Marketing for the Spooky Season
Saiesha Munuri
Marketing Writer
As the weather gets colder and leaves get crisper, companies are gearing up for Halloween to capitalize on this revenue generating season. The holiday season is a sentimental time of the year where traditions are practiced and shared, but with only a few holidays that draw such high consumer spending Halloween is just as exciting for marketers as it is for kids. This year marketers have leveled up their game from new candy safes to human-flavored cat food.
Annual Halloween festivities include shopping for candy, costumes, party supplies, and decorations. However, once the pandemic hit, Halloween traditions, or any other holiday traditions for that matter, have adapted leading to a drop in the usual holiday sales. Since this is the first post-vaccine Halloween, companies are back in the game with some fresh, and somewhat eccentric, ideas for consumers. Making up for lost time, some of these campaigns are weird and funny but they overall encapsulate the themes of Halloween and the excitement of returning to holiday celebrations.
One new Halloween product is the candy safe created by Crest. Carlos Quintero, the Vice President of P&G for Oral Care North America, says that “We know Halloween is all about the candy. And Crest gives parents peace of mind knowing that when their kids choose sweets, Crest has them covered, but Halloween candy needs protection too! So, we came up with the perfect solution for parents and kids to keep their teeth and candy protected this Halloween.” Not only will this giveaway reinforce brand loyalty, but it will also invite new consumers. While this safe could be used against kids by parents, it still extends Crest’s purpose of caring for people’s teeth to caring for their candy too.
Another avenue of Halloween products are costumes. From the TikTok trend “Berries and Crème”, Starburst released a Little Lad costume that takes inspiration from one of their classic commercials. As most understand, TikTok is highly influential among young audiences and Halloween costumes are no exception. Similarly, Dunkin’ Donuts extended their costume offerings to include cold brew coffee and a box of donuts. For those that like wine more than coffee, Franzia’s boxed wine costumes now come with the ability to dispense actual wine. As in-person gatherings increase so does the demand for costumes and the opportunities consumers have to wear their favorite brands and products. The craziest Halloween product of this year is likely the new “Tasty Human” flavored cat food released by Temptations. The advertising plays off of the fear that cats, if they were bigger, might eat humans. While fit for the spooky Halloween season, this may or may not be a success with pet owners.
With all of these new products to consider, Snapchat released a guide on how consumers interact and celebrate the holiday. Snapchat records show that over 230 million users celebrated Halloween with streaks, calls, or filters. Snapchat has also made it convenient for its users to shop through the app itself. Given that this is the first post-vaccine Halloween, consumers are expected to spend a significant amount this year. The National Retail Federation predicts that sales will reach up to $10.14 billion compared to the $8.05 billion spent last year. Spending is expected to increase to make this year’s celebration memorable in compensation for the limited holiday experience in 2020. With all these new products to choose from, happy spending and happy Halloween!
Contact Saiesha at munurisa@shu.edu