The Greatest Gift: How Creative Holiday Campaigns Celebrate Culture
Hey, fam. What’s up? You doing all right? It’s been a year sis. Between working, maintaining your side hustles, prioritizing self-care, and a whole Presidential election ( 🙄) it seems 2024 is never going to end. Here's to hoping that you have your holiday plans in place, both for you and your brand.
This time of year is about more than just festive decor and maxed-out credit cards. The reason for the season is to express our truest selves through the lens of celebration and tradition. As an individual, our annual celebrations can be an anchor point for our personality, but this can work for your brand too. With many marketing pros tapping authenticity as the key to engagement next year, it’s your time to shine and create campaigns that are about connecting. This is where storytelling meets marketing under the mistletoe.
Creating a “people first” campaign is an art form. Ask yourself: Who am I talking to? What’s their story this season? How does my identity connect with theirs? Candy canes are cute but get to the core of the reason for the season: family and time-honored traditions. This is the time to share your holiday story your way—especially if Christmas isn’t your bag. Curiosity never killed anything but some poor cat and users love a personal peek into the lives of brand founders. There’s a lot of potential for warmer, more intimate content that can help foster the festive mood. Maybe share a carousel of family recipes with some strategic product placement. Even making content that shows how you use the holiday to set boundaries can be effective. Encourage your audience to take a break have some holiday fun, and lead by example. There’s nuance in every story; honor those parts of yourself this year.
The holiday season is also the perfect time to let your posse get in on the action and use the moment to diversify your holiday content. The U.S. is a melting pot of celebrations, from Hanukkah and Diwali to Eid and Las Posadas. Invite members of your community to share their stories, photos, and traditions and create a unique opportunity to recognize the full scope of cultural holidays. Incorporating these snapshots thoughtfully into your campaigns will make your audience feel seen. Not everyone is rocking around the Christmas tree. This simple fact opens a world of possibilities for inventive, creative marketing that appeals to lots of different demographics.
Find ways to use your campaigns to tell micro-stories. How can you share short, sweet, relatable bursts of marketing materials that capture heartfelt moments? Nostalgia can be a great source of inspiration here. Think about those old videos of a reaction to the holiday lights or the spread of homemade Christmas-time goodies. Even seemingly ordinary events can make for effective marketing, as these everyday moments can create extraordinary connections with your audience. There’s a Thanksgiving missed text that has turned into a holiday tradition for millions and brought families together in a way no one ever expected. (RIP Doug) Find moments that make your audience stop and smile. This is the Christmastime magic that builds brand loyalty.
A fair warning before you pile on the pixie dust, be careful not to push campaigns that feel phony. Nobody likes a brand that tries too hard to be trendy, and nothing screams “fake” like slapping a star of David on an ad, without understanding its significance. It’s not only inauthentic, the lack of respect for other cultures is a fast way to lose fans. Do. Your. Homework. Work with creators, influencers, or consultants from those communities to make sure your message doesn’t diverge from your intent. Talk to your audience, not at them.
At the end of the day, the holidays are personal. Your audience doesn’t just want to watch you celebrate —they want to feel celebrated. By leaning into the unique, beautiful things that make your community special, you can create campaigns that feel less like marketing and more like a moment of appreciation. Be generous. Generous in personality, sharing, and connection. Reflect on how your brand is giving back to your community, and use your voice to give even more, uplifting the voices that might need a little bit more holiday magic this year.
We’re always in your corner queen.
Happy Holidays, y’all! 🎄✨
-The Team at TCQ.
