Is it just us, or do the holidays sneak up faster every year? It sure does seem that way. Shoppers are buying gifts earlier, competition is ramping up sooner (case in point: we're posting a holiday blog in August, and we're certainly not the first). And the advertisers who are already showing up, when and where it matters where it matters most, will be the ones that win the season.
If you're shopping around your own holiday marketing strategy for 2026, the data points to one clear takeaway: plan your holiday CTV advertising now, because shoppers are already looking (and watching). Especially on Paramount, where TV's biggest shows coincide with the biggest spending season of the year.
The Holidays Drive Big Spending, Starting Earlier Than You Think
Consumers are expected to spend $1.4 trillion this holiday season across retail, dining, entertainment, gifting, and more (1).
42% of shoppers begin before November, many as early as October, across every generation from Gen Z to Baby Boomers (4). Brands that wait until Black Friday week to launch are showing up late to a conversation that already started.
The Holidays Live on Screen, Especially on Paramount
Despite all the travel the season brings, the holidays still happen on the couch. November and December are the one stretch of the year when the big screen becomes the default gathering place, from Thanksgiving Day football to Christmas Day premieres and specials.
By the numbers (5):
- Holiday content viewership spikes 2 to 3X around Thanksgiving and Christmas
- Streaming hours climb 20% during Q4 versus the rest of the year
- Holiday movies account for 36% of all December movie viewing time
- 67% of Americans watch Christmas movies and TV specials to celebrate the season
- 58% rank watching movies and TV at home as a top holiday activity
Families gather around the TV together, driving a wave of co-viewing that puts more eyes, and more households, in front of every ad. That kind of scale and predictability is hard to find anywhere else, which makes the holidays one of the most efficient windows all year to build a campaign around.
Holiday Entertainment Drives Purchase Decisions
The holidays put people in a different headspace. Shared viewing makes ads feel like part of the moment instead of an interruption, and the general good mood makes people more open to a well-timed pitch.
Here's how that plays out across the shopping journey (6, 7):
- 87% say ads influence their purchasing decisions
- 59% find TV ads helpful for discovering gifts
- 1 in 3 say CTV ads shaped their gift-giving plans this year
Why Paramount Ads Manager Is the Best Way to Reach Holiday Shoppers
Reach:
Paramount content accounts for 1 in 5 streaming minutes in the US, spanning CBS, Paramount+, and Pluto TV (8). That includes a full holiday lineup of specials, premieres, and seasonal classics that bring audiences back to the couch all November and December.
Attention:
Ads on Paramount+ drive 21% higher ad attention than other streaming services (9), so your holiday message has a better chance of actually landing.
Targeting:
Reach the shoppers most likely to convert with Interests & Behaviors Targeting, including audiences like Online Shoppers, Parents, Retail Shoppers, Homeowners, and Travel Enthusiasts, or let Peak Audience Targeting find your best-performing viewers automatically.
Budget:
Choose your scale with Core, Expanded, or Full bundles, depending on whether you want broad reach or premium placement across our most in-demand content.
Ease:
Build your ad in minutes with Creative Express, or let our Creative Plus service produce an on-brand video for you at no extra cost.
Performance:
Install the Paramount Ads Manager Pixel to track site visits, leads, and sales straight from your dashboard, retarget your own site visitors on the big screen, and extend your reach further with Performance Multiplier.
Your Holiday Planning Timeline
Streaming campaigns take a little time to build, and the brands that start now are the ones with room to optimize before the season peaks.
Now:
Set your campaign goal and install the Pixel so you're tracking performance from day one
This month:
Build your creative and set your targeting. Keep messaging simple: introduce your brand fast, lead with one message, and use a clear CTA like "Shop now" or "Scan to save." Plan for a minimum 30-day flight so you have enough time to see real results
September-October:
Ride the momentum of fall's biggest premieres, including NFL Kickoff, the MTV VMAs, and new seasons of NCIS, Tracker, and Mobland. It's also prime time to catch early shoppers before the Black Friday rush hits.
See the full lineup in the newly updated 2026 CTV Guide >
Black Friday:
Make sure your campaign has runway going into it. It's still the busiest shopping day of the year, with 166 million shoppers in stores and online (2)
Cyber Monday:
Keep your campaign running. Online spend hit $14.25 billion last year and is expected to climb higher in 2026 (3)
Small Business Saturday / Super Saturday:
Stay live for the last-minute rush. This late-season surge brings in 71.6 million shoppers before Christmas (2)
The week after Christmas:
Don't shut off early. 70% of shoppers are still buying between Christmas and New Year's (2)
Ready to reach holiday shoppers where they're already watching? Sign up today, and get your brand on TV tomorrow.
Sources
- (1) EMARKETER, Feb 2026
- (2) NRF, 2025
- (3) Adobe Cyber Monday Report, 2025
- (4) Paramount Internal Data Reporting; PwC 2025 Data Reporting; CIT Bank/Harris Poll Study
- (5) VIZIO Viewership Data, 2024; Nielsen, 2024; Collage Holidays and Occasions Survey, March 2025; NRG, 2025
- (6) LG Ad Solutions, "Season's Streamings - Holiday Shopping & TV Viewing Trends in 2025
- (7) The Trade Desk Intelligence and Appinio, Winter Holiday Shopping Trends, n=400, January 2026, U.S.
- (8) Nielsen Streaming Content Ratings, National Sample, Persons 2-99, 1Q25-3Q'25, Top 500 Shows per Quarter
- (9) TVision, 4Q'25
