ROI is the ratio of net profit generated by an investment. In marketing, it is often used to refer to incremental sales or profit generated from marketing activities.
In our ROI Benchmark report, we go in depth on the changes and bring benchmarks to the conversation.
Source: warc.comWhat this means
A median profit ROI of 2.5:1 means that, on average, an advertising investment of $1m among these cases would generate $2.5m of net profit (once the cost of the campaign has been excluded).
Since most case studies in the WARC database list short-term results, however, the ROI figures are more likely to reflect short-term payback. The long-term return on investment will be higher, as evidence suggests that more than half of marketing ROI is generated in the long term.
Notably, the median profit ROI has grown since tracking began in 2017, rising from 1.9:1 in 2017 to 2.5:1 in 2024. This increase could suggest an overall improvement in advertising efficiency as marketers focus on maximising ROI.
Why ROI matters
ROI is a crucial metric for marketers as it measures the efficiency of marketing investments. It allows marketers to compare the relative efficiency of different campaigns with different budgets and the returns from a campaign against other investments.
Knowing the average ROI for successful campaigns can help marketers benchmark their performance against industry standards.
Takeaways
The median revenue ROI of successful campaigns is 4.33:1, and the median profit ROI is 2.5:1.
ROI can vary widely between campaigns and categories, with short-term impact ranging from less than 1:1 to more than 10:1.
The automotive sector shows high median revenue ROIs, while retail and telecommunications / utilities campaigns show high profit ROIs.
WARC Media subscribers can read the ROI Benchmarks report in full here.
Source: warc.com
