How to build a festive social media campaign for Christmas
It’s nearly Fa-la-la-la, la-la, la-Fall! That means Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas are right around the corner and no, it’s not too early to start planning your holiday social media campaign.
Let’s unwrap some of the ways that you can build a festive social media campaign for Christmas this year.
Before you start creating and posting content there are some steps you should take first!
Review your prior campaign(s) - if there was one
One of the first steps you should take is to review what you’ve done in the past. By reviewing what you’ve done previously, you can figure out what worked and what didn’t and why they did or didn’t work. Having these insights can help you create a stronger campaign this time around.
Define your goals
Think about what you want to accomplish with your campaign and be realistic. Do you have seasonal product(s) that you want to promote and sell? Are you looking for more reach? Whatever your goals are, define these goals first and they can help shape your campaign this holiday season. They can also help you measure your success once your campaign is over.
Now, let’s look at tips to build a festive social media campaign this Christmas.
Give back
The holiday season is all about giving and that can go for businesses as well! It’s really the perfect time to show your followers and supporters some appreciation!
Tapping into the spirit of giving by offering giveaways and/or a contest can be a great way to drum up some festive spirit!
Here’s an example of a photo contest from Ren’s Pets last year, followers could win a gift card by going to astore with their pet, taking a photo with Santa, and then sharing it on Instagram and tagging the brand account. This works because it encourages followers to visit the store (where they will likely make apurchase), has a fun activity (taking a photo of Santa and your pet), includes sharing on social media (which can encourage UGC and boost visibility), and it rewards select participants. Of course, you don’t have to follow this example exactly, have some fun with it and make it your own!
I’ve also seen brands do everything from 12 Days of giving with 12 different prizes, to gift baskets, swag, and more. Any of these will work! Here’s another example: Last year, No Frills gave followers the opportunity to win Royale paper products for a year AND 150,000 PC Optimum Points and a charity of the winner’s choice would receive the same thing!
This leads me to my next point…
Branded Hashtags
In the example above, No Frills used branded hashtags like #HolidayContest #RollWithTheHolidays #24DaysOfHolidayYays during their holiday social media campaign. It doesn’t matter if you’re running a contest or not, creating some festive holiday branded hashtags can help increase brand awareness and reach and it can encourage engagement as well as User Generated Content.
Create festive content
If you’re looking to build a festive social media campaign this year, you should be creating festive content as well, here are some examples of content you can share:
Festive recipes (i.e. party appetizers, baked goods, festive drinks, and more) - These would work well for food and beverage brands
Holiday Styling/lookbooks or “Get Ready with Me” videos - These would be great for clothing or beauty brands
Gift guides
Have fun festive sales
Everyone loves a sale around the holidays, whether it’s during Black Friday, Cyber Monday, or closer to Christmas! You can use social media to share holiday sales, like special discount codes, discounted holiday bundles, and more.
Here’s an example from the pet store Ren’s Pet’s, who had a “24 Days of Christmas” sale, offering a different deal, like discounts on pet food, each week for a span of 24 days in December.
Work with influencers
Influencers can be great ambassadors for your brand, especially during the holidays when people are looking for some holiday inspiration and guidance. What you decide to do is ultimately up to you, but here are a few go to examples:
Have influencers create content featuring your product(s), such as tutorials and lookbooks/styling videos.
Send out festive PR, if you’re going this route, check out our blog, Holiday PR packages: Dos and Don'ts
Are you starting to think of your holiday marketing? Check out our previous blog, the Ultimate Guide to Holiday Gift Guide Pitching and stay tuned for more holiday blogs!