines device use, consumer adoption of Wi-Fi and consumer preferences for mobile content and advertising delivery."

According to the results of the 2010 Omniture Online Analytics Benchmark Survey about marketers' use of emerging channels such as mobile, social media and video, 55% of respondents cannot effectively measure marketing ROI, and only 14% of respondents utilize video, mobile and social media in their marketing mix. Matt Langie, director of product marketing, Omniture Business Unit, observes that "...a significant opportunity exists for marketers to implement measurement and optimization strategies for mobile, social media and video... sound strategies for these emerging channels can be a significant competitive advantage to drive revenue growth."