Much like the political scene this election season, there are two very different camps in the fight for your holiday shopping dollars.

National retailers have aligned themselves to one of two completely different groups -- I call them the penny pinchers and the sentimental softies -- in hopes of grabbing your shopping dollars in the midst of an uncertain economic environment.

And to guide me in shopping's ideological battle, I chatted with David Sprott, associate dean of graduate studies at the College of Business at Washington State University and a guru in consumer behavior trends.

Sprott notes that no retailer has completely abandoned one method or the other, but that retailers clearly have decided to put more emphasis on one of them.

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The penny-pinching retailers believe that the key to success is offering bargains to families looking to save more than usual this year. Some, like K-Mart, have offered Black Friday-like deals weeks in advance in hopes of catching shoppers early.

These retailers "are banking on people's concerns about the current economy," Sprott said.

If this camp had a majority leader, it would be Wal-Mart. The discount

chain has bucked all retail trends thanks to its reputation as a low-price retailer.

Chasing the big discount retailer is Target. The Minneapolis-based chain's marketing campaign this year included a television commercial in which children in a Christmas pageant recite lines describing Target as the hub of low-priced toys.

With shoppers staying away from nonessentials such as trendy clothing and housewares -- the very things Target is known for -- the retail chain has seen third-quarter sales drop 24 percent year to year.

While company officials aren't expecting much better for the fourth quarter, they're looking to see if they get any traction by following the path of attracting shoppers with price.

But Target should not forget its niche as a cheap chic retailer, Sprott said. "They need to make sure they still have low prices without doing too much damage (to the brand)," he said.

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The sentimental softies are the retailers looking to get shoppers by tugging on people's emotions. Think cute dogs. Think romantic chick flicks. Think Santa and "The Miracle on 34th Street" (which ironically takes place in a Macy's store).

It shouldn't come as a surprise that Macy's is the industry's frontrunner for sentimental advertising. One television commercial plays on the 1898 letter from Virginia, an 8-year-old asking whether Santa is real. The commercial has celebrities like Jessica Simpson and Martha Stewart saying that Santa Claus indeed does exist.

But Macy's isn't alone. Best Buy has ads featuring store employees talking about the meaningful things about working during the holiday season, such as helping members of the military choose presents for the family they only see once a year.

Lowe's, the home improvement chain, has an ad campaign called "Let's Holiday" emphasizing the Christmas shopping experience.

One Lowe's ad shows a boy following a trail of sparkles that turns coffee mugs into reindeer and gardening pots into wreaths. The ad ends with the campaign's tagline, "Lets Holiday." (Let me know if that happens to you while shopping at the local Lowe's store.)

The focus of the ads is to try to appeal to customers by providing the nostalgia of good times, Sprott said.

"The other set of retailers are trying to make people feel safe and comfortable in these economic times," he said.

And that, in turn, builds brand loyalty and turns into more sales for the retailer.

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Now that we're into the last four weeks of the holiday shopping season, which of these methods will prevail?

Retailers won't know for sure until January, when they report their sales for December and the entire fourth quarter. But Sprott said that given the state of the economy, neither method will likely pull ahead.

What is more apt to happen is that, like political parties, the penny pinchers and the sentimental softies will draw on two different segments of the shopping audience.

"They should do equally as bad or equally as good," he said.

Can't wait until next week for a new column? Check out my blog, Shoptalk (www.yakimaherald.com/shoptalk), for a daily dose of restaurant and retail news.

Until next week, happy shopping.

* Mai Hoang's Reporter's Notebook is published each Friday throughout the holiday shopping season. She can be reached at 577-7685 or mhoang@yakimaherald.com.