Over a Third of CTV Users Plan to Start Holiday Shopping Early This Year

New insights from LG Ad Solutions highlight growing opportunity for marketers to leverage Home Screen placements on CTV to expedite discoverability and path to purchase this holiday season

LG Ad Solutions released a report, titled Season’s Streamings: Holiday Shopping & TV Viewing Trends in 2024, which reveals that over a third (37%) of CTV users plan to start their holiday shopping in October or earlier this year – with 60% stating they’ll start before Thanksgiving. In addition, 40% of CTV users plan to spend more this holiday season, with an average spend of $801 per person, representing a 14% increase year-over-year.

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“When it comes to discovering content and products, the TV Home Screen serves as the launch platform and we should expect to see retailers leaning heavily into this ad format for the second half of this year.”

With this increased spend in mind, 91% holiday shoppers stated they want holiday shopping TV ads to have a specific deal or promotion and 71% reporting they want the ads to make it easier to buy a featured item. And with consumers continuing to gravitate towards the TV Home Screen for content discovery, advertisers have an opportunity to leverage the full breadth of its capabilities this holiday season.

“The second half of this year is gearing up to be a very active shopping season, and marketers are investing heavily into CTV campaigns to connect with their audiences on the largest screen in the home,” said Tony Marlow, CMO at LG Ad Solutions. “When it comes to discovering content and products, the TV Home Screen serves as the launch platform and we should expect to see retailers leaning heavily into this ad format for the second half of this year.”

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The report, based on a survey of more than 1,000 CTV users who plan to shop for the holidays this year, also found:

• Holiday shoppers want helpful TV ads: 43% of CTV users find that TV ads provide useful information on holiday products and services, with 72% open to scanning a QR code from a TV ad in order to purchase a product or service this holiday season.
• Holiday shopping happens online and in-store: While 86% of holiday shoppers say they take advantage of online Black Friday deals and 84% state they take advantage of Cyber Monday deals, 70% of holiday shoppers take advantage of in-store Black Friday deals. However, early shoppers (before Thanksgiving) are more likely to shop online (72%) than post-Thanksgiving late shoppers (63%).
• Apparel and gift cards are top spending categories this holiday season: Clothing/Apparel (64%) and Gift Cards (62%) represent the top categories of holiday spend, up 6% and 4% YoY respectively. In addition, Appliances, Travel, and Auto have seen increased spending – up 39%, 26%, and 19% YoY.
• Men plan to spend more than women on holiday purchases: Nearly 52% of men say they plan to spend more for holiday shopping and gifts this year compared to the year prior spending more this year, with 30% of women stating the same. The majority of women (52%) say they’ll spend the same amount as last year, compared to men (38%).

Marlow continued: “With access to more video content than ever before, a holistic view of TV consumption that informs key discovery and engagement moments is vital. Beyond the Home Screen itself, advertisers can tap into the collaborative benefits of a direct-to-glass strategy – with the ability to precisely target audiences and compliment strategies with curated content collections, such as holiday movies, that align with key cultural moments.”