November 2023

What was measured

We analyzed the top 981 Belgian TV, Online, and Print advertisements from November 2023 ranked by media investment. We extracted 1175 faces of talent from these ads and mapped the representation of age, gender, and ethnicity using an image analysis algorithm and human quality control. "Talents" refer to actors, models, and depicted persons in advertisements.

Channel Number of assets Number of talents
Television 568 902
Online Ads 90 126
Print 323 197
Total 981 1175

Age representation

In this chart we see the visual age distribution of talents featured in the Top 1000 ads, compared to the age of the Belgian population (green area),

The visual age distribution is centered around age groups 25-34 and 35-44 , good for 27% and 23% of all talent respectively. The next age group is -18, which accounts for 20% of talent. Age groups 18-24 and 45-54 are both 11%.

Talents looking 45 and above account for only 18% of talents, while they represent 46% of the population and 53,5% of buying power.

Age distribution of casting in Top 1000 Ads compared to Belgian Population

Age by media

Age representation differs per media. TV ads show the most children. But if we consider adults only, then online Ads feature the youngest talent, closely followed by TV ads. Print ads shift significantly towards older talent. In print ads 26% of talent looks older than 45, while just 16% looks younger than 24. This trend can be observed each month.

Online

Television

Print

Gender representation

Gender isn't simply a binary attribute determined by visual appearance. Our model, however, uses facial features to determine whether a person looks male or female.

Across the Top 1000 ads, we find 45% male talents and 55% female talents.

Visual Gender distribution of talent in Top 1000 Ads

Gender by media

Previously, female representation was highest in online video and lowest in print, with television in the middle. In November, television shows the most women (57%), followed by online video (55%), and print (46%). As in previous months, print media continues to portray older and more male talent.

Online

Television

Print

Gender x Age

Female talents are younger than male talents when we cross visual age and visual gender. Particularly in age groups 45-54 and 55-64 female talent is underrepresented. In the age group 65+ there isn’t much of a difference but the data gets thin there. We observe this trend month after month.

Age Male Female Difference F-M/F+M
65+ 2% 2% 0%
55-64 4% 2% -33%
45-54 7% 5% -17%
35-44 11% 12% 4%
25-34 13% 15% 7%
18-24 3% 7% 40%
-18 6% 10% 25%

Visual Gender crossed with visual age of talent in Top 1000 Ads

Ethnic representation

According to the analysis, 83% of talents are perceived as White (White + Mediterranean White/Middle Eastern) compared to 17% non-White. Black talent makes up 8% of depicted persons, while Asian talent makes up 4%.

Based on facial features, the data model predicts the likelihood that a talent belongs to one of the ethnic/race groups. Due to the fact that there are no hard boundaries between ethnic/race groups, a talent can be perceived as having a dominant and a secondary ethnicity/race.

In addition to White (lighter) and Mediterranean White/Middle Eastern (darker), the model detects Black, Asian, South Asian (e.g. India, Pakistan) and Latine/Hispanic looking people.

Visual Ethnicity distribution of talent in Top 1000 Ads

Ethnicity by media

We see the most ethnic diversity in online ads, followed by TV ads. Print ads show the least - almost no - ethnic diversity. The trend of online media depicting younger, more female and more ethnic diverse talent is in line with previous months.

Online

Television

Print

Comparing sectors

The representation of diversity varies across sectors. In some sectors, specific age groups or genders are targeted. Beauty products, for example, are typically marketed to women. Targeting cannot explain all differences, however.

The advertising industry also exhibits seasonality. In the summer, we see advertising for festivals and events, while in the winter, advertising for cough and cold products is prevalent.

Age representation per sector

Media and Publishing (media brands, TV stations, magazines, …) Telecom and Energy and Hospitality (mainly fast food restaurants) show the most age diversity, this means representing a wide range of ages. However even the most age-diverse advertisers underrepresent people above 45.

The least age-diverse sector is Toys (and Events). This is not surprising as Toy companies target kids. The Beauty and Hygiene sector seems to stick to the notion that young is beautiful and aspirational for older audiences. Only 5% of talent looks older than 45.

Sectors showing the most age diversity in their ads

Rank Sector Diversity score % 45+
1. media and publishing 75 29%
2. telco and energy 75 19%
3. hospitality 75 17%

Sectors showing the least age diversity in their ads

Rank Sector Diversity score % 45+
9. cleaning products 65 13%
10. beauty and hygiene 56 5%
11. toys and events 49 7%

Charts comparing age diversity in the most and least age diverse sector

Gender representation per sector

As observed in previous months, the Cleaning Products sector is perfectly gender-balanced, Food and Drinks and Media and Publishing are very close.

Beauty and Hygiene show mostly women, this is not surprising. But the Hospitality sector - dominated by fastfood and food delivery brands in November - also has a pretty female bias (64%). De Gezinsenquête confirms that this corresponds to the typical domestic roles performed by women, who mostly prepare meals and shop for groceries.

Sectors showing the most gender diversity in their ads

Rank Sector Diversity score % Female
1. cleaning products 50 47%
2. food and drinks 50 52%
3. media and publishing 50 48%

Sectors showing the least gender diversity in their ads

Rank Sector Diversity score % Female
8. toys and events
distribution and retail		 46 61%
10. hospitality 44 64%
11. beauty and hygiene 34 75%

Charts comparing gender diversity in the most and least gender diverse sector

Ethnic representation per sector

We see Finance and Insurance ads in the top again, after a dip in the previous month. Surprising is the Asian representation of 25%. This is the result of two financial brands with extensive campaigns featuring Asian talent.

Media and Publishing typically feature a lot of “Bekende Vlamingen“ and “Wallons célèbres“, but they tend not to be ethnically diverse.

Sectors showing the most ethnic diversity in their ads

Rank Sector Diversity score
1. finance and insurance 60
2. hospitality 59
3. government 56

Sectors showing the least ethnic diversity in their ads

Rank Sector Diversity score
8. telco and energy, distribution and retail 48
10. health and pharma 40
11. media and publishing 37

Charts comparing ethnic diversity in the most and least ethnic diverse sector

Methodology

If you have questions about the methodology or the technology used to creat the Belgian Ad Diversity Barometer, check our methodology page.