CHANTILLY, Va/PRNewswire/ -- BIA/Kelsey, advisor to companies in the local media industry, forecasts U.S. social advertising revenues to grow from $4.7 billion in 2012 to $11 billion in 2017, representing a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 18.6 percent.

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BIA/Kelsey expects social advertising's local penetration to steadily increase as social networks continually improve the ease of onboarding, local targeting and campaign management for both brands and SMBs. Locally targeted social ad revenues will grow at a 26.4 percent CAGR, from $1.1 billion in 2012 to $3.6 billion in 2017.

"Social networks are evolving their ad products and features to improve performance," said Jed Williams, director of consulting and senior analyst, BIA/Kelsey. "Native social formats, including video, and mobile-social advertising will be the principal market growth drivers."

According to the forecast, display remains the dominant social ad unit, although native ad formats such as Facebook's Sponsored Stories and Twitter's Promoted Tweets require re-thinking of traditional display to optimize social campaigns, especially on mobile platforms. BIA/Kelsey forecasts U.S. native social advertising revenues to grow from $1.6 billion in 2012 to $4.6 billion in 2017 (CAGR: 22.9 percent).

Also driven by Facebook and Twitter, U.S. social mobile ad revenues approached $600 million in 2012, and are expected to grow to $2.2 billion by 2017 (CAGR: 29.9 percent).

BIA/Kelsey custom advisory service clients can log into the client resource center to download the full U.S. Social Local Media forecast.

Forecast Methodology and Definitions

BIA/Kelsey defines social media advertising as money spent on advertising formats across social networks. Currently the predominant ad format is display, though native advertising formats are emerging as display alternatives. Social advertising is included in BIA/Kelsey's display revenue forecast, which falls within the online/interactive advertising category. BIA/Kelsey specifically delineates native social advertising, which the firm defines as branded content integrated directly within a social network experience (i.e., the newsfeed or content stream). These integrated, advertorial qualities differentiate native ads from traditional display. BIA/Kelsey's definition of social advertising does not include revenues derived from virtual currency; social marketing/measurement platforms and services; or social commerce.

BIA/Kelsey's Annual U.S. Local Media Forecast (2012-2017) draws from multiple sources. These include proprietary data ? company, industry and country information in the public domain ? as well as discussions with clients and non-clients about the direction and pace of development in the local media marketplace. The forecast is issued annually each spring and updated in the fall.

BIA/Kelsey custom advisory service clients receive a full forecast report. For information on gaining access to the forecast by becoming a BIA/Kelsey client or for details on purchasing the forecast, contactSteve Passwaiter at spasswaiter@biakelsey.com or (703) 818-2425. 

About BIA/Kelsey 
BIA/Kelsey advises companies in the local media space through consulting and valuation services, research and forecasts, Custom Advisory Services and conferences. Since 1983 BIA/Kelsey has been a resource to the media, mobile advertising, telecommunications, Yellow Pages and electronic directory markets, as well as to government agencies, law firms and investment companies looking to understand trends and revenue drivers. BIA/Kelsey's annual conferences draw executives from across industries seeking expert guidance on how companies are finding innovative ways to grow. Additional information is available at http://www.biakelsey.com, on the company's Local Media Watch blog, Twitter(http://twitter.com/BIAKelsey) and Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/biakelsey).

SOURCE BIA/Kelsey