Feel like the autumn marketing cycle starts earlier every year? You’re not imagining things! Brands’ holiday marketing campaigns are creeping into late summer, with 32% of consumers beginning their holiday shopping between July and October. For marketers, this means throwing out traditional marketing calendars to cater to these more forward-thinking shoppers. To learn more about the holiday marketing creep, we used our social listening and analytics solution to dive into the data behind everyone’s favorite seasonal flavor (and a perennial top food trend): pumpkin spice.
Explore more data and insights for this sector with our 2024 Consumer Insights: Food & Beverage report.
When does pumpkin spice latte season begin?
Though Starbucks, the originator of the pumpkin spice latte (PSL) craze, rolled the drink out across the United States and Canada in October 2004, 20 years later, we can confidently say that PSL season begins in August.
Two years ago, the first spike in mentions of all things pumpkin spice latte took off right on the cusp of September. This year, the conversation began to rise almost a full month earlier on August 6, as multiple pumpkin spice food and drink recipes generated significant engagement on Pinterest. The following day, Dunkin’ launched its Spiked Pumpkin Spice Iced Latte, a ready-to-drink alcoholic beverage, in stores across 27 U.S. states.
Since then, the overall PSL conversation has already seen multiple spikes:
- August 22: The largest spike so far occurred on this day as the pumpkin spice latte returned to Starbucks stores along with an expanded fall menu.
- August 24: The conversation spiked again on this day as consumers continued discussing the Starbucks PSL, with many mentioning pro-Palestine boycotts of the chain, discussion about the quality of the drink, and some consumers’ preference for locally-owned and independent coffee shops.
- September 5: The third-highest spike came this day, with increased discussion about 7-Eleven’s pumpkin spice Slurpee and recipes for Starbucks pumpkin spice whipped cream.
- September 10: Finally, the fourth-highest spike in the PSL conversation came on this day as a recipe for pumpkin snickerdoodle cookies went viral.
Based on the past year, there are still plenty of PSL mentions ahead this fall, with the highest spike potentially still to come. But there’s no denying that the conversation has started earlier than in previous years.
How do consumers feel about pumpkin spice lattes?
The non-neutral sentiment of this year’s early PSL conversations is largely positive. However, negative sentiment was significant from August 20 through August 25, spiking on August 24 for the reasons listed above.
The top positive keyword is “pumpkin spice,” while the top negative keyword is “pumpkin spice season,” which many netizens use as a stand-in for autumn and fall. Negative mentions of “pumpkin spice season” include everything from dismay at the end of summer to annoyance at fall marketing starting earlier each year.
That strong association of PSL with the change in seasons is evident in the top associated emojis.
The jack-o-lantern, a symbol of Halloween, along with changing leaves are the top emojis in the PSL conversation.
Which cities are talking about pumpkin spice lattes the most?
The Big Apple is the top city for PSL conversations, followed by Los Angeles, London, Toronto, and Chicago. Each of these cities is home to multiple Starbucks locations, as well as competitors like Dunkin’ and Tim Hortons, which offer their own PSL variations.
Takeaways
If PSL season can teach us anything it’s that marketers need to do away with one-size-fits-all campaign calendars in favor of seasonal promotions that cater to their consumers’ shifting preferences and shopping behaviors. Amid all of this, consumer intelligence is key. Otherwise, brands risk becoming irrelevant or even annoying! For example, 67% of consumers say they’ll have holiday marketing fatigue by the start of November.
Learn more about consumers’ shifting preferences and brand research habits in our 2024 Consumer Insights: Retail report.
With the help of social listening and consumer intelligence solutions, marketers don’t have to guess what their audiences want — they can see it in the hard data. Gain a deeper understanding of your audience’s marketing preferences and shopping behaviors with a demo of the Meltwater Suite. Here’s to a happy PSL season!
