Bewitching Language Insights from Halloween and Fall Marketing Campaign Trends

Halloween is a scary popular holiday. From handing out candy and dressing up in costumes to pumpkin carving and spooky decorations, there are countless ways consumers can take part in the Halloween festivities. This gives retailers a ton of opportunities to capitalize on this beloved holiday with Halloween marketing campaigns (check out these campaign ideas) and to take part in the latest fall marketing campaign trends. According to the National Retail Federation (NRF), a record 73% of people in the US will take part in Halloween in 2023. That’s up from 69% in 2022. NRF’s annual consumer survey projects that Halloween spending in 2023 will reach $12.2 billion, exceeding the previous year’s record of $10.6 billion. 

Fall marketing campaign trends: The top performing emotions from Halloween marketing campaigns 

The top performing emotions for Halloween marketing campaigns from 2021 and 2022 were FASCINATION, SAFETY, and GRATIFICATION, especially when paired with Halloween phrases, motifs, and puns. FASCINATION refers to language that stimulates excitement, often around a new experience or new arrival. Halloween is a holiday that is largely centered around newness. This includes new costumes, novelty items centered around Halloween, parties and annual activities (i.e. trick-or-treating), decorations, etc. Newness is also a theme across many Fall marketing campaign trends. FASCINATION is conveyed with language around introducing the holiday and new items related to the holiday using novelty language such as “presenting spooktacular decor ideas” or “our eerie-sistable guide to Halloween.” 

The next highest performers were SAFETY, and GRATIFICATION. Halloween is a holiday full of deals and sales. Customers want reassurance that they are getting good deals, and that these sales are not too good to be true. These go hand in hand with GRATIFICATION which is language that stimulates excitement behind getting a good value. Language like “no tricks, only treats” or “treat yourself this Halloween” goes a long way with shoppers who are looking for good deals. 

Here are some ways brands expressed these top three emotions across Halloween digital marketing campaigns:

1. FASCINATION

• Have an eek-citing Halloween!
• Spooky szn is here

2. SAFETY

• No tricks, just treats
• No tricks (we promise!)

3. GRATIFICATION

• Pick your halloween treat
• Only treats for you

The colorful language of Fall marketing campaigns 

Like back-to-school marketing, Halloween is a subcategory of Fall, a season that has become the center of countless seasonal marketing campaigns. Think Fall marketing campaign trends like pumpkin spice lattes, sweater sales, and cozy feelings. Brand associations with fall trends and traditions can make customers feel more emotionally connected to the brand. 

The top performing emotions that generated the most conversions across Fall 2022 digital marketing campaigns are ACHIEVEMENT, INTIMACY, and SAFETY. ACHIEVEMENT or language that implies reward and accomplishment performed the best for Fall 2022. This suggests that customers resonate with the feeling that they have earned or deserve a sale or something new for the season.

INTIMACY and SAFETY are the other two emotions that are high performing for Fall marketing campaigns, which go hand in hand with a lot of the motifs that emerge during Fall. INTIMACY is language that indicates familiarity. Words such as “a cozy welcome back to fall…” create a sense of familiarity and warmth in the language that performs well during this season compared to other emotions. SAFETY or language that eliminates worries or doubts, is the third highest performer. This also goes hand in hand with INTIMACY and Fall. Customers that respond to SAFETY language are seeking reassurance and comfort during this season. They want to know for sure that sales are actually good deals and that they don’t need to do anything special to cash in. 

Brands expressed the high-performing emotions in fall digital marketing campaigns using language such as: 

1. ACHIEVEMENT

• Here’s to fall 🍂🍁
• Perfect fall fit, achieved  
• You’ve unlocked something new for fall

2. INTIMACY

• We’re welcoming fall
• Hello, fall
• Let’s talk autumn

3. SAFETY

• It’s true, all sweaters are on sale! 
• Fall has officially entered the chat
• We’re helping you get fall ready 
• Fall-approved

The scary truth about cart abandonment and the importance of personalization 

The excitement around Halloween and Fall can drive more people to your e-commerce site in search of deals, decorations, costumes, and more. But, over 70% of online carts are abandoned. Prevent cart abandonment during a seasonal sale and throughout the year with Persado Dynamic Motivation. Dynamic Motivation uses session data alongside Generative AI to deliver the right language for the right person right in the online cart. When applied to the online cart, brands typically see a 3-5% increase in e-commerce revenue. 

Fall and its corresponding subcategories including back-to-school, football season, Halloween, and Thanksgiving evoke a sense of excitement and often coziness. All are great opportunities for brands to get in on the fun and promote new products consumers need to enjoy the new season such as sweaters, coats, blankets, etc. But, it’s the digital marketing language used that can inspire customers to act or not to act. 

Persado Essential Motivation provides the most accurate performance predictions and on-brand digital marketing messaging in real-time across every digital channel. Our specialized class of Generative AI is trained on over a decade of performance insights from Fortune 500 campaigns. Request a trial today.