The latest Beverage Brands TV Transparency Report was launched today by iSpot, a cross-platform TV ad measurement provider.
The analysis offers a fresh perspective on consumers and a unique look into CPG beverage advertising for both alcohol and non-alcohol companies, ranging from soda to spirits.
Alcohol brand home TV ad impressions increased by about 21% year over year (YoY) in Q1 2025, while the expected national linear TV ad spend increased by more than 33% to $276.2 million. A rise in sports spending contributed to that increase. In Q1, alcohol companies upped their spending on men’s college basketball, college football, and NBA games, and they spent an additional $50 million year over year on NFL games alone.
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Additionally, non-alcoholic beverage companies increased their national linear TV spending by 30% year over year to $254 million in Q1. However, as these businesses placed a greater emphasis on premium programming, TV ad reach also decreased by 11% compared to Q1 2024. Streaming helps deliver customized messaging to the most likely people to convert rapidly, which is crucial for all beverage businesses, even though linear TV still offers a substantial broad reach.
“With strategic media investments, brands can leverage consumer concerns about economic pressures to sell alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages in-home and achieve quantifiable results and return on investment,” stated Steve Murtos, EVP, Brand Partnerships, iSpot. “by demonstrating how iSpot’s creative, audience, and outcome measurement can drive revenues, the Beverage Brands TV Transparency Report offers a unique transparency into what matters for CPG beverage advertisers.”
Other important conclusions are:
Success Is Tasted Like Short and Sweet: Non-alcoholic beverage brands have frequently achieved success by using brief and sweet messaging. The most likable Tropicana and Pepsi advertisements were brief (15 seconds) and to the point.
Super Bowl Ads Score Big: Although Super Bowl advertisements are often expensive, alcohol companies benefited greatly from the investment because of how well-received those commercials were by viewers. With Budweiser, Stella Artois, and Michelob Ultra’s individual Big Game ads scoring highly on likeability and varied degrees of humor, ABInBev dominated the first quarter.
Men’s College Basketball Scores High: in a cheaper price than NFL Playoff inventory, men’s college basketball attracted a bigger portion of consumers who are likely to make a purchase in a grocery store, which is important for beverage brands or any brand trying to reach this demographic.
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