Notes from the work · Tag

#offers

A shopper on a small-town main street weighing two wrapped gifts on an old balance scale outside a shop, one gift tied with a magenta ribbon

Benchmarks · What You Missed: Oct 5 to 11, 2026

Shoppers plan to spend a little less this holiday. Make your offer easy to say yes to.

A new Circana survey of 3,534 US consumers puts average planned holiday spend at $779, down from $796, with 74% planning to save money. Here is what that means for a local business, and why October is the month to act.

David SteelOctober 11, 20265 min read

A shop window where a mechanical arm reaches in from outside and pins a sale tag onto a display, while the owner inside holds a different, smaller tag

Playbooks · What You Missed: Oct 5 to 11, 2026

Starting Monday, Google can put your website's deals into your ads

From October 12, Google Ads can find a promotion on your website and add it to your Search and Performance Max ads on its own. Eligible accounts are switched on by default. Here is how to check, and how to turn it off.

David SteelOctober 11, 20265 min read

See your own locations in it.

Book a walkthrough with David Steel. Bring last month's lead count and one location you are worried about.

Book a walkthrough See the eight tools