Guideline, powered by Standard Media Index, reports that Canadian ad spend rose by 6% last month, making April 2024 the second-highest April in Canada, behind April 2018. The single-source provider of advertising spend and pricing data found that both digital and traditional media spend increased YoY last month with the digital media mix, which has been growing since 2018, accounting for a total 58% of the media investment.

The digital spend jumped by 8% YoY for the fourth consecutive year. Display and search both achieved double-digit gains and contributed to most of digital’s growth. Traditional media grew by 3% YoY, primarily led by linear TV, which was up 5%. That marks a recovery from last year’s 6% YoY decline. Sports programming grew by 11% YoY and news with a 42% lift. These increases offset entertainment, which declined by 10% YoY.

Looking at specific media channels, the three largest digital sector display (28%), search (14%), and digital video (14%) increased and reached April records.  The sole declining digital channel, custom and native, dropped by double digits to 0.4%. Linear TV (34%) and radio (3%) were the only two traditional channels to grow, offsetting OOH expenditure which fell by 7% during April after three consecutive years of double-digit increases.

Three-quarters of product category groups grew during April 2024. CPG (23%) and restaurants (8%) increased in back-to-back years, reaching peak April levels, while entertainment and media (8%) and travel services (2%) decreased by double digits.

Guideline was formed in 2020 to provide accurate media data and collaborative planning tools for guiding advertising decisions. In 2022, Guideline acquired Standard Media Index and SQAD, and in 2023 acquired Mediaocean’s Lumina.