Comparison

Always-on ads vs seasonal bursts: should you advertise all year?

Run a small always-on campaign and add bursts around the moments your trade actually peaks. Switching ads off completely between Eid seasons means every restart begins cold. But spending the same amount in a dead month as in the week before Eid-ul-Fitr wastes money most small businesses do not have.

What are we actually comparing?

Option A

Always-on ads

A steady campaign that runs every week of the year at a consistent budget, keeping the account learning and the brand visible between busy periods.

Wins 2 of 4

Option B

Seasonal bursts

Spending concentrated around specific peaks such as Ramadan, the Eids, wedding season, school admissions, winter or summer sales, with little or nothing in between.

Wins 2 of 4

How they compare, point by point

Each row is judged on its own. A win here is not a verdict on the whole thing — read the rows that matter to you and ignore the rest.

Always-on ads vs Seasonal bursts
Criterion	Always-on ads	Seasonal bursts	Better
Account learning and stability	Strong. The platforms keep collecting data on who responds, so costs settle and audiences stay warm. Retargeting pools never empty out.	Weak. Each burst restarts the learning phase, and the first days of a big seasonal push often cost more per result while the system finds its feet.	Always-on ads
Using money when buyers are ready	Spreads budget across months when people are not buying, such as a wedding dress label advertising hard during a quiet stretch.	Puts the weight exactly where demand is: Eid clothing before chand raat, admission ads before intake, AC servicing before the June heat.	Seasonal bursts
Competition for attention	Quiet months are cheaper to advertise in because fewer brands compete, so even modest spend buys more visibility.	Peak weeks are crowded. Every clothing brand is advertising before Eid, so costs per result usually rise just when you most need them to fall.	Always-on ads
Cash flow for a small business	Predictable, but it is a fixed monthly cost even when sales are slow, which hurts owners who run tight between seasons.	Matches spending to income. Many twin-city shops can only afford serious ad spend when stock is moving and cash is coming in.	Seasonal bursts

Figures as of August 2026. Source: Islamabad Digital Marketing, from running both approaches for clients.

So which one should you pick?

Choose Always-on ads if…

Choose always-on if your demand is steady through the year, such as clinics, repair services, tuition, B2B supply or a daily-use online store, or if you rely on retargeting. Even a modest year-round budget keeps the account warm.

Choose Seasonal bursts if…

Lean towards bursts if your trade is strongly seasonal, like bridal wear, Eid fashion, school admissions, Qurbani, tourism around Murree or winter clothing. Keep a small baseline running so each peak starts warm rather than from zero.