Business confidence, social media, inclusivity: 5 interesting stats to start your week

Business leader confidence in economy at lowest level since 2016

Business leaders’ optimism around the UK economy is at its lowest level since July 2016, according to Institute of Directors (IOD) data.

The IoD Directors’ Economic Confidence Index, which measures business leader optimism in prospects for the UK economy, fell to its lowest level since it was introduced in 2016 last month, recording a score of -72. This surpasses the previous record low of -69 recorded in April 2020, during which the pandemic was wreaking havoc on the UK economy.

The level of confidence in the UK economy also dropped significantly from June, when the index recorded a score of -53.

The IoD also records business leader confidence in their own organisations, which plummeted to -9 in July 2025, from 3 in June. This is the second-lowest reading of this indicator since its introduction.

Business leader confidence in their own organisations also fell to -9 in July 2025, from 3 in June. This is the second-lowest reading of this indicator since its introduction in July 2016.

More than four in five (85%) business leaders agree government policy so far will be unsuccessful in driving up economic growth, with two-thirds (66%) indicating they believe it will be very unsuccessful.

Source: Institute of Directors

Social media influences how Gen Z buys, makes and eats food

Gen Z are twice as likely to use social media to get recipe ideas than cookbooks.

Almost three-quarters (72%) of Gen Z consumers report using social channels for ideas on what to cook, well ahead of more traditional sources, such as family and friends (45%), online recipe pages (40%), or cookbooks (32%).

This presents a clear opportunity for brands in the sector, with young consumers engaging with many creators in the space. Around two-thirds (64%) of Gen Z consumers follow food creators, while 40% follow professional chefs and 36% follow food brands.

Social media is a strong discovery channel for Gen Z around food, but the data suggests many are also using social as a purchase destination. More than two in five (42%) young adults have purchased food ingredients on social channels, the research finds.

The data suggests, in total, Gen Z consumers spend nearly 200 hours per year engaging with food content online, from recipe reels and tutorials to supermarket hauls.

Source: Publicis Commerce

Cannes Lions winners spotlight inclusivity

In a year when many predicted that brands would retreat from showcasing diversity in advertising, 72% (23 out of 32) of 2025 Cannes Lions Grand Prix winners embedded inclusivity as a core creative strategy, according to research from Creative Equals.

This is up significantly from 12% in 2024, and suggests a relationship between creative effectiveness, as awarded at one of the famous events in the industry, and inclusivity. Further correlations between inclusivity and effectiveness were also found, for example, every single one of the Grand Prix campaigns that centred around inclusivity drove measurable business and brand results, compared to just 41% of overall Grand Prix winners.

Nearly all of the inclusive campaigns (22 out of 23) created positive community or social change, versus 69% of all Grand Prix winners.

“In a year marked by global uncertainty and cultural tension, inclusion didn’t just survive, it smashed every single metric,” says Creative Equals lead analyst Naveen Sonné.

Source: Creative Equals

Women’s Euros 2025 drove more online sales than Men’s Euros 2024

The Women’s Euros this year drove more online retail sales growth compared to the Men’s Euros last year, finds research.

The sports and outdoors, fashion and footwear, and children’s sectors all saw higher revenue, more orders, and increased average order value (AOV) during the fortnight leading up to the final.

Children’s retail saw the biggest uplift, with revenue up 54%, orders up 15%, and AOV jumping 34% year on year. Meanwhile, the fashion and footwear category grew its revenue by a quarter (26%).

The data, which comes from Visualsoft, also suggests spikes around key matches. Revenue in the sports and outdoors sector surged by 30% the day before the semi-final, while children’s revenue jumped by 45% two days before. Fashion and footwear consistently peaked one to two days before matches, with a 14% uplift just ahead of the quarter final.

Similar shopping behaviour was seen during the 2024 Men’s Euros, but the spending spikes were consistently lower. This indicates the commercial power that the women’s game has.

Source: Visualsoft

Brands allocate budgets ‘tactically’ amid uncertain times

As advertisers sought more short-term solutions during the US administration’s trade negotiations, budgets for search and online display increased in Q1.

UK advertising spend climbed 8% to a total of £10.6bn in the first three months of 2025, according to the latest AA and WARC expenditure report – 1.4 percentage points ahead of the April forecast. Growth was driven primarily by an improved outcome for search, including retail media (12.3%) and gains for online display (10.1%), including social media (14.7%).

Cinema experienced a 19.2% growth supported by big budget releases, including Bridget Jones: Mad About The Boy and Captain America: Brave New World. Similarly, online radio (16.4%) also continued its streak of double-digit growth, benefiting from tech-fuelled shifts in audio habits.

Total TV fell 2.1%, yet video-on-demand (VOD) increased 5.4%. Last quarter, AA and WARC expanded the VOD component of TV to include broadcaster video on demand (BVOD), ad-supported subscription video on demand (SVOD) such as Disney+, Netflix and Prime Video, advertising-based video on demand (AVOD) and free ad-supported streaming TV (FAST).

Direct mail (3.6%) and OOH (1%) registered growth, while online classified (-7.6%), national newsbrands (-8.2%), magazine brands (-11.1%) and regional newsbrands (-6.8%) all declined.

Source: AA and WARC