Each year, the holiday season compresses months of consumer intent into a few crucial weeks. For advertisers, that means both opportunity and competition on an unprecedented scale. Between Thanksgiving and Cyber Monday alone, nearly 40% of planned gift spending occurs. In 2025, total holiday sales are expected to reach more than $1.3 trillion, with digital channels capturing a record share of that growth.
But scale brings complexity. Consumers are shopping earlier, switching devices constantly, and making more purchases through shoppable video, retail media, and AI-driven search. For marketers, that means the days of relying on one dominant channel or a static audience plan are long gone. Success this season will depend on how well brands can combine precision audience targeting with programmatic best practices that reflect this new, fragmented reality.