Planning your Holiday Ads and Creative

Once the calendar flips from October to November, the marketing and consumerist world tends to take a dive headfirst into the holiday season. Advertisements and holiday marketing campaigns pop up all around us before we know it.

But as the excitement of holiday cheer begins to fill our lives, it's easy for consumers and brands alike to get swept up in all the holiday festivities and trigger "ad fatigue" from holiday stressors. So how can you create a holiday campaign that sticks out above the trends and reminds consumers what the season is all about?

Well, we're making a list (and checking it twice!) to help get you ahead of the crowd - keep reading for tips and tricks on planning your next stellar holiday ad campaign.

What Makes a Great Holiday Campaign?

The hustle and bustle of the famously labeled "most wonderful time of the year" often stimulates an adrenaline rush of joy and cheer, but we recognize it also can get stressful as the markets get prepped for the crowds. At times, it can begin to feel like a big production of holiday cheer.

You'll want a marketing strategy that feels both authentic and captivating to stick out among competitors. Creating a campaign that draws your target audience in while relieving some of those holiday blues is crucial to succeeding in producing quality content this winter season. Promote heartfelt feelings of connectivity with loved ones, generosity and giving, and stimulate all those feelings of good tidings while leaving the stress out in the cold.

Another key element in creating a strong holiday campaign is time management. Most holiday shoppers begin early and hit the stores before December rolls around and you'll want to be ready to hit the ground running when the season is upon us. Make sure you begin planning in mid to late August with plans to start advertising around November. Check out some of these marketing tips for creating your holiday advertisement.

Elements of a Holiday Ad Campaign

Whatever strategy you decide on, make sure its cohesive and consistent across all platforms. A strong holiday campaign will stick with consumers and benefit your team. Additionally, you'll want to pay attention to a few key elements in planning your holiday advertisements:

• Know who you are targeting: it seems like an obvious component to consider when you are planning out your holiday ads, but it can be one of the most crucial elements in creating a successful campaign. Recognize who your target audience is, and why they might be interested in what you have to offer.
• Anticipate trends: despite stores beginning to open back up for in-person shopping, online sales are expected to take over majority of holiday shoppers this year. Insider Intelligence notes that ecommerce sales are predicted to surge 35.8% as consumers will spend over $190.47 billion on holiday online purchases.
• Refine your delivery method: this is the core of your creative, including the design layout, what you'll want to say, and how you are going to present it. Engaging, visual designs and storytelling tactics reach audiences far more than stationary text. Get creative with your creative!
• Call to action: define what you can give to your audience this holiday season and give them an incentive take action.

How to Use Creative in your Holiday Ad Campaign

Whether you're sending out emails or opting for Instagram or Facebook ads, you'll want to provide consumers with consistently fresh content to mitigate the risk of "ad fatigue" among your audience.

Check out ways you can amp up your holiday advertising with Cohley for content such as:

• Social Ads
• Google Ads
• Email Marketing
• Websites
• SMS

Fortunately, Cohley is constantly at work producing ad-ready photo, video and media content that's ready to post on your preferred platform. Check out some of our content examples to get the ideas flowing!

With consistent, professional content at cost effective rates, Cohley is ready to help you plan your holiday advertisements for a successful season to ring in the New Year.

Holiday Ad Campaigns We Love

Need some ideas for planning your own campaign? Check out these examples of holiday advertisements that we are loving and why they work:

• Apple: "Make Someone's Holiday" - The ad begins in a relatable way, dealing with settling sibling disputes and keeping the peace while traveling for the holidays but by the end, we're all in tears. The length of this ad is a bit on the longer side, but it allows for the storytelling to unfold in a way that's emotional and evocative to the viewer. The message takes center stage but the repeated product placement isn't overlooked - the thing that brings the family all together is made possible by what Apple has to offer.
• Erste: "What Would Christmas be Without Love"- This beautifully animated ad is cute and heartfelt, tugging at our heartstrings. Rather than focusing on selling their services, Erste hones in on conveying a message about what they value most about their audience - believe in yourself and love each other out of kindness. It defiantly sets a positive tone for how the company wants to be perceived by consumers.
• Pepsi: "Cardi B's Twerk Shop" - Pepsi's multimillion-dollar campaign features rapper Cardi B and perfectly captures her widely renowned persona to advertise their product and new holiday promotion. The comedic elements and use of a big name celeb is sure to stick in the minds of viewers and get them to gravitate towards trying it out for themselves.

Consider some of these aspects when designing your own holiday advertisements - whichever direction you want to take your ad campaign, clearly define what you are trying to convey to your audience and what will complement your own company mission.

When you're ready to take your ad campaign to the next level, the Cohley Team is eager to help you utilize your branding and content creation to the max in order to crush this holiday season. Hit us up at hello@cohley.com to start planning your holiday ad campaign!