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A sourced reference page for founders, operators, marketers, investors, and writers who need current numbers on advertising scale, brand value, trust, loyalty, and consumer choice.
Last updated July 6, 2026. Each statistic below includes a named source, source date, and stable anchor link.
Why This Matters
Advertising keeps growing, digital channels keep fragmenting, and customers are switching between value, trust, experience, and premium cues faster than most companies can track. Strong brands reduce that friction. They make the choice easier before the customer starts comparing everything from scratch.
Market Scale
dentsu's May 2026 midyear update says the market crossed $1 trillion in 2025, one year earlier than previously expected.
Cite this stat: kgb, "Brand Building Statistics 2026," May 2026, https://theo-site-4ce8056b-3020-43b3-a03c.onrender.com/brand-building-statistics/#global-ad-spend-2026
Source: dentsu Global Ad Spend Forecasts Midyear Update, May 2026The midyear forecast still outpaces the IMF's 3.1% projected global economic growth for 2026.
Cite this stat: kgb, "Brand Building Statistics 2026," May 2026, https://theo-site-4ce8056b-3020-43b3-a03c.onrender.com/brand-building-statistics/#global-ad-growth-2026
Source: dentsu Global Ad Spend Forecasts Midyear Update, May 2026WARC says the tournament creates a cyclical boost for media investment, although its incremental impact is weaker than in 2018.
Cite this stat: kgb, "Brand Building Statistics 2026," March 2026, https://theo-site-4ce8056b-3020-43b3-a03c.onrender.com/brand-building-statistics/#world-cup-ad-boost-2026
Source: WARC Global Ad Trends: FIFA World Cup 2026, March 2026The forecast is based on input from more than 200 U.S. brand and agency buyers.
Cite this stat: kgb, "Brand Building Statistics 2026," January 2026, https://theo-site-4ce8056b-3020-43b3-a03c.onrender.com/brand-building-statistics/#us-ad-spend-2026
Source: IAB 2026 Outlook Study, January 2026Media Mix
Discovery and demand are increasingly shaped inside digital systems where memory, signals, and creative assets compound.
Cite this stat: kgb, "Brand Building Statistics 2026," December 2025, https://theo-site-4ce8056b-3020-43b3-a03c.onrender.com/brand-building-statistics/#digital-share-2026
Source: dentsu Global Ad Spend Forecasts, December 2025The May 2026 midyear update describes retail media as one of the fastest-growing areas of digital and a shift toward commerce-led media.
Cite this stat: kgb, "Brand Building Statistics 2026," May 2026, https://theo-site-4ce8056b-3020-43b3-a03c.onrender.com/brand-building-statistics/#retail-media-growth-2026
Source: dentsu Global Ad Spend Forecasts Midyear Update, May 2026IAB and PwC describe 2025 as another record year for U.S. internet advertising revenue.
Cite this stat: kgb, "Brand Building Statistics 2026," April 2026, https://theo-site-4ce8056b-3020-43b3-a03c.onrender.com/brand-building-statistics/#us-internet-ad-revenue-2025
Source: IAB / PwC Internet Advertising Revenue Report, April 2026Search held the largest U.S. internet ad format share at 38.8%, according to IAB and PwC.
Cite this stat: kgb, "Brand Building Statistics 2026," April 2026, https://theo-site-4ce8056b-3020-43b3-a03c.onrender.com/brand-building-statistics/#us-search-ad-revenue-2025
Source: IAB / PwC Internet Advertising Revenue Report, April 2026IAB and PwC define digital video to include CTV, social video, online video, and short-form video.
Cite this stat: kgb, "Brand Building Statistics 2026," April 2026, https://theo-site-4ce8056b-3020-43b3-a03c.onrender.com/brand-building-statistics/#us-digital-video-growth-2025
Source: IAB / PwC Internet Advertising Revenue Report, April 2026Programmatic revenue grew 20.5% year over year, adding $27.6 billion.
Cite this stat: kgb, "Brand Building Statistics 2026," April 2026, https://theo-site-4ce8056b-3020-43b3-a03c.onrender.com/brand-building-statistics/#us-programmatic-2025
Source: IAB / PwC Internet Advertising Revenue Report, April 2026IAB says changing consumer habits overtook macroeconomic factors as the top investment challenge in its 2026 Outlook Study.
Cite this stat: kgb, "Brand Building Statistics 2026," January 2026, https://theo-site-4ce8056b-3020-43b3-a03c.onrender.com/brand-building-statistics/#consumer-habits-challenge-2026
Source: IAB 2026 Outlook Study, January 2026IAB says repeat-purchase focus has nearly doubled from 13% in 2024 as advertisers rebalance beyond acquisition.
Cite this stat: kgb, "Brand Building Statistics 2026," January 2026, https://theo-site-4ce8056b-3020-43b3-a03c.onrender.com/brand-building-statistics/#repeat-purchase-objective-2026
Source: IAB 2026 Outlook Study, January 2026Brand Value
The combined value was up 22% year over year, according to Kantar's 2026 BrandZ ranking.
Cite this stat: kgb, "Brand Building Statistics 2026," May 2026, https://theo-site-4ce8056b-3020-43b3-a03c.onrender.com/brand-building-statistics/#brandz-top-100-2026
Source: Kantar BrandZ Most Valuable Global Brands, May 2026Kantar says the analysis includes 5.4 billion attitudinal data points and 1.1 billion behavioral data points.
Cite this stat: kgb, "Brand Building Statistics 2026," 2024, https://theo-site-4ce8056b-3020-43b3-a03c.onrender.com/brand-building-statistics/#kantar-blueprint-data
Source: Kantar Blueprint for Brand Growth, 2024Marketing Leadership
Gartner also found that 70% of CMOs say becoming an AI leader is critical, while only 30% report mature or fully developed AI readiness.
Cite this stat: kgb, "Brand Building Statistics 2026," May 2026, https://theo-site-4ce8056b-3020-43b3-a03c.onrender.com/brand-building-statistics/#cmo-ai-budget-2026
Source: Gartner 2026 CMO Spend Survey, May 2026Gartner says budgets remain effectively flat, rising only slightly from 7.7% of company revenue in 2025.
Cite this stat: kgb, "Brand Building Statistics 2026," May 2026, https://theo-site-4ce8056b-3020-43b3-a03c.onrender.com/brand-building-statistics/#marketing-budget-revenue-2026
Source: Gartner 2026 CMO Spend Survey, May 2026Gartner also reported that 54% of CMOs say their marketing organization has insufficient resources.
Cite this stat: kgb, "Brand Building Statistics 2026," May 2026, https://theo-site-4ce8056b-3020-43b3-a03c.onrender.com/brand-building-statistics/#cmo-budget-gap-2026
Source: Gartner 2026 CMO Spend Survey, May 2026Trust and Loyalty
Edelman reported My Employer at 78% trust among employees and government at 53%.
Cite this stat: kgb, "Brand Building Statistics 2026," January 2026, https://theo-site-4ce8056b-3020-43b3-a03c.onrender.com/brand-building-statistics/#business-trust-2026
Source: Edelman 2026 Trust Barometer, January 2026PwC's 2025 survey also found 29% stopped due to poor customer experience online or in person.
Cite this stat: kgb, "Brand Building Statistics 2026," September 2025, https://theo-site-4ce8056b-3020-43b3-a03c.onrender.com/brand-building-statistics/#bad-experience-brand-loss
Source: PwC 2025 Customer Experience Survey, September 2025PwC contrasts that consumer view with about nine in 10 executives who say customer loyalty has grown.
Cite this stat: kgb, "Brand Building Statistics 2026," September 2025, https://theo-site-4ce8056b-3020-43b3-a03c.onrender.com/brand-building-statistics/#loyalty-perception-gap-2025
Source: PwC 2025 Customer Experience Survey, September 2025Consumer Behavior
McKinsey notes that trade-down behavior is not only about buying fewer items; many consumers are looking for deals across purchases.
Cite this stat: kgb, "Brand Building Statistics 2026," 2025, https://theo-site-4ce8056b-3020-43b3-a03c.onrender.com/brand-building-statistics/#consumer-trade-down-2025
Source: McKinsey State of the Consumer, 2025McKinsey found local preference rising as global trade disruption and consumer value pressure reshape choice.
Cite this stat: kgb, "Brand Building Statistics 2026," 2025, https://theo-site-4ce8056b-3020-43b3-a03c.onrender.com/brand-building-statistics/#local-brand-importance-2025
Source: McKinsey State of the Consumer, 2025NIQ also found that top 10 global brands grew sales 4.8%, slightly ahead of private labels at 4.3%.
Cite this stat: kgb, "Brand Building Statistics 2026," March 2025, https://theo-site-4ce8056b-3020-43b3-a03c.onrender.com/brand-building-statistics/#private-label-purchasing-2025
Source: NIQ Private Label and Branded Product Growth Report, March 2025NIQ reported higher premium-upgrade intent among Millennials at 61% and Gen Z at 58%.
Cite this stat: kgb, "Brand Building Statistics 2026," March 2025, https://theo-site-4ce8056b-3020-43b3-a03c.onrender.com/brand-building-statistics/#premium-upgrade-2025
Source: NIQ Private Label and Branded Product Growth Report, March 2025Methodology
This fact sheet uses named, public sources from research firms, industry bodies, and advisory organizations. Each statistic is tied to a specific source and date. Forecasts are labeled as forecasts, survey results are kept in the language of the source, and unsourced marketing claims were left out.
Future Growth Engine refreshes should keep the anchors stable, check source links, update figures when newer official reports are available, and add new statistics only when the source is strong enough for another site to cite confidently.
May 2026
Midyear global advertising spend forecast by market, channel, and growth rate.
View sourceDecember 2025
Global advertising spend forecasts by region and channel, including digital share and retail media growth.
View sourceJanuary 2026
U.S. media buyer outlook for 2026 ad spend, goals, priorities, and challenges.
View sourceApril 2026
Full-year 2025 U.S. internet advertising revenue by format.
View sourceMay 2026
Global brand valuation ranking and methodology.
View source2024
Brand growth framework built from attitudinal and behavioral data.
View sourceMay 2026
Survey of marketing leaders on AI spending and readiness.
View sourceJanuary 2026
Global trust survey across institutions.
View sourceSeptember 2025
U.S. consumer and executive survey on loyalty and customer experience.
View source2025
Consumer sentiment and purchase behavior across key markets.
View sourceMarch 2025
Global private label and branded product survey and retail measurement data.
View sourceMarch 2026
Forecast on the 2026 men's FIFA World Cup's incremental impact on global advertising spend.
View sourceBuild the brand behind the numbers