RELEX Survey Reveals that 84% of Shoppers Find Holiday Promotions Misleading 

Consumer confidence is slipping, with younger consumers the most deal-driven, skeptical, and quickest to switch retailers when trust breaks 

Retailers are spending billions to win holiday shoppers with promotions, but new survey data from RELEX Solutions shows these deals meant to build loyalty are backfiring. An overwhelming 84% of consumers say promotions feel misleading or unclear at least some of the time, eroding trust during the busiest shopping period of the year.  

The survey of 1,051 U.S. consumers reveals a widening disconnect between the deals retailers run and the deals shoppers trust. Only 32% of consumers say they feel confident that promotions offer real savings. The rest approach holiday offers with hesitation, or outright skepticism. 

Shoppers point to three specific problems fueling their distrust: 

• 65% say promotions feel dishonest when the original price isn’t shown 
• 58% feel misled when items aren’t actually available at the promoted price 
• 53% say unclear terms make deals confusing rather than compelling 

“There’s a massive gap between promotional strategy and execution,” said Thom Iddon-Escalante, Director, Presales Pricing and Promotions, RELEX Solutions. “Marketing teams can design compelling campaigns, but if supply chains can’t deliver inventory or pricing systems can’t clearly communicate savings, the promotion becomes a trust-breaking moment instead of a sales driver. Retailers can’t afford that kind of disconnect.” 

When trust breaks, shoppers walk away– fast 

The consequences are immediate and costly: 84% of shoppers change their behavior when they lose trust in a retailer’s promotions. 

• 29% shop there less often 
• 28% avoid promoted items altogether 
• 27% switch to another retailer 

Shoppers who feel misled frequently are even more decisive – nearly half (45%) – reduce or stop shopping with a retailer they no longer trust. 

Younger shoppers are engaged, skeptical, and quick to abandon 

The implications are particularly stark for retailers competing for younger demographics. Shoppers aged 18-24 are the most responsive to deals, and the most sensitive to bad ones. 

• 30% will ditch their go-to brand for a promoted alternative 
• 62% plan around predictable promotion cycles 
• 61% often catch promotions that aren’t actually cheaper 

They’re also the quickest to walk away: 50% say they switch retailers immediately when a promotion feels misleading, compared with much lower rates among older shoppers. Retailers who execute promotions poorly risk losing future lifetime value from their most valuable long-term customer segment. 

Repetitive deals are making promotions meaningless 

With 60% of respondents believing brands repeat the same deals over and over, shoppers are increasingly seeing through the promotional playbook. Nearly three in four shoppers have learned to work around the cycle: 

• 28% stock up during known promotion cycles 
• 24% ignore repetitive deals entirely 
• 20% only buy during predictable promotions and never at regular price 

What was meant to create urgency is now teaching shoppers to wait – a dynamic that erodes margins and weakens conversion. 

What consumers want  

Overall, consumers say they want more transparency when it comes to promotions. When asked how retailers could fix promotions, shoppers were clear: 

• 35% want fairer pricing 
• 25% want clear percentage discounts 
• 20% want advertised deals to actually be available 
• 19% want simpler offers 

“As we look ahead, promotion success won’t come from deeper discounts, but from deals shoppers believe are real,” said Thom Iddon-Escalante, Director, Presales Pricing and Promotions, RELEX Solutions. “That requires operational excellence: reliable inventory, transparent pricing logic, and tighter coordination between retailers and the suppliers funding these promotions. Shoppers reward retailers who get this right.” 

Vendor-funded promotions make this even more critical: RELEX internal research found nearly 70% of the promotions retailers run are funded by suppliers. When both sides have clear, analytics-enriched workflows and align early, they can deliver promotions that shoppers will pay attention to and trust. Equally important is supply chain collaboration, where forecasting, replenishment, and promotions planning processes are integrated to guarantee product availability. Together, these capabilities create a unified and collaborative foundation for planning promotions that are effective, reliable, and operationally feasible. 

Learn more about how RELEX’s promotion planning software helps retailers plan, execute, and measure promotions. 

Methodology 

The RELEX Promotional Trust Consumer Survey was conducted by Researchscape in November 2025 and includes responses from 1,051 U.S. shoppers aged 18 and older. The survey explores attitudes toward holiday promotions, pricing clarity, trust in retail communication, and the behavioral impact of promotional execution.