Is the auto industry really the largest spender on advertising in the U.S.?
Yes. The auto industry spends more per year on advertising than any other industry in the United States – more than the next three biggest spenders (financial services, telecommunications, and national restaurant chains) combined.1And this spending has paid off – Per advertising dollar spent, the Big 3 have three times the revenue of the other top ten spenders, averaging $42.30 for every ad dollar spent compared with $13.67 for the other seven companies.2 SUV specific auto spending is also incredibly high. During the last decade, automakers and their dealers spent over $9 billion advertising SUVs. This ever-increasing expenditure rose nine-fold during that time, from $172.5 million in 1990 to $1.5 billion in 2000 – a rise that exceeds, in percentage, the growth of SUVs over the same period.3 Click here for more information.
