Readers of The Drum give their verdict on the year ahead
2010 has been an annus horribilis for many but is 2011 likely to bring glad or ill tidings for the marketing industry?
Austerity is the watchword of the moment, coming 12 months with the long heralded budget cutbacks making their presence felt in anger. Combined with a rise in VAT, increasing inflation, rising unemployment and anaemic growth it is a prospect that is likely to leave many crying into their mulled wine over the festive period.
But is this really the case? The Drum conducted an online poll, inviting our readers to peer into their crystal balls to give us their verdict on the year ahead. Will 2011 be a far better year for the marketing business?
What we got was a three way split of the Nostradamus’s amongst you, with just shy of a third (32%) demonstrating unbridled optimism in the belief that all will be rosy and agreeing with our statement that confidence is on the rise.
The pessimists amongst you numbered some 30% with downbeat respondents bracing themselves for a double dip recession.
Naturally that left 38% of those polled sitting on the fence, agreeing that 2011 will mark an upturn in fortunes with the caveat that there remains more risk than certainty.
Who will we be proved right we wonder, we won't be long in finding out.