Christmas tree decor and lights are out of their boxes once again. Living rooms are filled with the smell of plum cakes. Shops are packed. Yes, it’s that time of the year! It’s a happy season for everyone worldwide; to join this festive mood, brands aren’t too far behind either. 

From setting countdowns for Christmas to personalized holiday-themed products, businesses are decked up to boost their sales for the last leg of the year. To tag along, here is an extensive list of top Christmas marketing ideas curated for your holiday campaigns that are viable and feasible. We’ve made sure that you don’t run out of any ideas for the next couple of seasons :) 

Social media marketing ideas

1. Share Christmassy photos

Paint your feed red! Create and share festive photos that resonate with the Christmas spirit. Use popular Christmas themes, colors, and symbols to capture your audience's attention.

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You can see how the above brands have interpreted Christmas in their own ways. While Ferreiras, a South African based design botique, announced special discounts on their products with Christmas themes, Hershey’s came up with some playful copy. 

2. Shoot reels

Shoot short videos to showcase to your followers the holiday preparations or your product highlights. It is said that 73% of consumers choose short-form videos to learn about products or services and what better way to announce your holiday deals than with these short and catchy TikTok videos or Instagram reels — just like Amazon did here.

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It’s a perfect way to tell families how to keep their kids engaged during the holidays. It also emphasizes the importance of having a good time together as a family during the breaks.

Also read: The Branding Playbook: Winning Strategies for Amazon Storefront Success

3. Run holiday ads

Be it for your Facebook, Twitter, or any other social media page, design eye-catching advertisements featuring Christmas promotions, discounts, or exclusive holiday products by targeting the right audience on social media.

Source: Facebook

Dollar Shave Club, as usual, came up with a hilarious ad on Facebook. You can observe 2 things from here. One is how the brand induced its fun tone of messaging featuring their product amidst the Christmas backdrop and the other one is how they stuck to their consistent branding, yet again.

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Also read: Facebook Ad Sizes and Specs for 2023

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4. A daily dose of Christmas

Run a campaign (the earlier, the best) where you share Christmas-related content daily until the day of Christmas. It can include a mix of your product features, fun facts, and interactive challenges that are related to your brand voice. Some good content could hook your audience to your page till the ultimate day!

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Ikea, every marketer’s favorite brand to examine, also comes up with Christmas marketing campaigns every year. One of their popular campaigns is designed along the lines of “12 Days of Christmas” where they come up with offers, decorating tips, gift-giving, and more. Again, a brand focusing on putting families above their products.

5. Team up with an influencer

Want more viewership? Collaborate with influencers to brighten your Christmas campaigns. 63% of consumers have shared that they trust product recommendations from the influencers they follow. A good influencer who creates genuine content that resonates with their followers can expand your reach.

Kiehl’s, a popular American cosmetics brand, brought a twist with their influencer Christmas marketing campaign. Instead of tying up with a popular influencer, they brought their employees into the limelight for a giving campaign to support the charity Feeding America. Not only is this a beautiful initiative by the brand but it also resonated well with their audience by directly connecting them with the actual faces of the brand.

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6. User-generated content 

Want your users to engage with your page? Encourage them to share their holiday experiences with your products/services. 

Starbucks is a top example of the brand-customer holiday blend, especially with its user-generated content campaigns. Every seasonal holiday, the brand brings back its festive-themed cups and hashtags to go with them on its social media pages. With the power and luxury that the brand holds, customers who order the special drinks never hesitate to upload photos of the cups to flaunt their order.

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Also read: What Starbucks Can Teach You About Marketing and Branding Strategy

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7. Festive contest

Holidays are when consumers go on a shopping spree. Plan and organize contests related to Christmas, such as the best-decorated tree, holiday scavenger hunt, Trivia nights, etc. It is fun and easy to engage any age group of the audience with these games. You can choose to reward participants with holiday-themed prizes, encouraging more consumers to join the contest. This can also spread the word about your brand from your customers to their family and friends. 

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Ted Baker ran a hashtag contest called Ted’s Elves. They created 32 Instagram accounts and organized a scavenger hunt for prizes and elves. The contest hit the trending charts with 37K interactions and 14.5K entries. This Christmas campaign is an example of engaging your audience and raising brand awareness.

8. Host virtual workshops

Conduct virtual events like workshops or tutorials to engage your audience. Provide valuable content while subtly promoting your products or services. If you’re an F&B brand, one of the best ways to attract your audience is by conducting an online baking class using your products. This way, the audience gets both a visual experience and an understanding of how your products work.

9. Christmas giveaways

Conduct giveaways with Christmas-themed prizes. Encourage participants to share, like, and tag their friends to increase visibility.

For instance, New York-based coffee brand Gillies organized a giveaway called Stocking Stuffer where two winners each win an Aeropress coffee maker and a bag of coffee. Their Facebook page saw around 2000 entries for the contest.

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There are chances of increasing your follower base on social media in such cases and the participants are only promoting your brand by simply tagging your name or sharing your giveaway post. 

Email marketing ideas

10. Emails

Craft emails with compelling subject lines that evoke curiosity or convey a sense of urgency among the readers. Also, remember to use beautiful and relevant visuals where you could add pop-culture references in the content. 

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Office Luv kept their email crisp and personal with actual employee faces. A direct track to reach any reader’s heart.

11. Holiday newsletter  

What are holidays without sending your customers greetings? Mail them Christmas-themed newsletters with updates, promotions, and warm holiday greetings. To improve the experience further, you can personalize the message with your subscriber’s name to make them feel valued.

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Customers are everything, and Loeffler Randall has made sure to express gratitude to their subscribers by addressing it and offering them an exclusive sale before others. They have also kept the newsletter minimal with the same palette. 

12. Limited-time offers

There’s no JOMO on a limited-period offer if announced the right way. A good time-sensitive email can create a sense of urgency and FOMO among the subscribers and push this urgency to drive conversions.

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Here, what makes Boden attractive is the personalization of the subscriber’s name and the countdown timer which can drive any real shopper crazy. 

Retail marketing ideas

13. Release holiday-themed video campaigns

Holidays are for family gatherings and going down the nostalgic lane. Creating video campaigns where viewers can emotionally resonate with their holidays is the key to successfully winning a Christmas marketing campaign. While focusing on the storytelling, do not forget to integrate your products into holiday celebrations. This way, your product is a no-miss to the audience!

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Okay, coming back (takes out the towel), the #ReindeerReady Christmas campaign by McDonald’s shows a mother’s efforts to get her teenage son into the holiday spirits. But she fails until they go to McDonald’s and order reindeer treats. The video ad also emphasized how every parent goes through this transition phase of their child.

14. Offline events

Host in-store events or pop-ups with festive themes, food, and entertainment. Create a memorable in-person shopping experience for your customers.

15. Holiday-themed packaging

How would your product look on the shelf if it had a festive touch to its packaging? Embrace the holiday spirits and design special holiday packaging for your products. Work on the visual appeal and make your products gift-ready.

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Every festive season, Bath & Body Works understands the assignment and turns their packaging holiday-themed with colors like red, pink, and green. If you're shopping online or in a store, their colorful packaging is sure to catch your eye and make them the perfect choice for gifting.

16. Holiday-themed stores

Transform physical and online stores with Christmas decorations. Create themed sections for easy navigation. Strategically set up products in a visually appealing corner or near the counter for last-minute impulsive shopping.

17. Organize charity events

It’s not merry for all during the holidays. Keeping that in mind, run charity drives or form partnerships with non-profit organizations to give back during the holiday season. It is also an opportunity to align your brand with social responsibility.

18. It’s raining offers 

Who doesn’t love to spend an extra penny during the holiday season? Introduce special holiday promotions to drive sales as loyalty rewards and discounts. 

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Sephora rewards its members with a luxurious gift card worth $25 over a purchase of $50 to shop more. This encourages the customer to stay loyal to the brand as the benefits are high.

19. Christmas-themed product names

If there is one brand that is the face of the holidays, then it would be Starbucks! If you look at their website and products, or even visit a store, Christmas is written all over them. Renaming or labeling products with Christmas-themed names can make products more appealing and relevant during the season.

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Look how Starbucks has named their coffee mix - It celebrates Christmas and holidays!

20. Inclusivity

Yes, some celebrate Christmas during their summer. So ensure your marketing materials are inclusive and appeal to a diverse audience. Everyone has their own depiction of the festive season, so it’s important to highlight the universal joy of the holiday season through your campaigns.

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The brand above shows us an ingenious way of talking about the holiday season specifying no particular festival. This kind of messaging gives everyone around the world a sense of belonging which is the ultimate win-win after all.

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Also read: 6 Memorable Marketing Campaign Examples to Inspire You - Artwork Flow

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21. Set up a photo booth 

Let’s make it to the gram with glam! Set up photo booths with Christmas props in stores or at the events. Encourage customers to share their photos from the booth on social media. This is also a case of user-generated content that would spread the word for free!

22. Post-Christmas sales 

Your promotional campaigns don’t stop with the day of Christmas. Keep the holiday spirit alive in customers by keeping the momentum going even after the holiday rush. It is also the best way to clear out remaining stock with post-Christmas sales.

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Popular brand Lululemon came up with a “We Made Too Much” campaign post Christmas which was a genius strategy for execution and copy.

Website and mobile app marketing ideas

23. Holiday-themed website

Redesign your website with festive colors, banners, and themed elements. Create a visually appealing and impressive online experience for your customers which makes them want to keep coming back.

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Shoppers will not leave disappointed after browsing through the website of J.Crew. Reason? Many. Starting with the black callout box which advertises a limited-time sale, the brand also uploaded curated holiday looks that visitors can style on themselves or directly shop from making the shopping experience a lot easier. 

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Also read: 11 Design Principles to Boost Your Conversion Rates

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24. Christmas countdown 

Add a countdown timer to create anticipation. Market special offers leading up to key dates. Every day until the day of Christmas you can announce different discounts, release videos, and conduct games or quizzes.

Football club Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) dropped an advent calendar that revealed a new promo or offers every day. As a result of the draw, PSG could collect 47% of opt-ins for their newsletter. 

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25. Free shipping orders

If you want to keep your campaigns minimal, offer free shipping to your customers for holiday orders. Remember to highlight this promotion prominently on your website and let customers know about the offer. This can even increase the chances of gift purchases from your e-store during the holidays.

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Tip: You can add a free return option as well so that your customers can shop at ease knowing they can get the best.

26. Personalized gift guides

Would you try out that new restaurant your friend recommended? Likewise, suggesting a couple of products based on your customer’s previous interactions helps them to an extent. Creating personalized gift guides makes their lives easier by finding the perfect holiday gifts. 

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Here, Guess has tailored recommendations for their users by categorizing on a gender basis, making choosing the gift a piece of cake.

27. Xmas-themed sign-up forms 

Want to boost lead generation? Update sign-up forms with Christmas-themed visuals. Reward these sign-ups with exclusive holiday downloadable content or discounts. This can increase your chances of newsletter sign-up rates.

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28. In-app promotion

From discounts and push notifications to story polls and pop-ups, run exclusive in-app promotions. Encourage users to engage with your app during the holiday season by introducing interactive games and quizzes. 

29. Push notifications

Push notifications are a way for the users to engage with your app. Send push notifications for limited-time offers or reminders with a spoonful of creativity in your copy. It is also a solution to keep your audience informed about your promos.

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Buy One, Get One (BOGO) promotions are an easy way to get customers to engage with your app and to make repeat purchases.

30. Optimization of content 

Ensure your website and app are optimized for users. Use seasonal keywords in PPC campaigns for increased visibility and make sure the user experience is smooth with easily navigable buttons and decent page speed.

To a Jolly Molly year!

There are hundreds of brands that choose to run Christmas campaigns and the competition is high. These campaigns must be well-planned and executed right on time. By implementing these ideas across various channels, your brand can create an impressive and engaging Christmas marketing strategy. 

To help you create a Christmas-themed background for your product images or social media page covers, Artwork Flow’s AI background generator can easily help you with that. The creative operations tool lets you manage and proofread your campaign creatives. You can also share them without worrying about your brand reputation as Artwork Flow also has a brand compliance tool. To know what more can Artwork Flow do, schedule a demo with the team.