Survey: Walmart holiday ads tops with consumers

New York City Walmart has overtaken Target as the company with shoppers’ favorite holiday commercial, according to a Retail Advertising and Marketing Association survey. Target, which claimed the second spot this year, has topped the list since 2005, the first year of the survey, which was conducted by BIGresearch.

Other big news came from Gap, Hallmark and Old Navy, with Gap (No. 4) resurfacing on the list for the first time since 2006; Hallmark (No. 9) making the list for the first time; and Old Navy (No. 6) climbing three spots from last year’s ranking. Other companies in the Top 10 included: Best Buy (No. 3); Macy’s (No. 5); Kmart (No. 7); Sears (No. 8); and Kohl’s (No. 10).

“From the hilarious to the nostalgic, retailers holiday advertisements are designed to create a unique, personal connection with customers,” said Mike Gatti, executive director, RAMA. “Whether the ads remind shoppers about potential savings, use real employees to promote specific products, or simply highlight the spirit of Christmas, advertisements this year have hit a sweet spot with shoppers.”

According to the survey, 16.8% of shoppers said their favorite holiday commercial motivated them to shop with that retailer and nearly one-third (32.8%) said there was no impact as they regularly shop there anyway.

As a new component to the survey this year, shoppers were asked to name their favorite online holiday promotion, with Walmart, Amazon, Best Buy, Target and Kohl’s topping the list.

Other favorites included: eBay; Macy’s; J.C. Penney; Overstock.com; Sears; Kmart; and Old Navy. When asked if these online advertisements motivated them to shop that retailer, 22.1% said yes and more than one-fourth (27.8%) said they already shop there.

When it comes to specific holiday advertisements, coupons are king with 44.6% of shoppers saying the opportunity to save a few bucks is what most influences them to shop at a particular store. Word of mouth (27.2%); advertising inserts (26.9%); newspapers (22.0%); and direct mail (21.3%) are other strong influencers when it comes to retailers’ holiday advertisements.