One Day Independent Research
Treat Yourself Economy
Research led by One Day: The Treat Yourself Economy.
We commissioned an independent research study to understand what is really driving the Treat Economy in the UK, most commonly called the “Treatonomics”. In this section, we analyse the behaviours of 1,000 consumers to uncover why people buy small indulgences, how much they typically spend, what messaging persuades them, and where they are most influenced.
The common assumption is that treat purchases are impulse-led and discount-driven towards a young audience, but the data tells a different story.
Read below for our analysis of the key findings and the strategic shifts advertisers should adopt.
Question Asked: What is your main reason for buying a small treat?
64% Buy Treats as a Personal Reward
Nearly two thirds of consumers purchase small treats as a form of positive reinforcement, while only 14% are driven by discounts and just 6% by boredom. The Treat Economy is emotionally led, not price-led.
Strategic implication: frame products as earned moments and everyday wins. Promotion can convert, but reward psychology is what drives the decision.
Question Asked: What’s the most you would spend on a “pick-me-up” purchase?
58% Spend Less Than £10 on a Treat
Treats are designed to feel guilt-free. 58% spend under £10 and another 22% stay in the £10–£29 range, meaning four in five consumers cap treats below £30.
Strategic implication: win on “affordable premium”. Make the product feel like a luxury, but price it like a habit. Focus on repeatable moments, bundles, and small upgrades rather than pushing shoppers into £30+ territory where treats start to feel like a purchase decision.
Question Asked: What kind of image/video makes a product feel more like a treat?
25% Are Convinced by Real Experience
The strongest creative driver is human context. 25% say a real person using the product makes it feel more like a treat, compared to 15% for high-quality visuals and just 11% for texture close-ups. A functional white background with price cues performs even weaker.
Strategic implication: treats are about experience, not product perfection. Show the moment, not just the item. Human emotion and relatability elevate everyday products into something indulgent. Clean product shots alone will not create that feeling.
Question Asked: Rank the ad text that is most likely to convince you to buy something.
“Treat Yourself” Is the Most Persuasive Message
When asked to rank the ad text most likely to convince them, consumers placed “Treat yourself” first, ahead of urgency-led messages like “Limited time only” and functional benefits such as “Next-day delivery”.
This reinforces that in the Treat Economy, emotional impact beats pressure. Scarcity and speed still matter, but they are secondary drivers. The most effective copy validates consumers' feelings, not urgency. Frame the purchase as deserved, not rushed.
Question Asked: Where do you usually see the ads that convince you to buy a treat?
40% Are Convinced by Social Media Ads
Social media is the dominant conversion driver for spontaneous treats, with 40% saying this is where they see the ads that convince them. TV and VOD follow at 20%, while search accounts for 16%. Outdoor plays a smaller but still notable role at 11%.
Strategic implication: the Treat Economy is scroll-driven. Platforms that blend inspiration, relatability and frictionless purchase pathways outperform traditional formats. Social should lead, supported by TV for emotional priming and search to capture intent.
45% of Treat Buyers Are 51+
The largest segment engaging in the Treat Economy is aged 51+, accounting for 45% of respondents. Those aged 30–50 represent 35%, while 18–29s make up just 20%.
This challenges the assumption that treats are youth-led impulse purchases. In reality, older consumers are the dominant audience. Strategically, this means brands should avoid over-indexing on Gen Z aesthetics. Messaging should balance emotional reward with quality, comfort and self-earned indulgence, particularly for a mature audience with higher purchasing power and fewer guilt barriers.
What does this mean for brands?
Advertising in the Treat Economy is based on feelings.
The Treat Economy is not driven by price pressure or scarcity tactics. It is driven by emotional permission, accessibility, and relatability. Consumers are not buying because something is discounted. They are buying because it feels deserved.
For brands, this means the traditional performance-first playbook is incomplete. Treats are justified emotionally, triggered socially, and priced psychologically. The opportunity is not to push harder. It is to position smarter and better optimise your advertising spaces, such as Retail environments for example.
To turn this behaviour into a competitive advantage, we recommend the following strategic considerations:
Emotion is the Primary Trigger
64% buy a treat as a positive reward, and “Treat yourself” ranks as the most persuasive message. Scarcity and delivery benefits come second.
This confirms that treats are acts of self-recognition, not reactive purchases.
Required approach:
Lead with permission-based messaging. Frame the product as earned, deserved, or part of an everyday win. Use urgency and offers tactically, but never as the core story.
Keep Treat Spending Under £30
80% of consumers keep treat spending under £30, with 58% staying below £10.
Treats work because they feel guilt-free. Once the price crosses a psychological threshold, the purchase becomes rational rather than emotional.
Required approach:
Position products as small luxuries at accessible price points. Focus on frequency and repeatability over high-ticket indulgence. Make the spend feel easy to justify.
Show the Experience, not just the Product
The most convincing creative cue is seeing a real person using the product. Functional pack shots and price-led visuals underperform.
Treats are about experience and feeling, not product specifications.
Required approach:
Show the moment, not just the item. Build creative around enjoyment, pause and personal reward. Relatable human scenarios elevate ordinary products into indulgent ones.
Social Media and Mature Audiences Power the Category
40% say they are convinced by ads on social media, making it the strongest channel. At the same time, 45% of treat buyers are aged 51+, the largest age segment.
This challenges two assumptions: that treats are youth-led and that traditional media alone drives purchase.
Required approach:
Lead with social-first, native creative that blends inspiration and frictionless purchase. At the same time, ensure messaging speaks to mature audiences who hold significant purchasing power. Do not over-index on youth aesthetics at the expense of your core buyers.
The Behavioural Approach: How to craft the perfect treat-inducing ad.
People are not buying because they are pressured, and they are not buying because it is cheap. They are buying because it feels deserved, and the price sits in a “no-regret” zone.
That has a direct implication for growth. Brands should stop behaving like hard-sell performance products and start behaving like habit builders. The winners will create repeatable moments of reward, keep pricing psychologically accessible, and use human, social-first creative that makes indulgence feel normal. Do that well, and you are not just driving a one-off purchase. You are earning a place in someone’s weekly routine.
Learn more about Paid Social Advertising, TV and VOD, and Out-of-Home Advertising!
Frequently Asked Questions.
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We commissioned an independent survey of 1,000 UK consumers on YouGov to explore behaviours within the Treat Economy. The sample reflects a broad cross-section of adults, allowing us to understand how and why people purchase small indulgences.
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Yes. This study was commissioned by us at One Day Agency to gain an objective view of the market. We are not tied to any specific retailer or media owner, which allows us to focus on behavioural insight rather than promotional narratives.
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We surveyed 1,000 UK adults across multiple age groups, including 18–29, 30–50 and 51+. This ensures the findings reflect real purchasing behaviour across generations, not just one demographic segment.
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Small indulgences are often overlooked in economic analysis, yet they represent consistent, repeatable spend. Understanding the psychology behind these purchases helps brands unlock habitual growth rather than one-off transactions.
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The data points to four clear actions: lead with emotional permission rather than discounting, keep pricing within an accessible psychological threshold, prioritise human-led creative, and invest in social-first distribution while recognising the spending power of 51+ audiences.
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