Maximizing Summer Impact: Why Summer Campaigns Are Among the Year’s Smartest Investments
Summer is sometimes incorrectly perceived as a period of lower market activity. However, data from Tillväxtverket (the Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth), Outdoor Impact, and NEPA proves the exact opposite: summer is one of the most strategically advantageous periods for brands looking to build visibility where people move the most. A combination of record-high tourism, sustained strong reach, and highly favorable pricing creates unique conditions for a high ROI.
Many marketers traditionally scale back their investments during the summer months, believing that the target audience becomes difficult to reach. But the numbers speak for themselves: summer is not a period of inactivity, it is a period of intense movement and high purchasing power.
1. Record-Breaking Tourism and Exploding Consumption
According to official accommodation statistics from Tillväxtverket, tourism in Sweden has not only recovered post-pandemic but has surpassed previous record levels. The sharpest increase is seen precisely during the summer months.
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Guest Nights: During the summer of 2025, the number of guest nights in commercial accommodations increased by over one million compared to the summer of 2024. International tourists are driving this growth in particular (+8.8%, totaling 9.4 million guest nights during the summer).
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Top Destinations: Stockholm and Gothenburg account for nearly half of all guest nights in Sweden. During the summer months, Gothenburg is the largest destination with 5.5 million guest nights, followed by Stockholm at 5.2 million.
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Purchasing Power: Tourism consumption reached new record levels in 2025. Approximately 40% of total tourist expenditure (approx. SEK 1.9 billion out of a total SEK 5.4 billion) goes directly to purchases of retail goods such as clothing, footwear, groceries, and fuel.
For advertisers, this translates into a massive audience of high-spending consumers who are on the move and open to new purchasing opportunities.
2. NEPA Metrics: Equally Strong Impact During the Summer
Source: JCDecaux, NEPA surveys 2019–2026, 1,136 campaigns
Our comprehensive database of NEPA measurements (based on 1,136 campaigns between 2019 and 2026) shatters the myth that advertising is less effective during the summer. Campaigns deliver an equally strong—and in some cases, stronger—impact during the months of June through August compared to the rest of the year.
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Sustained Reach and Appreciation: Core KPIs such as Observation (41%), Relevance (65%), and Liking (56%) remain at the exact same stable levels as the full-year average.
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Increased Awareness: Certain metrics even trend upward during the summer. Awareness increases from 70% to 72%, and Consideration rises from 55% to 57%.
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Driving Action: Action-oriented KPIs such as Purchase Intent (43%), Likelihood to Try (48%), and Recommendation (43%) remain highly robust. Summer campaigns drive interest and action to the exact same extent as usual.
Conclusion: Messages successfully break through and are well-received, even when people are more mobile and have altered travel habits. Summer campaigns drive both interest and action just as effectively as the rest of the year.
3. Strong Summer Reach (VAC)
Our VAC data (Outdoor Impact R17) shows that reach is maintained at impressively high levels, even during the peak summer weeks (weeks 27–32):
Source: Outdoor Impact R17
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Metro Digisize: Shows a natural decrease of 21% as commuting declines, yet still delivers a powerful reach of over 6.2 million VAC per week.
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Digisize National & Bus Shelter: Displays minimal changes, with only 11% and 9% lower VAC respectively compared to the reference week.
This proves that when commuting patterns shift to summer activities, campaigns still find their target audience and achieve broad reach in the urban environment.
4. The Best Pricing of the Year – Lower CPM and Deep Discounts
What makes the summer season an exceptionally strategic win for marketers is the price tag. While reach remains stable, JCDecaux’s summer offers kick in, making the effective cost per mille (CPM) extremely advantageous.
Through our summer discounts, CPM levels drop dramatically compared to the autumn and winter seasons (weeks 33–53):
Source: JCDecaux Pricing Data / Outdoor Impact R17
Capture the Momentum: Flexibility with Programmatic DOOH
Summer in Sweden is packed with hundreds of public events, festivals, and concerts that draw massive crowds to the cities.
With Digital Out-of-Home (DOOH) advertising, you can achieve broad reach with relatively modest budgets. Furthermore, by utilizing programmatic solutions, you gain the flexibility to optimize your messaging for the right location at the exact right time—for instance, in direct proximity to the summer’s largest public events.
Want to learn more about how to capitalize on the best prices of the summer and reach millions of relaxed, buying-ready consumers? Contact your sales representative today!
