India's ₹2.19 lakh crore festive season is drowning in inefficient ads

Festive rhythms are sweeping across India. It’s a season of sentiment and scale: urban households are set to spend nearly ₹2.19 lakh crore (~US$25B) this festive period. Adding to the momentum, recent GST cuts have left more money in consumers’ hands.

But here's the challenge that should make every marketer pause: brands that orchestrate omnichannel campaigns deliver 77% higher ROI than those that don't, yet most marketers are overlooking the value omnichannel campaigns can bring.

As celebrations intensify, so does the competition. The festive advertising rush is on, with brands pouring billions of dollars into campaigns all vying for the same slice of consumer attention. In today’s fragmented media landscape, repetition no longer equals recall. Two in three Indians are tired of seeing the same ads repeatedly on a single channel, while 70% simply tune out altogether. In an $18 billion market, that adds up to billions wasted on messages that never resonate.

Today, the festive shopper doesn’t sit still. She moves fluidly across screens, from audio to video, from social to streaming, from mobile to connected TV. One moment she’s discovering new music, the next she’s watching a family drama or unlocking in-game rewards. Media consumption is fragmented, fast, and fluid, punishing brands that fail to connect the dots.

That’s why this fragmented behaviour demands a unified response. Research shows two-thirds of Indians feel more positive toward brands that deliver consistent cross-channel messaging, and 70% are more likely to remember them. Still, too many advertisers still confuse multichannel with omnichannel.

Multichannel is fragmented, with the same creative blasted across platforms with little coordination. Omnichannel is orchestrated, syncing story, creative, and frequency across mobile, video, audio, CTV, DOOH, and OTT in an audience-first strategy.

During Diwali, the most memorable campaigns are those that feel seamlessly woven into the celebration itself. A family drama on CTV opens with a festive spot that feels like part of the ritual. A Gen Z listener tunes into a festive remix playlist and hears mood-based audio cues that spark instant recognition. As the day unfolds, digital billboards near shopping hubs shift with the mood, from “festive prep” at sunrise to “celebration mode” as lights come on. In gaming worlds, reward-based ads unlock festive-themed skins or bonus points, turning brand engagement into a moment of joy. Each touchpoint connects and each message reinforces the last. The result: omnichannel campaigns deliver 1.7x greater purchase intent and twice the effectiveness in avoiding ad fatigue.

Winning attention in this season of excess isn’t about hammering the same message harder. A true omnichannel strategy is about meeting consumers where they are in the moments that matter. But knowing which channels matter to them, and how to sequence them for maximum impact can be the difference between meaningful connections and wasted impressions. 

Making that orchestration work in real time is no small feat, and this is where AI changes the game. In an omnichannel world, AI is the engine behind the scenes. Every second, media-buying platforms process millions of ad opportunities, making split-second decisions about where and when an ad should appear. This real-time optimisation ensures ads reach audiences at the right moments, aligning with context and intent while managing frequency across platforms. Far from simply cutting inefficiency, AI-powered media-buying platforms enable more relevant ads that consumers welcome. 

For decades, festive campaigns chased quick sales spikes. Today, in a crowded digital landscape, short-term clicks aren’t enough. Strategic brands move from buying media to orchestrating journeys, shifting from isolated bursts to connected storytelling that builds trust and recall. Even small steps such as aligning frequency, testing new formats, connecting a few channels holistically can spark meaningful lifts performance and brand affinity.

When the dhaak stills and the last diya flickers, it’s not the loudest discount that lingers, but the story that felt part of the season. Omnichannel lets brands turn festivals into memories, and memories into loyalty.