Budget 2021: A ray of hope for the advertising sector

There has been a lot of focus on Budget 2021 as it came after a year of unprecedented disruption due to the pandemic. The entire focus of the government has been to infuse positivity into the market and this will surely rub off on the advertising spends.

While there is no direct benefit to the Media and Advertising sector, certain points do affect advertising spends positively. For instance, the boost for the MSME sector, and support for startups are likely to affect the advertising industry. 

The focus on privatisation and innovation is likely to sight gains for the overall corporate sector and thus aid media and entertainment industry growth as well.

This Budget has brought in a high capital expenditure, showing hope and positivity across sectors, but especially having a highly positive impact on five sectors.

Healthcare Sector

Central government programmes like Atmanirbhar Bharat, Jaljeewan, and Swacch Bharat Mission are aimed at taking healthcare to every corner of the nation.

With the budget taking healthcare to every corner of the nation, the pharma industry is in for a pep. These schemes will surely have a positive impact on the pharma, healthcare and FMCG hygiene and sanitation sector.

In the present times, vaccinations, and the Swachh Bharat mission are critical and it rightly reflects in the current budget – as these initiatives need awareness, it would mean a positive impact on advertising.

Automobile sector

The new vehicle scrappage policy will be a shot in the arm for the ailing auto sector which suffered setbacks due to the pandemic. This in turn will boost auto advertising. The auto industry spends massively on advertisements, and this is a positive sign for the industry.

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Energy Sector: Ujjwala Scheme (Gas schemes)

Household appliances - (gas stove) companies are going to reap the benefits with the support of the Budget 2021. Custom duties on solar invertors and lanterns will induce hope and positivity in the local counterparts for energy support as imports have huge taxes levied.

BFSI

Insurance shows a spike in FDI, thus supporting the BFSI industry passing on the benefits to Insurance advertising as well.

Infrastructure

Infrastructure development across India, from highways, trains, metros to ports is also getting a huge boost.

Building and construction companies like cement, steel, paints etc will experience the positivity brought in by the Budget for all the infrastructure improvement plans introduced, thus benefiting the companies’ advertising budgets as well.

After a challenging year, this Budget brings in a ray of hope. Whenever the economy performs, categories surge in trade and the advertising industry reflects this growth. 

The timing of the Budget announcement could not have been better as it coincides with the opening of markets and business catching up, trying to recover from the impact of 2020.

Digitisation is in focus, and traditionally our medium has done well for digital startups. Digital today is the most advertised category with ecommerce, edtech, fintech and gaming gaining immense importance in consumers’ lives, thus creating a need-gap fulfilled appropriately. Budget 2021 touches upon supporting this aspect, and creating a boost for the digital industry.

Budget 2021 will clearly boost sectors like auto, digital, manufacturing and FMCG, which are the leading categories for advertising in current times. With their growth, the advertising industry also stands to gain manifold.

For YourStory's multimedia coverage of Budget 2021, visit YourStory's Budget 2021 page or budget.yourstory.com.