According to a forecast by the Advertising Association, advertising agencies are expected to spend close to £6 billion over the Christmas period – which would make it the largest ever seasonal advertising spend.
Spending on ads has surged by 37% since 2010 amid increased competition among businesses to win over British consumers in the final quarter of the year.
The industry body said in its report that “nearly half of Brits have been moved to tears by Christmas adverts they’ve seen or heard.”
The report suggests that a third (33%) of Brits are just as excited about a premiere of a Christmas advert as they are for any film release. One in six respondents to the survey also said they have changed their plans to watch the premier of their favourite Christmas ad.
The report comes as major retailers such as John Lewis, M&S and Asda prepare their Christmas campaigns. John Lewis’ £7million Christmas ad campaign is already starting, with the star of this year’s Christmas advert already revealed.
The association found that last year’s John Lewis offering, which featured Buster the Boxer, became the most shared advert of all time when it was released in November 2016.
Karen Fraser Director, Credos, said: “Christmas is a key time for advertisers large and small. In recent years, marketers of businesses using emotive Christmas advertising have won some of the industry’s biggest awards. Businesses delivering advertising with emotional resonance can be rewarded with powerful, long-term effects into the new year and beyond.
“The Christmas season is a time when we see many of the very best, big-budget advertisements appearing in our media. As we forecast a record spend from advertisers, many people now see the official start of Christmas as when we hear or see a particular advertisement.”
The research for The Advertising Association was carried out online by Opinion Matters between 13/10/2017 and 17/10/2017 amongst a panel of 1123 respondents, all UK adults.