71%
are feeling optimistic
about the holidays;
it will be a time to
celebrate
69%
are looking forward to
the holidays, but have
economic concerns
Walmar is here to make the holiday spirit extra special
While economic concerns are top of mind for many of the customers we surveyed,
Walmar is preparing to help customers thrive during the most imporant season of year
It’s the most wonderul time of year at America’s largest retailer, and Walmar Connect is here to
help you make meaningful connections with customers this holiday season. We surveyed Walmar
customers on how they plan to celebrate and shop for the holidays this year. Use this guide to
find insights and tips to help you plan your holiday campaigns.
Source: Walmar First-Pary Data, March and May 2022, Walmar Customer Spark Community, provided by Walmar Luminate.
“I plan to celebrate
Christmas Eve with family and,
hopefully, friends. We will have lots
of food and snacks, but gift-giving
will be limited if the economy stays
like it is or gets worse.”
- Walmar customer
“I plan to spend the holiday
with family members at both
mine and my wife’s family
Christmas. We usually all
bring food, as well as do a
gift exchange. Depending on
inflation, we may do less than
in previous years.”
- Walmar customer
“I hope to celebrate in much
the same way as we’ve celebrated
in the past. By the kids waking us up
early to run downstairs and see their
presents. After opening gifts, we eat
breakfast together. Then later that
day, we visit grandparents. Inflation
and gas prices do give an uncerain
feel to the future, though.”
- Walmar customer
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PROPRIETARY
Source: Walmar First-Pary Data, March, April, May 2022, Walmar Customer Spark Community,
provided by Walmar Luminate.
Walmar customers are
looking for ways to make
their dollar stretch furher:
Not surprisingly, surveyed customers anticipate
sales or promotions will be top influencers for
their holiday purchases this season:
79%
recommendations from friends/family
sales or promotions
store displays or decorations
50%
35%
81%
78%
said low price/cost is the top reason they plan
to shop at Walmar this holiday season
Among surveved customers who plan to
shop at Walmar this holiday season:
say inflation will have some or a great deal
of impact on their holiday shopping
Making Spirits Bright
Amidst economic uncerainties, Walmar wants customers to thrive by adding extra
sparkle to every moment with low-priced meals and deals on gifts and festive touches
PROPRIETARY
35%
will buy in bulk
to save money
35%
will stock up when items
are on sale and before
prices star to rise
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walmarconnect.com
67%
will spend more time
looking for a discount
76%
of surveyed customers
prefer special sales/deals
to be spread out over
the holiday shopping
season as opposed to
just one moment
How Walmar is driving a very merry holiday,
both online and in-store
Walmar’s holiday experience will help customers thrive at the most imporant time of the year
and show how our commitment to low prices helps to add that extra sparkle to every moment.
Our full-funnel campaign will demonstrate how meaningful celebrations are always within reach
at Walmar – from low-priced meals to savings on festive touches and deals on gifts. Promotions
will appear on radio, audio, paid social, branded content, display and search, and more.
Source: Walmar First-Pary Data, March 2022, Walmar Customer Spark Community, provided by Walmar Luminate.
How Walmar customers plan to celebrate in 2022
Bigger celebrations with friends and family are expected
this year compared to 2021
October November December
Walmar shoppers
plan to star their
planning/research
before December
star in October
before Thanksgiving
star in November
through Thanksgiving
star on Black Friday
and/or Cyber Monday
56% 23% 7%
When Walmar customers will star researching
and planning for holiday shopping
Most customers typically star their research well ahead of the holidays, with more than half planning
to begin in October. But most plan to complete their holiday-related purchases in December.
Large at-home
gathering
(5 or more people)
with family/friends
2021 2022
52%
37%
At home with
just immediate
family
2021 2022
62%
49%
Go to a pary
at someone’s home
2021 2022
23%
37%
Source: Walmar First-Pary Data, March 2022, Walmar Customer Spark Community, provided by Walmar Luminate.
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walmarconnect.com
4
When Walmar customers plan to star their holiday shopping:
Most customers surveyed are willing to try
a new brand this holiday as well as purchase
from those they’re familiar with:
Of the customers we surveyed, Walmar stores and Walmar.com remain
the most popular of our destinations for their holiday shopping – while nearly
half plan to use the Walmar app, and pickup and delivery.
Where customers are shopping
70%
Walmar.com
43%
Walmar App
82%
In-Store
43%
Pickup & Delivery
Source: Walmar First-Pary Data, March 2022, Walmar Customer Spark Community, provided by Walmar Luminate.
25%
October
before Thanksgiving
29%
November
through Thanksgiving
18%
Black Friday
8%
Cyber Monday
7%
After Cyber
Monday through
Christmas Day
13%
Don’t know/
not sure
PROPRIETARY
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walmarconnect.com
Get discovered.
Try using a combination
of Walmar search and
display adverising.
Find best practices at the
end of this guide.
are open to
trying new
brands
are more likely to
purchase with brands
they’re familiar with
or have purchased
from before
35%
15%
45%
are likely to
purchase from
both equally
Surveyed customers planning festive meals expect to fill their
cars this year with items like more meat and alcoholic beverages
This holiday, surveyed customers plan to buy more:
During an average week of the 2021 holiday season,
customers purchased:
39%
Meat
38%
Alcoholic Beverages
35%
Baking Goods
35%
Produce
Category Insights
Food & Beverage
Online Holiday Sales
Toys
+225%
Electronics
+141%
+141%Wireless
+7%Food & Beverage
In-Store Holiday Sales
All percentages are compared to rest of 2021 average.
Source: Walmar First-Pary Data, April 2022. Reflecting Oct. 16 - Dec. 25, 2021 data. Walmar First-Pary Data, March 2022. Reflecting Nov. 1 – Dec. 31, 2021 data.
Source: Walmar First-Pary Data, March 2022, Walmar Customer Spark Community, provided by Walmar Luminate.
Source: Walmar First-Pary Data, March 2022. Reflecting Nov. 1 – Dec. 31, 2021 data.
252M
Grocery
Dry Goods
194M
Snacks and
Beverages
144M
Produce
107M
Dairy
30M+
Christmas Candy
Triple-digit holiday sales upticks are another reason to celebrate
During the 2021 holiday shopping season, we saw a triple-digit uptick in online sales
growth for electronics, gaming and wireless compared to the rest of the year. Toys
experienced triple-digit sales growth both online and in-store during the holiday
season compared vs. the rest of the year.
+114%
Toys
+21%
Electronics
+16%Wireless
+11%Food & Beverage
+288%
Gaming
+65%
Gaming
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walmarconnect.com
walmarconnect.com
Snacks
Chips
Cereal
Bread
Milk
Cheese
Cookies
Juice
Walmar.com
Walmar customers shopping
for Christmas candy online also
purchased:
In-Store
Walmar customers shopping for
Christmas candy in-store also purchased:
Christmas Candy
Source: Walmar First-Pary Data, March 2022. Reflecting Nov. 1 – Dec. 31, 2021 data.
2021 Holiday Basket Analysis
How food & beverage baskets stacked up online vs. in-store
Top Holiday-Related Food & Beverage Search Terms
on Walmar.com in 2021
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Source: Walmar First-Pary Data. Reflecting Nov. 1 – Dec. 31, 2021 data.
PROPRIETARY
Tip:
Weave high-perorming
and relevant keywords into
your product’s description.
Use the Keyword Perormance
and Item Keyword
Perormance Repors
as your guide.
7
Chocolate
Baking Ingredients
Lunch Combos
Chilled Baking
Baking
Cookies
Baking Mixes
Snack Meats
Non-Chocolate Candy
Christmas Trim
Online customers
tended to have more
categories outside of
food in their baskets
than in-store
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Christmas Trim
Chocolate
Holiday Personal Care
Baking
Throws
Holiday Wellness
Kids Impulse
Non-Chocolate Candy
Baking Mixes
Christmas Tree Skirs & Stockings
Toys
While the majority of customers we surveyed plan to spend as
much or more on toys this holiday as they did last season, more
than two-thirds plan to spend additional time searching for deals
Walmar.com
Walmar customers shopping for
toys online also purchased:
In-Store
Walmar customers shopping for
toys in-store also purchased:
Activity Stationery Supplies
Kids Crafts & Jewelry Making
Kids Textiles & Décor
Baby & Toddler Sleepwear
Boys & Girls Clothing
Toddlers Clothing
Boys & First Shoes
Boys & Girls Sleepwear
Boys & Girls Underwear
Boys Activewear
2021 Toy Basket Analysis
How toys baskets stacked up online vs. in-store
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
Activity Stationery Supplies
Kids Crafts & Jewelry Making
Books & Magazines
Boys & Girls Clothing
Kids Textiles & Décor
Toddlers Clothing
General Spors
Boys & Girls Sleepwear
Boys & Girls Shoes
Seasonal Beauty
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
56%
71%
anticipate spending the
same or more on toys this
holiday than in 2021
plan to spend more time
looking for a discount
when shopping for toys
Top Toys Search Terms on Walmar.com in November & December 2021
Barbie
Toys
Lego
Squishmallows
Board Games
Kids Toys
Lol Surprise Dolls
Paw Patrol Toys
Toys Under $5
Toys for Girls 3-6 Years
Toddler Toys
Cocomelon
Toys for Boys 3-6 Years
Girl Toys
Hot Wheels
Source: Walmar First-Pary Data, April 2022. Reflecting Oct. – Dec. 2021 data.
Source: Walmar First-Pary Data, April 2022. Reflecting Dec. 2021 data.
Tip:
Capture additional
search traffic by using
the Item Keyword Repor
to harvest new keywords
that aren’t already live in
your campaigns.
Source: Walmar First-Pary Data, May 2022, Walmar Customer Spark Community, provided by Walmar Luminate.
Branded
PROPRIETARY
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walmarconnect.com
Toys customers
heavily cross-shop
kids’ crafting supplies
and kids’ apparel
during holiday
Walmar.com
Walmar customers shopping for
electronics online also purchased:
In-Store
Customers shopping for
electronics in-store also purchased:
Wireless Accessories
Activity Stationery Supplies
Lighting & Fastener Hardware
Office Supplies
Ar & Adult Crafts
Adult Beading
Writing Office Boards
Bath Accessories
Tools
Lamps & Lighting
2021 Holiday Basket Analysis
How electronics baskets stacked up online vs. in-store
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Office Supplies
Lighting & Fastener Hardware
Batteries
Wireless Accessories
Activity Stationery Supplies
Prepaid Gift Cards
Ar & Adult Crafts
Books & Magazines
Tools
Movies
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Top Electronics Search Terms on Walmar.com in November & December 2021
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
TV
Laptop
Smar TV
Black Friday TV Deals
Tablets
Chromebook
Printer
Headphones
Gaming PC
Bluetooth Speaker
70-Inch TV
Roku
Electronics
Roku TV
TVs
Source: Walmar First-Pary Data, April 2022. Reflecting Oct. – Dec. 2021 data.
Source: Walmar First-Pary Data, May 2022, Walmar Customer Spark Community, provided by Walmar Luminate.
Source: The NPD Group: Checkout Buyer Essentials, April 2022. Reflecting Oct - Dec 2021. No endorsement of third-pary data sources.
Source: Walmar First-Pary Data, April 2022. Reflecting Dec. 2021 data.
Only 28% of
the top 100 most-
searched electronics
keywords last holiday
were branded
Electronics
Nearly 40% of U.S. consumers made at least one electronics
purchase at Walmar last holiday season
plan to spend more time
looking for a discount
when shopping for toys
72%
54%
of surveyed Walmar customers
say they’ll be influenced by sales
or promotions when purchasing
electronics this holiday season
of those surveyed plan to spend
the same or more on electronics
this holiday as in 2021
Branded
PROPRIETARY
Electronic
customers
heavily cross-shop
practical gifts
and home needs
during the holiday
Tip:
Star planning search
campaigns at least four weeks
in advance to test bid ranges
and daily budget caps, harvest
keywords and ensure page
content is retail-ready.
9
walmarconnect.com
Gaming
Gaming customers star their
research early for the holidays
Walmar.com
Walmar customers shopping
wireless online also purchased:
In-Store
Walmar customers shopping
wireless in-store also purchased:
Girls Toys
Preschool Toys
Boys Toys
Toy Vehicles
Games & Electronics Toys
Books & Magazines
Wireless Accessories
Computer Accessories
Kids Crafts & Jewelry Making
Audio & Video Acessories
2021 Holiday Basket Analysis
How gaming baskets stacked up online vs. in-store
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
Candy
Girls Toys
Games & Electronics Toys
Boys Toys
Toy Vehicles
Ar & Adult Crafts
Prepaid Gift Cards
Kids Crafts & Jewelry Making
Books & Magazines
Planners, Calendars & Flags
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Top Gaming Search Terms on Walmar.com November & December 2021
Nintendo Switch
PlayStation 5
Nintendo Switch Games
Xbox Series X
PS5 Console
PS4 Games
Funko Pop
Switch Games
PS4 Controller
Source: Walmar First-Pary Data, April 2022. Reflecting Oct. – Dec. 2021 data.
Source: Walmar First-Pary Data, April 2022. Reflecting Dec. 2021 data.
Branded
90% of the top
100 most-searched
gaming keywords
last holiday were
branded
PS4
Xbox
Nintendo Switch Lite
PROPRIETARY
Tip:
Use Item and Keyword
Perormance Repors for
your search campaigns to
identify top-perorming
items and keywords.
64% 25%
of surveyed Walmar gaming
customers said they plan to
research video game shopping
in October or earlier
Source: Walmar First-Pary Data, May 2022, Walmar Customer Spark Community,
provided by Walmar Luminate.
Source: The NPD Group: Checkout Industry Summary, April 2022.
Reflecting Oct. - Dec. 2021 data. No endorsement of third-pary data sources.
market share in October
through December
Last holiday season, Walmar was
the leading retailer for gamers
Oculus Quest 2
Xbox Series S
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walmarconnect.com
Gaming customers
heavily cross-shop
toys, kids crafts, and
electronics during
the holidays
Wireless
Nearly two-thirds of surveyed Walmar wireless customers plan to
make purchases on Walmar.com or the Walmar app this holiday
Walmar.com
Walmar customers shopping
wireless online also purchased:
In-Store
Walmar customers shopping
wireless in-store also purchased:
Audio
Tablets
Software
Beauty Accessories
Computer Accessories
Networking & Connectivity
Writing Office Boards
Audio & Video Accessories
Computing
Fashion & Bridge Jewelry
2021 Holiday Basket Analysis
How wireless baskets stacked up online vs. in-store
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
Lighting & Fastener Hardware
Ar & Adult Crafts
Auto Batteries & Electrical
Writing Office Boards
Tools
Books & Magazines
Movies
Audio
Audio & Video Accessories
Power Hardware
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Walmar.com
Walmar App
(excluding Pickup & Delivery)
Top Wireless Search Terms on Walmar.com November & December 2021
Apple Watch
Straight Talk Phones
iPhone 13 Pro Max Case
Apple Watch Series 3 GPS
Phones
iPhone 13 Case
Cell Phones
Tablets
iPhone 11 Case
iPhone 12 Pro Max Case
iPhone Charger
Unlocked Cell Phones
iPhone 11 Unlocked
iPhone XR Case
Fitbit™
Source: Walmar First-Pary Data, April 2022. Reflecting Oct. – Dec. 2021 data.
35% 27%
Wireless customers
heavily cross-shop
electronics during
the holidays
Source: Walmar First-Pary Data, May 2022, Walmar Customer Spark Community, provided by Walmar Luminate.
Source: Walmar First-Pary Data, April 2022. Reflecting Dec. 2021 data.
81% of the top
100 most-searched
wireless keywords
last holiday were
branded
Branded
PROPRIETARY
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walmarconnect.com
Tip:
Enable all ad placements
on your keyword search
campaigns to capture all traffic
sources. By default, only the
in-grid ad placement is enabled
while other placements are
disabled, which can lead
to lower impressions.
The 12 Tips of Holiday Adverising
Reserve inventory.
Expect increased demand during the holiday season,
so don’t wait to reserve your display placements.
Be prepared to take advantage
of increased site traffic.
Plan to increase your site presence during seasonal
shopping surges driven by Walmar’s holiday
programming. Consider using a combination of Walmar
search and display adverising.
Showcase competitive pricing for your items.
Nearly 78% of the customers we surveyed expect rising
costs to impact their holiday shopping, and more than
81% cited low prices as their top reason to shop at
Walmar this holiday.
Lean into expanded targeting options
for your display campaigns.
Target foodies or gadget buffs with lifestyle targeting.
Reach customers digitally in the aisles for specific
categories with in-market targeting. Or leverage brand-
affinity targeting for customers who have demonstrated
a predilection for a specific brand. Check out this case
study on brand-affinity targeting here.
Use sales lift repors to see how your ad
campaigns drive sales in-store, online or in-app.
Apply insights from the repor to inform campaign
adjustments throughout the holiday season.
Increase daily budget caps to meet
holiday shopping behaviors.
This will help capture more sales during peak shopping
periods and avoid budgets running out too early in the
day or missing those nighttime shoppers. Find more
search tips on page 6.
This holiday, get the most out of Walmar’s adverising solutions by trying
these strategies to optimize your campaigns.
Prioritize keywords that drive clicks
and conversions.
Use the Keyword and Item Keyword Repors from
your Sponsored Products Perormance Dashboard
to identify the keywords that perorm best. Include
these keywords throughout your item pages.
Bid high to secure the top of search placements.
You will never pay more than your maximum bid
and may pay less.
Use bid multipliers to increase your chances
for top-perorming placements.
Tiering or staggering bids by individual item
perormance maximizes the efficiency of your
budget and can improve overall campaign
spend and ROAS.
Gain more visibility with bids set a little higher
on better-perorming products.
Add bid multipliers for mobile devices to
take advantage of customers on the go.
Learn more about Walmar Connect’s solutions at
walmarconnect.com/solutions or adverisinghelp.walmar.com
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
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walmarconnect.com
New Under the Tree: Expanded Search Adverising Solutions
Search Relevancy Enhancements
We’ve made it easier to get discovered. More ads can
now qualify to appear in relevant in-grid results on
search and browse pages.
TIP: Take advantage of these enhancements
with our Best Practices Guide.
Second Price Auction
Combined with search-relevancy enhancements, our
new advanced second-price auction helps reduce your
risk of overpaying for cost-per-click bids. In this model,
the most relevant product – combined with the best bid
– wins the auction.
TIP: Learn more in this one-page guide.
More Sponsored Products Placements
Increase your bids and budgets to take advantage
of these new ad placements, especially during peak
shopping periods.
TIP: Use the Item Health Repor to ensure items
are near to 100% in stock, winning the buy box,
and published.
Suggested Bids
Stay competitive during peak days by using this feature
to help increase the probability of your items winning
the auction.
TIP: Optimize your item for relevancy first. In a
second-price auction, the most relevant product
wins the auction, but the bid price enables them
for higher ad placements.
Automated Rules
Make immediate budget and bid adjustments to help
prevent you from going offline – especially since
shopping behaviors shift during the holiday season.
TIP: Find more tips here.
Thanks to new offerings and enhancements, Walmar’s search adverising stocking is even bigger
this year. Tapping into these new capabilities will give some extra jingle to your 2022 holiday campaigns.
Item Recommendations
This tool scans for high-quality items that are not live in
an in-flight campaign, but are eligible to be adverised and
have been previously purchased.
TIP: Use item recommendations to identify products
that could benefit from an extra push this holiday season.
Suggested Keywords
Selecting the right keywords can be crucial for your
holiday strategy. We enhanced this feature to use ad group
perormance history and organic click data to help you
identify high-perorming keywords.
TIP: Use suggested keywords to add new, frequently
searched keywords to manual campaigns (and to
efforlessly set their cost-per-click bid prices).
Additional Tools Available Only Through
Walmar Platform Parners
Keyword Recommendations
Automatically identify new keywords with the potential
to enhance item visibility and boost sales.
TIP: Use keyword recommendations to help drive
holiday traffic to your Product Detail Pages.
Top Search Trends
Understanding search trends on Walmar is key to
competing and winning on the most popular searched
keywords this season.
TIP: Use the Top Search Trends Repor to identify the
most-searched keywords daily across Walmar’s digital
properies, as well as the three top-selling items for each
keyword.
Search Brand Amplifier
Our new dual-creative profile feature allows our parners
to add a second creative profile option for your campaigns.
TIP: Use this feature to A/B test creative messaging, and
enable quick season campaigns.
Put Your Items Pages
on the Nice List
Regularly optimize product titles,
descriptions, images, and key features
Double-check taxonomy – this
helps determine how your items
are categorized and where
they serve, including
organic results
Find our latest Search Best Practices Guide here.
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PROPRIETARY
