Holiday Marketing: 2025 Trends, Predictions + Expert Insights

From AI-driven personalization to live shopping events, these digital marketing tips will help you navigate the challenges of a short buying season and a cost-sensitive market for the best holiday revenue possible.

After years of steady growth, the 2025 holiday shopping is expected to slow due to the rising costs from inflation and larger economic uncertainty.

With yet another short window between Thanksgiving and Christmas this year, this puts extra pressure on businesses to maximize their holiday marketing campaigns in a limited time.

In this guide, we’ll offer expert insights to reach your target audience and increase sales this holiday season.

5 holiday marketing trends for 2025

This year is marked by crushing inflation, stronger consumer values, and a boom in AI technology and social commerce.

Here are some top holiday marketing trends we’ve noticed so far this year:

1. Value-driven messaging and price sensitivity

Two out of five Americans say inflation will impact their holiday shopping.

Companies are addressing these concerns directly in their messaging — speaking to their product or service’s benefits and offering discounts, bundles, and loyalty programs to gain traction.

2. Early holiday kickoff campaigns

Like last year, it’s another short shopping season. To compensate, brands are starting their holiday promotions early and extending their offers for last-minute shoppers.

Many consider Amazon’s Fall Prime Day (October 7-8 this year) as the unofficial start of the shopping season.

However, other big names like Walmart, Target, and Best Buy are following suit with holiday events online and in-store, starting as early as September and lasting up to a week.

3. Social commerce is taking over

Shopping directly inside social platforms (like TikTok, Pinterest, and Meta) is changing the way consumers and brands buy and sell products.

4. AI chatbots and personalization

Shoppers expect more personalized shopping experiences with product recommendations and real-time promotions with AI-powered technology to find the perfect gift.

5. Demand for sustainability

Consumers care more about the values of companies, which is pushing the demand for more sustainable products and packaging.

Holiday marketing tips for 2025

With those trends in mind, read on to see what experts offer as their top holiday marketing tactics for 2025.

1. Start (and end) your holiday marketing early

For large and small businesses alike, now is the perfect time to build holiday digital marketing campaigns and focus on deep discounts and bundled packages to attract lean spenders.

For an earlier start, it can be helpful to leverage pre-launch teasers, sneak peeks, and offer early access for VIPs.

John Ross, CEO of Test Prep Insight, also recommends starting and ending holiday campaigns early.

“[Online stores] have gotten pretty aggressive in the duration of their sales, so to beat them to the punch, you have to act early,” says Ross.

“But to overcome consumer instinct to wait it out for steeper discounts closer to the actual holiday, we place a shot clock on the sales.”

Using a big, bright banner on the navigation bar of your site makes it clear that the sale will end in 48 hours or less, compelling consumers to act quickly.

2. Implement personalization

For a long time, personalization meant using a shopper’s first name in promotional emails.

But with the rise of AI, holiday shoppers now expect brands to deliver experiences tailored to their preferences — especially during the competitive holiday season.

To make every interaction feel relevant, here are some personalization tips:

• Leverage data and segmentation: Use purchase history, browsing behavior, and demographic data to deliver product recommendations that resonate. Highlight best-sellers, recently viewed items, or new arrivals on checkout or product pages as well as emails.
• Personalize email campaigns: Personalized holiday emails can strengthen relationships and increase conversions. Dynamic content blocks let you feature different products or offers depending on customer segments.
• Go beyond the basics: While adding a recipient’s name can boost engagement, combining that with tailored promotions creates a stronger impact.
• Use automation strategically: Automated messages (like back-in-stock alerts or abandoned cart reminders) reengage shoppers to keep you top of mind — without much added work.

3. Send promotions directly to inboxes

Even with the growth of social commerce, email remains one of the most effective holiday sales drivers, accounting for roughly 20% of holiday online sales.

Unlike social ads, your email list reaches an audience that’s already opted in. In other words, they’re ready to convert.

To maximize success, create tailored deals for specific audience segments, such as:

• Percentage discounts on best-sellers
• BOGO (buy-one-get-one) offers
• Exclusive holiday bundles
• Early access to Black Friday/Cyber Monday sales
• Introductory discounts for new subscribers

Also, design your holiday-themed emails for engagement by including:

• Compelling subject lines
• A clear content hierarchy, with the most important info first
• Mobile-friendly layouts
• Strong CTAs
• Interactive elements

4. Use social media to drive visibility and sales

With younger audiences favoring social commerce over traditional shopping, ramping up your social media strategy is essential during the holidays.

Platforms like TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest are increasingly blending content and commerce through shoppable posts, live streams, and user-generated content (UGC).

Here are some ways to maximize your social media marketing efforts during the holiday shopping season:

Create shoppable content

Create social content, such as photos, videos, or carousels, with tagged products that users can purchase directly through the platform.

Use paid social ads

Run targeted ad campaigns that highlight holiday promotions, discounts, or best-selling product lines.

Consider holiday giveaway posts

Not every post has to be a “buy now” promotion. Another goal of holiday marketing is to build brand awareness. One option is showing holiday spirit by giving away freebies:

(Image: katiecorley__ on Instagram)

Pro tip: Don’t forget to use strategic hashtags to boost visibility and yield more views and engagement.

Host a live streaming event

Live streaming is one of the fastest-growing trends in social commerce. In fact, nearly 33% of U.S. adults have made a purchase through a live event.

It connects brands with consumers, giving them an opportunity to ask questions and learn more about your products before they buy — just like in-person shopping.

If you’re just getting started, remember to choose no more than ten products to sell (stick to your bestsellers).

5. Optimize for mobile, advertise via text

The trend of mobile commerce (or m-commerce) continues to rise. Mobile drives nearly 80% of ecommerce traffic and 66% of all online orders.

Not only is it important to optimize for mobile (fast-loading pages, a streamlined checkout, and mobile payment options), but it’s also a good idea to invest in holiday marketing via SMS (short messaging service) and MMS (multimedia messaging service) text marketing.

(Image: Vuori screenshot)

If you’re already building an email marketing list, consider doing the same for your SMS list.

6. Build holiday-specific landing pages

Where shoppers land after clicking on your ad can make or break your chances of a sale. Here are some suggestions for your holiday landing page templates:

Create dedicated seasonal pages: Build specific pages for events like Black Friday, Cyber Monday, or Christmas gift shopping.

Consider an evergreen sales hub: Another option is to create an evergreen sales and events page that you update year-round with new deals. This way, it’s already ranking for related keywords and generating backlinks (and traffic) from various sources.

If you don’t offer deals throughout the year, hide it using a temporary 302 redirect (vs. a permanent 301 redirect).

(Image: ARM & HAMMER screenshot)

Incorporate holiday content: Go beyond promotions by producing SEO-friendly content such as downloadable gift guides, curated collections, or blog-style shopping advice. This not only attracts organic traffic but also fosters trust by offering genuine value.

Further reading: How to Create Landing Pages that Convert: Examples + Pro Tips.

7. Invest in creative storytelling

More than ever, online shoppers value authenticity. Lean in by creating emotional connections through holiday narratives that align with your brand.

You can accomplish this with:

• UGC: Showcase real customers sharing holiday moments with your products.
• Produce brand videos: Short-form clips, behind-the-scenes footage, or mini holiday campaigns.
• Tap into themes that resonate: Authentic messaging around gratitude, giving, and time with loved ones is refreshing after being bombarded with holiday promotions online and offline.

8. Get creative with long-tail holiday keywords

Broad, generic keywords like “Christmas gift ideas” are extra competitive over the holidays.

To stand out and capture more qualified traffic, focus on long-tail search terms that reflect specific shopper intent.

Search Google Trends and discover related queries: Terms like “Christmas gifts for grandparents” spike every holiday season, making it a strong SEO and PPC opportunity.

Find other opportunities in the related queries box:

Turn queries into content: Build gift guides, blog posts, or landing pages tailored to these searches.

Incorporate terms into your paid campaigns: Use long-tail terms in ad copy and targeting to connect with shoppers who are closer to making a purchase decision.

9. Keep post-holiday opportunities in sight

Sales don’t have to drop after successful holiday marketing campaigns. Instead, make a post-holiday push to capture gift card redemptions, New Year sales — and even an effort to boost customer experience through seamless returns.

This can turn new customers into year-round shoppers.

Holiday marketing predictions for 2025

To summarize the biggest trends we’re seeing so far (and expect to see) this time of year:

• Sales growth will slow: Special offers and value-based messaging will be more important to buyers.
• The highest performers: Value retailers, ecommerce-focused brands, and those leaning into AI personalization.
• Wildcards: Trade and tariff shifts, supply chain issues, and unpredictable consumer spending trends could impact holiday gift purchasing.

The takeaway

Holiday marketing strategies continue to evolve with the rise of social commerce, AI-driven personalization, and another short shopping season.

To boost sales, it will be more important than ever to segment and target potential customers with personalized messaging while maintaining an authentic voice through creative storytelling.

This is perhaps best achieved through social commerce — something that may feel a bit daunting to many brands.

If you need help with your holiday marketing plan, the team at HawkSEM is here to help. From SEO and PPC to social media and content marketing, we turn casual shoppers into loyal customers.

Reach out any time.

This article has been updated and was originally published in October 2021.