Festive Social Media Campaigns for the Holidays: Tips for Retailers

For most retailers, the holiday season is the most wonderful time of the year. The average business generates 26.8% of annual retail sales. Yet between holiday promos and ad campaigns, this season can easily become the most competitive time of year.

To meet Q4 sales goals for your retail business, you have to stand out amidst all the holiday lights. In other words, you need creative strategies and heartwarming campaigns.

In this article, we’ll cover how to create festive holiday campaigns for social media, from audience research and brand voice development to organic and paid social content. We’ll also include examples from major retailers to inspire your own campaigns.

Curious how Agorapulse can help your retail business plan for the holidays? Sign up for a free trial and test our social media publishing, listening, and analytics tools for 30 days.

Conduct Audience Research: Holiday Edition

As a social media marketer for an established retail brand, you’ve likely done your fair share of audience research already. But before you plan holiday campaigns, you must do market research for the season.

Analyze customer behavior around the holidays

During the rest of the year, your customer base likely has a certain buying cadence and purchasing preferences. But during the holiday season, those habits may transform completely.

For example, instead of making one purchase per quarter, your target audience may buy multiple items with a much higher average order value during the holiday season.

The end user may change, too. Rather than buying for themselves, your customer base may shop for family, friends, or coworkers. Plus, they may be seeking free shipping, discounts, and other promotions.

You have a couple of options for researching these patterns. One is reviewing sales data from past holiday seasons. There, you’ll find the products and promotions that drove the most sales and revenue.

Another option is checking your social media analytics from the previous year. Agorapulse retains data for 12+ months when you subscribe to our Professional, Advanced, or Custom plans.

Using this data, you can easily see which messaging worked best for holiday shoppers, which posts got the most clicks, and even which content generated the most revenue.

Create holiday personas for your audience

Next, use your research to segment your audience. Break your customers down by their seasonal needs and wants. For example, you may want to reach segments like:

• Enthusiastic gift shoppers
• Last-minute buyers
• Deal seekers

Then, use your social media research to shape your holiday messaging. Here are a few examples:

• Share heartwarming holiday stories to connect with enthusiastic gift shoppers
• Create a sense of urgency and highlight fast shipping speeds for last-minute buyers
• Showcase your best sales of the year to appeal to deal seekers

Keep these personas in mind as you create social media content. Plan to incorporate relevant elements of emotion, convenience, and cost in your social media posts.

Choose the right social media platforms for the holidays

Plan holiday campaigns for the social media platforms where your audience spends the most time. Once again, this is an area where last year’s social media data comes in particularly handy.

Check your Agorapulse analytics to see which channels generated the most reach or the best engagement during last year’s holiday season. In many cases, these platforms are a good pick for this holiday season, too.

As you plan your holiday social media content, customize each post for the platform. For example, add links to Facebook posts and product tags to Instagram content to make it easy for your audience to browse and shop.

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Craft a Unique Holiday Brand Voice

The holiday season is a time to show off your brand’s festive personality. Use the guidelines below to craft a unique holiday brand voice.

Be consistent, but with a holiday twist

Your holiday brand voice shouldn’t remove all traces of your core brand voice. Instead, plan to maintain your standard voice while adding on-brand holiday-themed language.

For example, you may want to add phrases like “holiday cheer” and “festive deals” to your messaging. Make sure that what you choose reflects the excitement and emotions of the season while staying true to your brand.

For example, this Facebook video by Bass Pro Shops shares a visit to the retailer’s resident Santa Claus. While it tells an engaging holiday story, the caption and voiceover remain true to the brand: short and to the point.

Maintain authenticity during the holiday season

The holiday season can be a wonderful time of year, filled with generosity and nostalgic tones. However, it can also attract consumer skepticism.

As a result, brands that feature genuine holiday stories are more likely to build trust with followers. To maintain authenticity, think about showcasing your community involvement or sharing how your brand celebrates.

You can also highlight charitable efforts that your brand contributes to or hosts. As an example, this Facebook reel by Build-A-Bear Workshop features a partnership with the nonprofit First Book.

Design a festive visual identity

Arguably, the most important element of your holiday marketing campaigns is your brand’s visual identity. After all, you want to capture your audience’s attention as they scroll through their feed and inspire them to engage.

For the holiday season, consider incorporating relevant colors and imagery into your content and profile. Here are a few ideas:

• Update your Facebook cover image to reflect a holiday theme
• Incorporate Christmas or Hanukkah elements into your content
• Add seasonal graphics and overlays to your photos and videos

However, keep in mind that a steady stream of holiday colors and themes may start to blend together. Using winter tones, textures, and imagery can help your brand stand out in your followers’ holiday feeds.

For example, this Instagram post by Gap reflects the brand’s visual identity for the holiday season: muted tones, warm sweaters, and cozy vibes.

Develop a Festive Holiday Content Strategy

Once you’ve done the groundwork, you’re ready to focus on your holiday content strategy. Here are a few elements to guide you.

Use holiday-themed storytelling

Posts featuring deals and seasonal sales can certainly capture your followers’ attention and prompt them to shop. But with storytelling, you can capture your audience’s emotions and inspire them to think about incorporating your brand into their holiday plans. Here are a few ideas:

• Share stories about families enjoying holiday traditions or creating memorable events
• Tell stories about shopping for the perfect gift to give
• Craft stories about celebrating with loved ones

When you think of shopping for Christmas gifts, your local hardware store might not come to mind first. But this Facebook video by Ace Hardware shares a compelling story about turning tools into musical instruments, giving the hardware store’s DIY approach a creative spin.

Encourage user-generated holiday content

Your social media team doesn’t necessarily have to produce all the social media content your brand posts over the holiday season. Instead, this festive time of year is a great opportunity for user-generated content (UGC).

Encourage customers and followers to post UGC that features your brand. Suggest themes like showing how to shop for your brand in-store, how to wrap gifts from your brand, or how to celebrate with your brand.

Make it easy for customers to participate by creating a branded hashtag. While you can certainly use your standard branded hashtag, it’s more festive to use a holiday-themed hashtag like #FestiveWith[YourBrand].

For example, this Facebook video by Walgreens features the branded hashtag #WAGCreator. This creator-produced video shows various wrapped gifts from Walgreens and challenges viewers to guess what’s inside.

To collect a large volume of UGC quickly, consider turning it into a contest. Invite followers to post photos and videos with your holiday hashtag in exchange for the chance to win products, gift cards, or discounts.

Organize influencer partnerships with a holiday focus

Partnering with influencers gives your team even more opportunities to increase reach and introduce your brand to a wider audience. Over the holidays, consider collaborating with influencers on content like unboxing videos, gift guides, or holiday vlogs.

In many cases, you’ll want the influencer to post this partner content directly to their social profile. After all, that’s the best way to get your brand in front of their audience.

But by reposting influencer content to your brand’s profile, you can build trust with your audience and add another layer to your holiday storytelling.

For example, this TikTok video by The Home Depot features a shopping guide by influencer Mallory Hudson. It walks viewers through holiday items on sale for a limited time.

Brainstorm engaging holiday content formats

Does your team typically stick to a regular rotation of photo posts and short-form videos? During the holiday season, experiment with more engaging formats so you can meet your sales goals.

Think about using Instagram stories to generate engagement and prompt followers to shop. Or create TikTok videos and Instagram reels that viewers are likely to discover on their For You Page or as they scroll their feed.

Consider testing live video, too. For example, this Facebook Live by Walmart features several of the retailer’s top Christmas gifts.

This Pinterest board by Dollar General breaks down holiday inspiration into several sections. Shoppers can easily browse toys, decorations, crafts, and more.

Leverage Holiday Social Media Trends

Don’t let holiday trends pass you by. Here’s how to include trends in your holiday marketing campaigns.

Adapt to holiday shopping trends

Between Black Friday and Cyber Monday, the holiday shopping season starts with a bang. If you’re planning to offer discounts during the holiday season, consider launching them on one of these days.

For example, this Facebook post by Target uses a carousel to highlight the retailer’s biggest Black Friday deals. Since they’re available for a limited time only, the promotion creates a sense of urgency for shoppers.

Use social commerce features to make content even more tempting to shop. By adding product tags to Instagram content or TikTok videos, you make it easy for shoppers to tap and purchase.

For example, this Instagram post by Sephora includes interactive product tags.

Respond quickly as seasonal trends change

Although you’ll likely want to plan your holiday content calendar in advance, it’s a good idea to leave space for last-minute changes. When viral holiday challenges, last-minute gift ideas, and other trends emerge, you’ll want to jump on them quickly.

For example, this Instagram reel by Lowe’s Home Improvement features a trending holiday hack that viewers can replicate using a few inexpensive supplies from the retailer.

Want to simplify trend discovery? Use a social media listening tool like Agorapulse to spot popular trends and hashtags. For example, this Pinterest board by Kroger features lighter options for anyone needing a break from heavy holiday foods.

Plan holiday-specific hashtag campaigns

You aren’t limited to trending hashtags. Create your own to get in the holiday spirit and encourage followers to join in the celebration.

For example, this TikTok video by Aldi features the #ALDIChristmas2023 hashtag along with the popular #ALDIFinds hashtag. It’s a holiday-themed take on the retailer’s popular Aldi Finds series, which highlights limited-time items available in-store.

Engaging with Your Holiday Community

Social media should never be a one-way broadcast channel for brands, especially during the holiday season.

Make time for festive conversations

Encourage followers to engage with your social media content. Ask them about their holiday traditions, prompt them for gift ideas, or invite them to talk about what’s on their own wishlists. Then, take time to respond.

In this TikTok video by Ulta Beauty, the brand hosts a holiday hotline. The host responds to questions from followers, helping them choose the ideal gift for family and friends.

Build holiday loyalty

Make holiday shopping fun for your followers, and you might earn your brand some loyal customers. Consider offering special early-bird discounts or giving away freebies over the holidays.

Or take inspiration from this Instagram post by ban.do. Part of the brand’s ban.dolidays series, it’s a holiday-themed giveaway that doubles as a gift guide.

Using social media for holiday customer support

Between new shoppers and shopping timelines, you’re bound to receive a lot of questions from shoppers during the holiday season. To answer questions efficiently, use select social media channels for customer support.

With Agorapulse’s social inbox, managing customer queries doesn’t have to be stressful for your team. Set up saved replies so your team can respond to frequently asked questions quickly and consistently.

Use our inbox assistant to moderate engagement automatically.

For example, you can assign inbox items with certain keywords to specific team members for quick replies or detailed follow-ups.

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Paid Holiday Advertising Strategies

Have sales goals that you can’t reach with organic social media alone? Use these tips to plan successful holiday ad campaigns.

Target holiday shoppers

Use your holiday research to guide your paid content, too. Create campaigns for the different personas you want to reach, including early shoppers, last-minute buyers, or customers browsing for stocking stuffers.

For e-commerce retailers, creating catalog-based shopping campaigns tends to be the most straightforward solution. For retail stores, offering limited-time in-store promotions can create a sense of urgency and inspire customers to visit.

Budget for holiday campaigns

Make sure your holiday advertising budget aligns with your sales goals for the shopping season. When in doubt, use each ad platform’s built-in forecasting tool to estimate your results, given your budget, goal, and audience. Then, adjust your budget as necessary.

Consider allocating additional ad spend for key periods, such as Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and the final shopping days prior to Christmas. Using platforms like Meta, you can opt to increase your budget during any period you choose.

A/B testing holiday creatives and messaging

Not sure which messaging or creative will resonate best with your audience? There’s no need to guess.

Instead, use A/B testing to experiment with multiple holiday-themed ad creatives or messages. Monitor the results closely to see what performs best. Then, allocate the rest of your budget to the winning version.

Measure and Optimize Holiday Campaigns

Monitor the results of your holiday efforts closely. Use your insights to make last-minute changes to campaigns and inform next year’s holiday marketing strategy.

Define holiday-specific KPIs

Start by setting key performance indicators (KPIs) for the holiday season. Set goals for outcomes like website traffic, conversions, and sales.

Track social media metrics, too. By monitoring engagement and reach for your holiday content, you can see what resonates best with your audience.

Check holiday campaign analytics

With Agorapulse analytics, you can monitor performance across social media profiles. From your social media reports dashboard, you can easily track reach, engagement, and audience growth.

Our reporting tool also highlights the top content for each profile so you can quickly see what works best. Plus, it also reveals the top content types (videos, photos, links, or carousels) for each profile, so you know what to post.

From your social media return on investment (ROI) dashboard, you can monitor metrics like website traffic, conversions, and revenue. Our social media ROI solution reveals which channels, campaigns, and content deliver the best ROI for your brand.

With this data, your team can make data-driven decisions about what to post. And you can prove the value of your team’s social media efforts during the holiday season and beyond.

Wrapping Up Our Look at Holiday Campaigns for Social Media

The holiday season presents a unique opportunity for retailers to generate sales and meet revenue goals. Yet it’s also an important time of year to strengthen relationships and cultivate loyal customers for the new year.

With Agorapulse, your team can publish social media content across platforms, manage engagement efficiently, and monitor the results—including revenue. Sign up for a free trial of Agorapulse to start testing our social media solution and get your team ready for the holiday season ahead.