Thanksgiving is around the corner! It’s the perfect time for businesses to connect with their audience, boost engagement, and increase sales through thoughtful and festive marketing. Crafting a successful campaign requires creativity, strategy, and relevance. In this article, we’ll share useful tips and showcase inspiring Thanksgiving ads to help you craft a campaign that boosts sales. But first, let’s start with the history, statistics, and trends.
Table of Contents:
- A Brief History to Tap Into Thanksgiving
- 2023 Thanksgiving Stats & Facts
- When is Thanksgiving in 2024?
- What Does the Short Shopping Period Mean for Retailers?
- Your Thanksgiving Marketing Campaign Ideas to Boost Sales
- Thanksgiving Marketing Campaigns to Get Inspired
- Be Thankful for Effective Marketing Campaigns This Thanksgiving With VIDEN
A Brief History to Tap Into Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving Day, an annual national holiday celebrated in the US, traces its origins to colonial times. So, the first Thanksgiving is commonly associated with a 1621 feast shared by the Pilgrims, who had settled in Plymouth, Massachusetts, and the Wampanoag Native Americans. This event celebrated the Pilgrims’ successful harvest, which was made possible by the assistance of the Wampanoag people.
In 1863, during the Civil War, Abraham Lincoln officially established the modern national holiday. Lincoln proclaimed a national day of “Thanksgiving and Praise” to be held each November. Since then, Thanksgiving has evolved into a holiday centered around family gatherings, feasts, and expressions of gratitude.
Curious about numbers and facts around Thanksgiving? Let’s move on to explore the results of the previous Thanksgiving Day.
2023 Thanksgiving Stats & Facts
Thanksgiving may not be a traditional patriotic holiday, but it carries a deep sense of national pride as Americans come together to express gratitude for collective blessings. Before diving into the Thanksgiving marketing ideas and tips, let’s look at the key statistics.
Do you know that Thanksgiving is the most popular holiday in the United States? Based on Statista research conducted in Q2 2023, Thanksgiving showed a popularity rating of 79%, followed by Memorial Day and Christmas (78%). The top 10 included V-Day (77%), Mother’s Day (77%), Father’s Day (71%), Easter (70%), Martin Luther King Jr Day (69%), Labour Day (69%) and Halloween (68%). Last but not least, Eid was celebrated by 24%.
For most Americans (67%), Thanksgiving is a perfect time to spend with the family and be thankful. No wonder 87% of the US citizens admitted they would celebrate the festive holiday. About half of the respondents described Thanksgiving as a festive holiday for enjoying a great meal.
Online shopping broke the bank
According to Adobe Analytics, in 2023, Americans spent $5.6 billion on Thanksgiving Day, setting a new record, which is a 5.5% increase compared to 2022. The average person spends $301 over the five-day Thanksgiving period. The amount spent on online shopping is expected to increase further during “Black Friday.” It’s no surprise that Thanksgiving has basically become known as the eve of Black Friday.
Regarding top shopping categories, toys took the first place. Toy sales grew 182% over an average day in October. The most popular items were Disney Little People, Uno Show No Mercy, Marvel figures, Barbie dolls, and stuffed animals. The second place took jewelry sales, showing a 126% increase. Then it goes with apparel (a 124% growth), electronics (a 113% boost), and personal care products (a 67% increase).
It was all about mobile sales
59% of all Thanksgiving online purchases were made through mobiles, accounting for $3.3 billion in spending, a 14% growth compared to 2022 (Adobe Analytics). “Shoppers took to their smartphones to get the best deals during holiday gatherings, further solidifying mobile’s growing importance in e-commerce.” Vivek Pandya, lead analyst, Adobe Digital Insights, claimed in a statement.
Salesforce stated that 82% of website traffic came from mobile devices. “Mobile traffic and sales are soaring as people are on the go once again this holiday weekend. Consumers are embracing mobile wallets to break down friction between discovering on social and purchasing on mobile,” said Rob Garf, vice president and general manager of retail at Salesforce.
When is Thanksgiving in 2024?
Every year, families and their loved ones celebrate Thanksgiving on the fourth Thursday of November. But this time, the holiday falls on November 28th. Why is it so late? We will explain.
As we mentioned earlier, Thanksgiving always falls on November’s fourth Thursday, and since this month can have five weeks, the holiday can also land as early as November 22 or as late as November 28.
What Does the Short Shopping Period Mean for Retailers?
As we see, the 2024 holiday shopping season will be five days shorter than in previous years (for example, last year, Thanksgiving was held on November 23), which means we will have a condensed shopping period. According to Google, 34% of shoppers have already started their holiday shopping (27% higher than last year). Taking into account such obstacles, retailers must adjust seasonality to maximize revenue and drive growth around Thanksgiving 2024. Effective Thanksgiving marketing campaigns can help brands stand out in a crowded market, build lasting customer relationships, and boost revenue.
Need help configuring your Thanksgiving marketing campaign?
Your Thanksgiving Marketing Campaign Ideas to Boost Sales
Explore our 7 Thanksgiving marketing campaign tips:
🦃Get a head start
Make sure your Thanksgiving marketing campaign is set up for success. First of all, keep in mind that this season is unlike any other due to a condensed shopping period. Сonsumers have already started searching for goods, great deals, and making purchases, so you should probably plan your campaigns right now. Consider every What, Where, and When of your campaign.
🦃Develop a clear strategy
Understand their needs, preferences, and behaviors to ensure your approach will resonate. Set clear, measurable goals that align with your overall business strategy. Conduct in-depth research on market trends, competitors, and customer insights to inform your decisions. In the end, you’ll get a well-rounded data-driven strategy.
🦃Make your website Thanksgiving-ready
Why does the Thanksgiving landing page matter? Firstly, you can tell a compelling story that captures the spirit of the holiday. Share your brand’s journey, core values, and how you play a part in the Thanksgiving experience. This kind of storytelling engages your audience and strengthens the emotional connection with your brand in a long-term perspective.
Secondly, it’s not a secret that your landing page is the perfect platform for exclusive promotions, deals, and giveaways. So, use bold visuals, persuasive copy, and well-placed call-to-action buttons to create a sense of urgency and excitement around hot offers. These actions will help you to grab visitors’ attention and effortlessly convert them into loyal customers.
Thirdly, your landing page is a great data source. By gathering valuable customer data, you can gain a deeper understanding of your audience and thus customize Thanksgiving promotions to meet their needs and preferences. Use this data to strengthen your future marketing efforts.
We recommend partnering with a team of design professionals to make sure your landing page success around Thanksgiving. Click the link to book a call with our experts.
🦃Share festive and engaging posts
Create captivating and engaging social media posts centered around the Thanksgiving theme. Highlight the warmth and gratitude of the holiday with creative content that resonates with your audience. Ensure your posts show gratitude while boosting engagement with your followers.
🦃Boost sales with social media ads
Support your Thanksgiving marketing with paid ads campaigns. Thanksgiving advertising is an effective solution, as people are generally more receptive to marketing messages during the holidays. For instance, you can run Meta ads campaigns:
Campaign Planning. Plan your ads campaign alongside the Black Friday marketing strategy (August-September).
Audience Segmentation. Segment your audience by the following groups:
- Generous Spenders: Filter them by Customer Lifetime Value (CLTV) and Loyalty (LTV).
- Cart Abandoners: Segment this audience by category or product of interest.
- Loyal Customers: Offer them special discounts or unlock enticing bundle deals to encourage higher Average Order Value (AOV).
Marketing Techniques. Leverage the following marketing approaches:
- Eye-catching visuals: use Thanksgiving as the core theme.
- Send early reminders to boost awareness and anticipation among your audience.
- Flash deals can create urgency and encourage frequent visits to your online store, promoting increased sales.
Need assistance in setting up your Thanksgiving ads campaign? Book a call with our advertising team now.
🦃Kick off with email campaigns
Remember to optimize your emails for Thanksgiving. Give your customers exclusive deals or special holiday discounts through targeted email campaigns. Craft eye-catching subject lines with a festive twist to grab their attention. Personalize your messages and offer exclusive promotions to keep your loyal customers engaged and coming back.
🦃Express gratitude to your loyal customers
Last but not least, Thanksgiving is the perfect time to show your customers how much you appreciate them. Take this opportunity to express your gratitude and let them know how much their loyalty means to you. Surprise your most loyal customers with personalized gifts to make them feel valued.
Thanksgiving Marketing Campaigns to Get Inspired
Airbnb’s #OneLessStranger campaign breaks away from traditional marketing approaches. When Grandma Wanda accidentally dialed a stranger who later became her friend, Airbnb saw the perfect opportunity and hosted them for Thanksgiving dinner at one of their unique properties. The Airbnb team was quick to capitalize on the heartwarming moment, hosting Grandma Wanda and her guests for a memorable Thanksgiving celebration.
What can you learn from this campaign? Building authentic connections is a priority for fostering a loyal customer base. This campaign demonstrates that small acts of kindness can enhance brand visibility and leave a lasting impression on a global scale.
Samsung’s ‘Unwrap the Feels’ campaign showcases its dedication to building emotional connections with its audience. The campaign cleverly portrays unwrapping emotions through innovative products, where Samsung positions them as catalysts for meaningful moments. The tagline ‘Unwrap the Feels’ perfectly encapsulates the campaign’s message, encouraging consumers to see Samsung not just as a maker of gadgets but as a brand that creates emotional experiences through its products.
What can you learn from this campaign? Elevate your brand by emphasizing the products’ emotional impact. Technology can create more meaningful connections when seamlessly integrated into our lives.
Coca-Cola’s viral ‘Share a Coke’ campaign boosted consumption by 7%. Building on its success, they repackaged it for Thanksgiving, turning personalized bottles into placemats for the holiday table. The brand encouraged customers to find bottles with the names of their Thanksgiving guests and share their experiences on social media using the #ShareaCoke hashtag. This simple yet effective campaign spread across Coca-Cola’s social media channels, supported by hashtags, user-generated content, videos, and GIFs. Together, these elements created a fun and engaging atmosphere that you’d want to recreate at your Thanksgiving dinner. As one of the results, the campaign generated 16,000 engagements on Instagram alone.
What can you learn from this campaign? Tap into the real emotions of Thanksgiving. Encourage the audience to engage by sharing content on social media using a specific hashtag.
Be Thankful for Effective Marketing Campaigns This Thanksgiving With VIDEN
Stand out by being unique this Thanksgiving! Contact VIDEN to get the most out of your 2024 Thanksgiving marketing campaign. Book a consultation with our experts.
Get in touch
Got a question? We'd love to hear from you. Send us a message and we'll respond as soon as possible.
By clicking submit, you agree to our Privacy Policy
Latest Insights
Get the tips from our experts to optimize and scale your campaigns