Flu Shot Marketing Returns Earlier Than Usual

Late October is typically when we all get to feel brave for getting flu shots, but retailers are getting a jump start on marketing the shots this season.

Walgreens believes that U.S. demand for flu, pneumonia and other immunizations could increase 30-50% year over year (YoY). On Thursday, Walgreens and WPP debuted a flu shot video spot earlier than usual—the drug store usually doesn’t roll out any creative around flu shots until September.

CVS started running vaccine promos on August 18, which could give it an edge in the heated competition experts expect between brands offering flu shots this season. Its recent survey found that 54% of U.S. consumers plan to get a flu shot earlier than they did last year.

Big picture: For most of us, flu season and COVID-19 rolled into one sounds terrifying. For retailers getting ahead of the curve, it’s the perfect recipe for marketing that’s actually helpful to people—something consumers say they want in survey after survey.