> $264B in 2024.
Why is this much money spent on advertising? Surely it isn't really justified by increase in sales that could be attributed to the ads? You're telling me people actually buy these ridiculous products I see advertised?
It's a lot more complicated, but yes advertising works.
There is a saying in India, whats seen is what is sold.
Not the hidden best product.
I work/have worked ecom adjacent for a long time. Ads absolutely work and the continued bewilderment of HN users to this reality will never cease to amaze me.
Yes, they do. Advertising works. "Free with ads" isn't really free because on average you'll end up spending more money than you would otherwise. You're also paying more than if it was a subscription because the producer has to create both the product and also advertise it.
A lot of that money comes from search result ads. Sometimes I click on an ad to visit a site I search for instead of scrolling to the same link in the actual search results. Many companies bid on keywords for their own name to prevent others from taking a customer who is interested in you.
You use to be a useful site and be at the top of the search results for some keywords and now you have to pay.