What's Happened in Marketing in October 2026? Spooky insights

October is officially spooky season; you know what that means? Thousands of businesses are releasing Halloween campaigns that have been months in the making. But just how scary did things get? 

Well, Sour Patch Kids used the season to launch advertising into the UK for the first time; Pantone got especially creative by using colour palettes inspired by famous sweets and candy (inspiration from Aldi?), and perhaps a little bit psychologically frightening, Tesco are utilising more influencer content than ever. 

Here is the news in a little more detail. 

1) Sour Patch Kids take on the fight for Halloween 

For their first advertising campaign in the UK, Sour Patch Kids did not hold back. 

Choosing to launch in time for Halloween is the perfect timing to align their messaging with the iconic “trick or treat”, and as a sour candy, aren’t they a bit of both? 

They displayed every bit of that cheeky, mischievous, and playful brand that they’ve become well known for in their visual campaigns. As you can see from the image above, they didn’t just use a billboard; they reimagined the space around it by interacting with Oreo’s neighbour billboard and attempting to pull off the image. 

Using playfulness, rather than malicious intent as such, they’ve created a super eye-catching advertising moment that perfectly fits into their brand. 

We’re curious just how many parents bought Sour Patch Kids for this year’s Halloween handout? Did it work?

2) Tesco are getting into the influencer game

By now you should all know who Kathryn Turner is, aka M&S’s master stroke of social genius. She’s the company’s Director of Product Development at M&S Food and has been the most active and possibly successful food “influencer” for the supermarket giant. 

We say influencer dubiously because she’s actually an internal employee, which makes her more of a company social advocate than a third-party influencer. 

Tesco are also looking to get into high-impact social action. But their strategy is to look further afield with influencers who are already making content about Tesco ranges, and perhaps there are a few paid projects in the mix too. 

In fact, they’ve launched a major retail media initiative in October 2026 to play influencer-led promotional and recipe videos directly inside its UK stores, on its website, and via the Tesco app. 

Will this be effective for increasing sales for particular products? Well, we know influencer-led marketing is going from strength to strength, so let’s see!

3) Heineken launches their “Pubscription”

What does a good night out look like in 2026? Well, new data reveals that while adults still want to enjoy a night out, it’s becoming difficult to know where to go. 

We know this because of research commissioned by Heineken and conducted by OnePoll; they polled 2,000 adults as part of Heineken’s Pubscription campaign. 

38% of UK adults say they would go out more often if discovering where to go was as easy as discovering something to watch.

Not only that, but 46% of polled adults said they’d be more likely to go out if they had recommendations that suited their mood. So what did Heinkein do in response? 

They collaborated with Amazon’s Fire Stick service to create the world’s first streaming service for nights out. Users can “browse participating pubs and bars by “genre, depending on the kind of night they’re after, from lively sports pubs to relaxed local hangouts with friends”.

What a cool idea! We love that it’s based on real data and it’s also incredibly innovative…the worry is that people won’t actually use it. Are people still most likely to go to Google Maps or influencers on Instagram to find a pub? 

4) New research around marketing deals 

If you’re a business, especially in the e-commerce space, you’ll have had the same internal discussions. What sales should we strategise for this year? What promotions should we advertise this year? And when? 

And as consumers, we come to expect it. Whether it’s the Black Friday and Boxing Day deals or the post-Christmas discounts, there seems to be a specific calendar of discounts that brands maintain. But do you know how effective those deals are on your actual sales? 

Three-quarters ( 75%) of marketers cannot estimate what proportion of their promotions are profitable.

Research from marketing professor Les Binet and Kantar chief strategy officer Dom Boyd, shows that many marketers do not have a clear view of ROI when it comes to promotions. Instead, many are still using judgement rather than data. 

Our thoughts? We have to acknowledge that perfect data does not exist and, equally, that promotions aren’t all trying to directly improve sales. Should we get better at seeing data-driven impact? Absolutely. But the value of human judgment is also valuable. 

You can find the full research here: IPA | Kicking the promotions habits 

5) Pantone colour swatches Halloween candy 

Many brands ask the same question about holidays like Easter and Halloween: how do we celebrate the season but make sure it’s still relevant to us? 

Well, Pantone has come up with the perfect answer for this year’s spooky season, with Halloween-inspired colour palettes. 

Published on their official Instagram account, we’ve been loving this playful nod to the season, including the rather divisive candy corn.

The brand kept things simple, using its recognisable colour chips to create playful seasonal content, while inviting followers to join the great candy corn debate.

It's a lovely example of how brands can get involved in seasonal trends without straying from what they do best.

No elaborate campaign or expensive production required, just a clever idea that feels unmistakably Pantone.

Who knew Halloween sweets could be a source of design inspiration? Check out the Pantone Instagram for more fun Halloween colour swatches.  

6) Disney’s Hu Dis 

We love when brands get down with the kids (or is it Millennial core?). 

Disney isn't exactly known for playing fast and loose with its iconic logo. But this October, the entertainment giant did just that.

To promote Hulu's arrival on Disney+ in Canada, Disney teamed up with creative agency Courage for a cheeky outdoor advertising campaign called 'Hu Dis?'.

The concept was wonderfully simple. Take the green 'Hu' from Hulu, combine it with the unmistakable 'Dis' from Disney, and you've got a playful take on the familiar text message question, 'Who dis?'

The billboards also featured cropped images of familiar faces from Hulu shows, including Kim Kardashian, adding another layer to the joke.

Sometimes, breaking your own branding rules is exactly what gets people paying attention.