As media buyers gear up for the 2024 holiday season, the stakes are as high as ever. Brands rely on these critical few months to drive a majority of annual business, and TV advertising remains key to driving holiday outcomes, from awareness to conversion.
This year, advertisers face a complicated market landscape: 87% of US consumers are “fed up” with inflation and increasing costs. But, we’re also shopping more than ever, with store visits, spend, and units bought all up 2-4% over the past year.
TV is poised to play a major role again this holiday season. So, EDO analyzed last year’s national TV ads and top-performing programs — between Nov. 24 and Dec, 31, 2023 — to uncover successes and lessons for 2024.
Holiday TV advertising makes a comeback
After a dip in 2022, retail holiday TV advertising surged back in 2023, signaling the importance of television during the high-stakes consumer season. According to EDO data, retail category national TV estimated spend, which had declined 12% from 2021 to 2022, rebounded with a 7% increase from 2022 to 2023.
Overall ad effectiveness trends, as measured by how likely a TV viewer is to engage with a brand online after seeing an ad, also reversed their recent dip. While 2022 saw an 11% decrease from the previous year, 2023 engagement rates stabilized for the retail category.
Within the holiday period, seasonal programming consistently delivered above-average engagement, ranking among the biggest TV advertising winners:
- ABC's iHeartRadio Jingle Ball emerged as the standout, generating 247% higher engagement than the average TV program for the retail category.
- Classic holiday films maintained their charm, with "Elf" and "Home Alone" driving 35% and 25% above-average engagement than the retail category average, respectively.
- Made-for-TV holiday specials, such as Hallmark’s “A Biltmore Christmas” or Food Network’s “Holiday Baking Championship”, also delivered strong performance for retail brands.
Big-box retailers lead with eye-popping deals
For department stores, TV success during the 2023 holidays was dominated by a few big-box brands. Burlington emerged as the leader, achieving 94% greater ad effectiveness than the category average, followed by Walmart at 63% and JCPenney at 22%.
Top-performing creatives shared some common themes. Many brands featured deals front and center, often within the context of a specific holiday push. For example, Kohl’s “Cyber Monday Jumpstart” was a whopping 437% more effective than the average department store TV ad during the period. Walmart’s “Black Friday Deals” showcased products at low prices, and scored engagement lifts of 119-193% over the category average. Both of these brands also aired Spanish-language versions of each spot that all performed above-average.
Ironically, the category’s top performer, Burlington, bucked these themes: the brand aired a more classic holiday TV ad with general messaging and seasonal cheer, and only a light mention of discounts towards the end. Yet, this brand-focused strategy worked wonders in driving engagement among its audience.
Another lesson for media buyers is the mixed results of Kohl’s. The brand claimed the season’s top four highest-engagement TV creatives, but ranked only fourth overall in brand performance. Even exceptional creative can fall short when campaigns don’t optimize their media weights towards the most effective spots.
Resale marketplaces steal the online spotlight
Similar to department stores, online retailers were focused on price sensitivity. Consumers responded most strongly to brands with a used or second-hand marketplace offering. DealDash led the category with 258% higher engagement than the average online retail ad, followed closely by Rebag at 226% and eBay at 223%.
Some of these top performers used attention-grabbing price contrasts. For example, DealDash’s top-performing creative, which led the category with 341% higher engagement, featured a $500 Playstation 5 that sold for just $0.50 at live auction. TheRealReal emphasized its vast inventory ("10,000s of daily arrivals") and significant discounts ("up to 90% off retail").
But a variety of other creative approaches also worked well for online retailers. eBay’s “Guaranteed to Fit” ad showcased the platform’s niche superpower for finding the perfect item (in this case, a muscle car brake kit); the spot scored 237% higher engagement than the category average. ReBag also stood out with its elevated ad spot (“the way luxury resale should be”) and close-up images of fine leather, watches, and designer monograms, which outperformed the average online retail ad by 298%.
Seize the season of high-impact TV programming
As retailers plan their 2024 holiday campaigns, last year’s data holds a few key lessons:
- Timing matters: The holiday season isn't a monolithic period but rather a series of distinct shopping moments. Tailored messaging and media strategies can help you break through.
- Creative trade-offs: Brands must carefully weigh the benefits of promotional messaging against brand-building emotional appeals, considering their specific market position and competition.
- Optimized placements: Success requires both strong creative and sophisticated media planning — with the right creative weightings, programs, and time slots.
To deliver success for high-stakes holiday TV buys, brands and agencies need outcomes measurement that reveals which ads really move the needle. For more insights, check out our recent white paper on The Power Of Engaged Impressions — or book a consultation with us today.