The holiday campaigns have begun—here’s what we’re seeing so far

’Tis November, but also…’tis the season. Mariah Carey said so herself.

As some brands bypass Thanksgiving and start rolling out their holiday campaigns, a few marketing trends have emerged.

Deals, deals, deals: With inflation above 8% and some brands dealing with overstock, it’s no wonder the focus seems to be on sales and lower prices this year.

• Kohl’s has shifted from an emotional to a promotional approach, with its CMO stating that “value will be more important than ever” for many of its customers.
• JCPenney and retailer TK Maxx have also homed in on lower prices in their ads.
• And Etsy is hoping people seek out more handcrafted and unique gifts as they plan to spend the same as last year on fewer gifts, per a Deloitte survey.

Gather round: After a couple years of socially distanced holidays, retailers are banking on a sales boom in products related to social gatherings. Campaigns to date seem to reflect that with their focus on togetherness.

• American Eagle’s CMO told Marketing Dive that “too many holiday celebrations have been taken away” from young people and said the focus of this year’s marketing will be “revenge living” (also known as FOMO?).
• Lego’s ad, featuring Katy Perry, is all about kids coming together to build a present-delivery vehicle.
• Kroger’s holiday ad features an elderly man cooking his late wife’s recipes and sitting down for a family dinner.

Media spend: Diversity in media spend is another topic that has come up in recent weeks, as Target made a commitment to boost its investment in Black and Latino-owned media by 30% this holiday season. P&G’s chief brand officer also said last week that the company is aiming to become the No. 1 spender in Black-owned media.—KH