'Tricks and Treats' For Your Online Marketing Campaigns

Halloween is quickly approaching! Average consumer spending for Halloween has consistently increased since 2003 and last year reached over $65 per person [1]. In order to take advantage of this seasonal traffic, we wanted to provide 3 'tricks and treats' of our own to help you achieve your online marketing goals.

1. Keep an Eye on Search Volume
As you can see with Google Insights for Search, Halloween searches are on the rise and will continue through October 31st. This graph shows queries for 'Halloween' over the last 4 years.


Start creating Halloween keyword lists and ad creatives that speak to Halloween consumers - remembering that this holiday can involve product category searches including costumes, recipes, make-up, decorations, party supplies and toys. As the average consumer begins their searches mid-October, add general terms like 'costume ideas' and 'funniest costumes' to capture these consumers as they're making early buying decisions.

2. Watch out for Rising Searches
You can also leverage Google Insights for Search to keep an eye on rising search terms. In the last 30 days, we've seen 'halloween,' 'costumes,' and 'halloween costumes' rise to become three of the top ten searches in the shopping category. We've included the top related rising searches to help get you started.


This year we're seeing that halloween costume ideas include typical apparel items as well as those that fuel a creative, 're-wearable' costume - especially during this Do-It-Yourself economy. Remember to run Search Query Reports throughout the month as traffic increases. Search Query Reports will allow you to see the most 'popular' Halloween costumes and keywords, allowing you to add keywords you may have missed and filter out keywords unrelated to the Halloween products you offer.

3. Highlight Promotions and Shipping Cut-Offs
Lastly, as the Holiday approaches, remember that shipping dates are always crucial. People will need to get their costumes or supplies well before the 31st weekend. Emphasize these dates in ad text and highlight any promotions and discounts to capture these last minute sales.

Happy Halloween!

[1] National Retail Federation, NRF 2008 Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey.

Posted by Caitlin Veverka, the Google Retail Team