It’s the most wonderful time of the year — and for retail advertisers, the most crucial. 2024’s total U.S. holiday retail sales are predicted to top $1 trillion, a 3.7% increase from 2023.
It’s no surprise, then, that department stores and online retail brands are increasing their spend and generating greater results. Through the first two weeks of the holiday season, retailers in these categories have upped their TV ad budgets by 23% compared to last year, and ad effectiveness is up 12% year-over-year, according to EDO data.
But which brands are having the greatest success?. EDO analyzed data from November 29 through December 9 to better understand which retailers are winning big this holiday season, and the ad trends driving engagement.
Discounts on tech products entice department store shoppers
Three national stores have seen major wins with highly effective ads. Walmart’s ads were 59% more effective than the average department store brand during the holiday sales period, while Kohl’s and Target were 9% and 5% more effective than the average department store category brand.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, these retailers succeeded by touting their most head-swiveling discounts, especially on pricier items like tech hardware. Walmart’s 15-second Black Friday deals ads, which featured exceptionally low prices for aspirational merchandise like Apple Watches were 200% and 194% more effective than the average department store ad. Walmart’s Cyber Monday spot, which promoted an especially marked-down HP laptop, beat the average by 174%.
Similarly, Target’s Spanish language Black Friday ad was 138% more effective than the average, and Kohl’s Black Friday ad was 106% more effective. Both Target’s and Kohl’s ads featured uniquely steep discounts on upscale items like Beats headphones and Sephora fragrances.
Discount-forward strategies won the day for online brands as well
A mix of stalwarts and upstarts make the list of top online brands to advertise on TV this holiday season. Digital-native Amazon Prime tops the list with 125% more effective engagement than the average online retailer during this period, followed by The RealReal (45% more effective than average), eBay (+42%), Overstock (+19%), and Etsy (+14%).
Amazon Prime had many of the ads with the highest engagement rates — including several in Spanish. Its Spanish-language Cyber Monday ad was an astounding 317% more effective than the average online brand, while its English-language counterpart was 295% more effective than the average online retail ad. Both these ads featured an attention-grabbing discount (up to 40% off) and a higher-priced, discretionary item (a Honinst stand mixer), plus a nod to Amazon’s signature focus on customer convenience.
Major discounts on aspirational items also helped StockX and The RealReal to rake in engagement — StockX’s holiday shopping ad, which offered a convenient way to get secondhand Adidas, Nike, and Celine merchandise, was 53% more effective than the average online ad. The RealReal’s holiday ad, promising up to 90% off designer brands, was 47% more effective.
Interestingly, eBay’s ad during this period, focusing not on gifts or even the holiday season but the availability of car parts on its platform, also performed well, bringing in 48% more engagement than average. Advertising isn’t a science that follows hard and fast rules, as outliers like this one remind us.
Want more intel on the most effective retail advertising?
It’s the most important time of the year for retail ads, and outcomes measurement can help when it comes to high-stakes holiday TV buys. For more insights, read our recent white paper on The Power Of Engaged Impressions.