If you want your business to survive in the coming months, focus is the name of the game. Consider conducting an omnichannel audit, an in-depth review of your business that will allow for the creation of a blueprint you can act on with focus rather than fear. A focused audit does not have to cost you anything more than time, mental energy and a collaborative attitude. Just remember that success is not immediate, and you must critique each of the silos within your business. Most companies begin by auditing their selling channels. Instead, you should go back to the basics. What are the ingredients of a successful direct marketing program? Veteran marketers would say it covers three categories: 1) marketing strategy 2) the offer and 3) creative, and we would agree! However, there’s an initial, critical component missing. As it’s the key foundation to any marketing effort, we must start with brand FIRST, prior to discussing and auditing those classic three.

The holiday season is in full swing, but what is considered by many to be the most wonderful time of the year has become a complex maze for marketers. Brands this year are tasked not only with breaking through to cash-strapped consumers, but also understanding an advertising playbook being rewritten by Gen Z, a cohort that remains valuable but is simultaneously leading a seasonal spending decline. Broad uncertainty surrounds the 2025 holidays, with 57% of consumers expecting the economy to weaken over the next six months, according to Deloitte’s annual retail survey.  Though the majority of consumers expect prices to be higher this season, optimism remains. Shoppers surveyed by Deloitte plan to trim seasonal extras, like a new sweater to wear while hosting, so they can preserve holiday traditions, and 70% are searching for value. To meet the moment, marketers are replacing tropes of glitz and glam with a dose of realness. “We expect consumers to be a little more budget-conscious, a little more discerning with what they’re spending, and you see that in the creative work,” said Hannah Lewman, a strategy director at Ogilvy. “Brands are responding by emphasizing the value of connection, shared experiences, more attainable human moments, less fantastical, dream holidays.”

While many consumers are attempting to curb spending amid stressful financial times, retail therapy is the answer for some — with the habit fueled by buy now, pay later options. Nearly half (47%) of consumers engage in retail therapy to improve their mood, with the most common purchases being food (63%), clothing and accessories (54%), and personal care or beauty products (42%), according to a new survey from LendingTree, Overall, 54% of Americans consider retail therapy a form of "self care." More than six-in-10 (63%) Americans admit that their emotions influence their purchases, with the percentage particularly high among six-figure earners (72%), those with children younger than 18 (70%) and Gen Z respondents ages 18 to 28 (69%).