Retailers Pour $1.47B Into Early Holiday TV Ads Chasing Inflation-Weary Shoppers
The season of joy arrived early, and it came with sponsorships. Brands poured $1.47B into holiday TV ads in the first nine weeks of the season, up 13% year-over-year, as campaigns kicked off as early as October. The early ad blitz reflects retailers chasing inflation-aware shoppers who are stretching holiday spending over longer periods to cope with higher prices and looming tariff pressures.
- Digital advertising added another $5.8B from Nov. 1 to Dec. 7, a 4% YoY increase, flooding social media feeds and inboxes with promotional content.
- AmazonAMZN nearly doubled its holiday TV ad minutes by starting in mid-October, while WalmartWMT and TargetTGT rolled out character-driven campaigns to grab attention.
Consumer verdict: Despite the deluge, Americans don’t seem to mind the festive assault, with two-thirds of respondents saying they enjoy holiday ads at least somewhat. OMD’s Suzanne Irving says brands moved sooner after spotting consumers worried about inflation and trying to “spread out their holiday budgets across a longer period of time.” With retailers unwilling to leave sales on the table and spending set to break records, the early ad blitz is quickly becoming the new normal.