2024 back-to-school marketing trends brands need to plan for

Updated: February 19, 2026 by Hayley.Schneider@experian.com 7 min read May 16, 2024

At A Glance

Back-to-school marketing in 2024 starts earlier, runs longer and relies more on digital engagement. Families research and purchase across online and in-store touchpoints while staying focused on value and convenience. Brands and agencies that plan sooner, activate audience insights early, and maintain consistent experiences across channels stay visible throughout the full back-to-school buying window.

In the 2024 back-to-school season, shopping timelines will be stretching earlier into the summer; online and mobile commerce will play a larger role, and household spending decisions will reflect tighter budgets.

Parents and students are researching sooner, comparing prices more carefully, and moving between digital and physical touchpoints before making purchase decisions. For marketers, this shift calls for earlier planning, longer campaign windows, and messaging that reflects both value and flexibility.

Experian experts shared their predictions and tips in a Q&A video, outlining how brands and agencies can prepare for the back-to-school season.

Watch the highlights from our video below.

Three back-to-school marketing trends for 2024

Back-to-school shopping patterns are shifting as families plan earlier, shop across more channels, and stay focused on value. For marketers, success in 2024 comes down to understanding where attention is moving and how to stay relevant throughout a longer buying window.

When will back-to-school campaigns start in 2024?

In 2024, back-to-school campaigns will start earlier and run longer. Brands are moving promotions forward to reach families who plan purchases over several weeks rather than in a single peak moment.

Early engagement supports:

  • Awareness before peak competition
  • Higher frequency across longer decision cycles
  • Coverage for late-season shoppers

Planning ahead allows marketers to stay visible as families spread purchases across categories and channels.

How is online shopping shaping back-to-school marketing in 2024?

Online and mobile shopping continue to gain popularity during the back-to-school season in 2024. Families value convenience, flexible fulfillment, and the ability to move easily between devices.

Marketers should focus on:

  • Online and mobile shopping experiences, including options for in-store pickup and delivery.
  • E-commerce platforms, including experimenting with shoppable ads on connected TV (CTV)

A strong digital presence supports discovery, comparison, and purchase across devices. As audiences move fluidly between channels, omnichannel strategies help each interaction feel connected, not fragmented. Identity solutions like Experian’s Digital Graph support that continuity by connecting touchpoints across mobile, desktop, CTV, and in-store, helping brands show up consistently and measure what happens next.

Why budget awareness is influencing messaging

Budget awareness is shaping back-to-school messaging as households keep a closer eye on spending. With cost pressures still top of mind, families are planning purchases more carefully and prioritizing value and practicality.

Marketers should align their efforts on/around:

  • Clear pricing and fulfillment options
  • Value-based offers
  • Practical product bundles

What back-to-school marketing strategies should brands use in 2024

Maintain an evergreen presence

Brands should launch back-to-school campaigns early and maintain a steady presence throughout the season. Consistent visibility supports families as they plan and purchase over time.

Understanding how audiences move across channels and timing is key to sustaining that presence. Experian’s TrueTouch™ audiences help brands identify:

  • Channel mix preferences
  • Timing by audience segment
  • Media paths across emails, digital video, and social platforms

Build loyalty programs that deepen customer relationships

Loyalty programs perform best when they reflect a complete view of each customer. When data is limited to transactions or single channels, offers can feel generic and disconnected from real needs.

Using Experian enrichment, brands can expand first-party data with a broad set of demographic, behavioral, and household insights.

With access to more than 5,000+ Marketing Attributes, brands can:

  • Create loyalty offers that feel relevant across channels
  • Fill data gaps in customer profiles
  • Clarify life stage and shopping behavior

Prioritize value and convenience

Convenience and value remain top priorities for families balancing busy schedules during the 2024 back-to-school season.

Effective approaches to prioritize value and convenience include:

  • Partnerships with delivery services such as Shipt and Instacart
  • In-store and online fulfillment parity
  • Pick up in-store (BOPIS) availability

How should agencies approach back-to-school marketing in 2024?

Engage early and extend your campaigns

Agencies benefit from starting conversations earlier with brand partners to support planning and execution. Longer campaign durations help capture demand from early planners and late decision-makers alike.

Adapt your channel strategies

Media plans should reflect how audiences consume content today. Connected TV and social platforms play a central role during the back-to-school season, alongside programmatic and private marketplace buying.

Experian Audiences are available across more than 200 leading activation destinations, including programmatic, social, and TV platforms, and can be curated with premium inventory through Curated Deals. Agencies can activate Experian Audiences and Partner Audiences through Experian’s data marketplace, including access to audiences available within Audigent, a part of Experian, and directly on platforms such as DirecTV, Dish, Magnite, OpenAP, and The Trade Desk.

Watch our full 2024 back-to-school season Q&A with Experian experts

Brands can activate Experian audiences across social, programmatic, connected TV, and private marketplaces through direct platform integrations, supporting consistent targeting and performance comparison across channels.

Watch our full Q&A where our experts cover:

  • Approaches for navigating signal fragmentation
  • Channels showing strong seasonal performance
  • Audience recommendations for back-to-school targeting

What separates Experian’s syndicated audiences

  • Experian’s 3,500+ syndicated audiences are available at over 200 leading activation platforms, including programmatic, social, TV destinations, and can be curated alongside premium inventory through Curated Deals.
  • Reach consumers based on who they are, where they live, and their household makeup. Experian ranked #1 in accuracy by Truthset for key demographic attributes.
  • Access to unique audiences through Experian’s Partner Audiences available on Experian’s data marketplace, within Audigent, a part of Experian, for activation in PMPs, and directly on platforms like DirectTV, Dish, Magnite, OpenAP, and The Trade Desk.
Circana, Kontext, Sport Innovation Lab logos

You can activate our syndicated audiences on-the-shelf of most major platforms. For a full list, download our syndicated audiences guide.

Where you can activate Experian Audiences?

Experian Audiences can be activated on 200+ leading destinations or found directly on over 30 platforms, including:

Need a custom audience? Reach out to our audience team and we can help you build and activate an Experian audience on the platform of your choice.

Want to activate an Experian Audience on Meta, Pinterest, Snap, TikTok or on a platform not listed above? Contact us today.


Reach out to us today

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.


What are Experian Audiences? 

Experian Audiences are pre-built, privacy-compliant consumer segments that help marketers target based on verified demographic, financial, and behavioral data. 
 
They’re designed for flexibility across channels and can be activated on 200+ platforms, including major social, CTV, and programmatic partners. 
 
Experian ranks #1 in demographic accuracy according to Truthset, and marketers can choose from 3,500+ syndicated audiences that capture signals such as income, spending behavior, household structure, financial attitudes, and ability to pay. These same audiences are also available through partnerships on platforms like DirecTV, Dish, Magnite, OpenAP, and The Trade Desk. 
 
For a deeper look at our audience catalog, explore our syndicated audience guide.  

When should back-to-school marketing campaigns start in 2024? 

In 2024, many brands are launching campaigns earlier to reach families planning ahead and to maintain visibility across longer purchase cycles. 

Which channels perform best for back-to-school marketing in 2024? 

In 2024, digital channels such as social media, CTV, and mobile display align with current shopping and media habits for back-to-school marketing.

How does Experian support back-to-school targeting? 

Experian provides syndicated and custom audiences activated across major platforms using household, behavioral, and demographic data. 

Where can you activate Experian Audiences? 

You can activate Experian Audiences are available across 200+ digital and connected TV platforms, including Meta, Pinterest, The Trade Desk, and Audigent PMPs. 

Can I combine Experian data with my own? 

Yes, you can combine Experian data with your own. You can combine your own first-party data with Experian’s 3,500+ syndicated audiences and additional segments from multiple Partner data providers, as a custom audience within a Curated Deal or self-service via Audience Engine

Can agencies activate Experian audiences across platforms? 

Yes. Agencies can activate Experian audiences across social, programmatic, connected TV, and private marketplaces through direct platform integrations. 

Can brands activate Experian audiences across platforms? 

Yes. Brands can activate Experian audiences across social, programmatic, connected TV, and private marketplaces through direct platform integrations. 


Latest posts

Tapad, part of Experian, gathers momentum in EMEA with extensive growth across key markets

London – 24 November, 2017 – Tapad, part of Experian, is the leader in cross-device marketing technology and continues to broaden its reach across EMEA. The business today reported a 20 percent growth in the scope of its regional device graph, a data set used by organisations to map consumers to their devices, enabling better, more personalised cross-device marketing. This news complements Tapad’s recent expansion of its UK team with the hire of experienced solutions engineer, Davide Rosamilia. As the demand for cross-device technology solutions continues to grow around the globe, coupled with the emergence of regulations such as Europe’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), Tapad is committed to offering suppliers the greatest level of insight without compromising consumer privacy. Since Tapad started licensing its proprietary Tapad Device GraphTM just over a year ago, demand for the company’s technology has experienced significant growth. New supply partnerships and proactive data sourcing have also meant an increase in devices across key markets, which contribute to the overall 20 percent growth of the EMEA device graph, including a 44 percent increase in the U.K., 47 percent in France, and 85 percent in Germany. “We’re continuing to invest heavily in growing our regional device graph, allowing us to better meet the needs of EMEA marketers as they strive to reach individuals with greater precision in some of the most tightly regulated marketplaces worldwide,” said Tom Rolph, VP EMEA, Tapad. “This year, we have also welcomed 10 new data suppliers whom we’ve helped to increase cross-device amplification, attribution and audience extension, helping to further set us apart in the marketplace and successfully expand our EMEA presence.” Available around the world, the Device Graph provides access to Tapad’s globally compliant and privacy-safe datasets across EMEA, APAC and the U.S., and offers deeper knowledge of consumer preferences, purchase intent, and conversion behaviors. “Tapad has shown a unique ability to adapt to the nuances of the local EMEA market and display impressive growth without sacrificing dedication to privacy,” said Alistair Hill, CEO and Co-founder at On Device Research. “When we started vetting technology vendors, we needed to be sure that we selected a partner that could offer compliant and privacy-safe datasets to operate within our stringent data standards. Tapad’s probabilistic solution offered us greater scale, greater device reach, and increased engagement without compromising on privacy.” Contact us today

Published: November 24, 2017 by Experian Marketing Services
Sizmek partners with Tapad, part of Experian, to power global cross-device reach with best-in-class privacy

The Tapad Device Graph™ Will Expand Sizmek’s Cross-Device Reach and Improve the Efficiency and Precision of Digital Advertising NEW YORK, November 16, 2017 — Tapad, part of Experian and a leader in cross-device marketing technology, today announced a new global partnership with Sizmek, the largest independent buy-side advertising platform delivering impressions that inspire. By integrating the Tapad Device Graph™, Sizmek will enhance its AI-powered predictive capabilities to deliver accurate, cross-device messaging at global scale in a privacy-safe environment. Combined with Sizmek’s existing data enablement, creative optimization and media execution capabilities, the proprietary Tapad Device Graph improves the efficiency and precision of digital advertising by accurately matching people and devices. This enables advertisers to get a clear view of individual customer journeys, achieve scale without compromising on efficiency, and uncover new opportunities for conversion. Sizmek’s customers will have access to Tapad’s globally compliant and privacy-safe datasets across the Americas, EMEA, and APAC. With deeper knowledge of consumer preferences, purchase intent and conversion behaviors, Sizmek and its customers are able to enhance advertising strategies including cross-device audience identification and more. “Tapad is known for their strong cross-device capabilities, and their offering is an excellent addition to our growing program for best-of-breed data and measurement partners” says Mike Caprio, Sizmek’s Chief Growth Officer. “For our customers, this partnership will add further people-based marketing precision and reach to our comprehensive offerings around creative optimization, data enablement and media execution.” This partnership comes at a time of a massive shift in the marketing technology industry. Companies like Tapad and Telenor, as well as Rocket Fuel and Sizmek, are joining forces to adopt those technologies that are most efficient and accurate at reaching consumers at scale in a personalized and non-intrusive way. The combination of Tapad and Sizmek’s offerings will provide international marketers with exceptional resources to lead a more cost effective and results driven campaign. Contact us today

Published: November 16, 2017 by Experian Marketing Services

The Tapad Device Graph™ increases Throtle’s amplification by 475 percent. NEW YORK, Nov. 1, 2017 /PRNewswire/ — Tapad, now a part of Experian, the leader in cross-device marketing technology, today announced a partnership with Throtle, a leading data onboarding company. The Tapad Device Graph™ will enhance Throtle’s best-in-class onboarding capabilities by providing accurate and privacy-safe cross-device reach as well as precise audiences at scale. In partnership with Tapad, Throtle will deterministically link its services to a corroborated individual with hundreds of targeting attributes. This linkage allows Throtle to offer true cross-device identity management and identity resolution services to accompany its robust onboarding capabilities. Throtle will also work with Tapad to validate its device graph, building larger, more comprehensive audience segments. To date, the Tapad Device Graph™ has connected 61 percent of Throtle IDs to related ones in the graph, with an average amplification rate of 475 percent for Throtle’s IDs, or 4.8 new IDs per each of Throtle’s. Throtle has also seen its overall match rates involving Tapad’s identity insights rise an average of 15 percent since the inception of the partnership. More specifically, Tapad’s mobile advertising IDs (MAIDs) have increased Throtle’s in-app identity inventory by 35 percent. “Tapad has proven to be a trusted source for cross-device matching and has a tremendous reputation in the advertising and marketing technology industries for delivering superior precision and scale with the utmost dedication to privacy,” says Paul Chachko, CEO, Throtle. “Since we first began our test phase, and continuing through to this day, Tapad has met and exceeded our expectations for what a partner should be.” With Tapad’s strong commitment to precision and accuracy, Throtle was confident that this partnership would prove to be the right choice for the strategic expansion of its platform. Not only does Tapad deliver in-depth insights, parsing deterministic from probabilistic linkages, but its pool of device-level touchpoints enables Throtle to increase scale without seeing a decline in precision. For more information about the Tapad Device Graph™, or to request a demo, visit https://www.experian.com/marketing/consumer-sync About TapadTapad Inc. is a marketing technology company renowned for its breakthrough, unified, cross-device solutions. The company’s signature Tapad Device Graph™ connects millions of consumers across billions of devices. The world’s largest brands and most effective marketers entrust Tapad to provide an accurate, privacy-conscious, and unified approach to connecting with consumers across screens. In 2015, Tapad began licensing the Tapad Device Graph™ and swiftly became the established gold-standard throughout the ad tech ecosystem. Tapad is based in New York and has offices in Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Detroit, London, Los Angeles, Miami, Oslo, San Francisco, Singapore, and Tokyo. Tapad’s numerous awards include: Forbes’ Most Promising Companies, Deloitte’s Technology Fast 500, Crain’s Fast 50, TMCnet Tech Culture Award, and Global Startup Award’s “Startup Founder of the Year”. In 2016, Tapad was acquired by the Telenor Group, one of the world’s largest mobile operators. About ThrotleThrotle is a data onboarding company focused on deterministic matching and identity resolution, empowering brands with true individual-based marketing. Our data centric onboarding approach guarantees the highest level of accuracy, scale, and responsiveness for our clients. For more information on Throtle, please visit, throtle.io. Contact us today

Published: November 1, 2017 by Experian Marketing Services

Subscribe to our newsletter

Enter your name and email for the latest updates

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

About Experian Marketing Services

At Experian Marketing Services, we use data and insights to help brands have more meaningful interactions with people. As leaders in the evolution of the advertising landscape, Experian Marketing Services can help you identify your customers and the right potential customers, uncover the most appropriate communication channels, develop messages that resonate, and measure the effectiveness of marketing activities and campaigns.

Visit our website

Subscribe to our newsletter

Stay up to date on the latest industry news and receive expert tips from our marketing experts.
Subscribe now!