Brand Safety vs. Performance: Balancing Risk in Uncertain Times

Brand Safety Takes a Backseat Amid Economic Uncertainty

Economic uncertainty is impacting marketing priorities. Advertiser Perceptions research shows marketers are prioritizing performance channels and results, sometimes at the expense of brand safety.

While 71% of marketing professionals report using brand safety measures in 2025 to combat misinformation and support credible journalism, this is down 7% from 2024. Furthermore, 21% of marketing executives aren't aligning marketing with social issues, a 5% increase from 2024. Trust in legitimate news environments for advertising also dipped 5% year-over-year, with only 70% believing it positively or neutrally impacts consumers.

“What we see from advertisers is they go with what they know,” said Stuart Schneiderman, Executive Vice President of Business Intelligence at Advertiser Perceptions.

Safety Second

Despite the shift, brand safety remains a top concern. It ties with subpar campaign performance (41%) as the primary reason for cutting ad spend. Media company reputation is another key factor (38%).

Marketers acknowledge the risks but sometimes accept them for optimization. Of those with made-for-advertising (MFA) website policies, 33% find it acceptable to include MFA websites to boost reach and metrics. Only 19% want to eliminate MFA spending entirely, while 47% aim to minimize it.

Maintaining manual exclusion lists is costly. Only 12% of respondents use them in 2025, down from 16% in 2024. Schneiderman suggests AI could automate this process.

“Where do you not want to advertise and be purposeful [about] not putting your brand at risk? That’s really important,” said Schneiderman. “[Manual exclusion lists are] a heavy lift and unless you can really quantify the return on that effort, that’s hard to continue to do over time.”

Risk-Free Business

Advertising on brand-safe platforms is often the most effective strategy, according to Schneiderman. Social media platforms rely heavily on advertising revenue. For example, nearly 98% of Meta's sales are ad-driven, incentivizing advertiser-friendly platforms.

While the impact of Meta's shift to community notes for fact-checking is still unclear, 43% of marketers believe it won't affect their spending. 25% anticipate a negative impact, while 15% plan to increase spending. Only 5% intend to stop spending altogether.

Schneiderman notes a "halo effect" for brands advertising on trusted platforms. Consumers are more likely to trust brands associated with credible media.