The festive season brings opportunity – but it also brings chaos. For service-based businesses, it’s the final push before out-of-office mode. For a lot of ecommerce brands, it’s the busiest time of the year.
Whether you’re slowing down or gearing up, December doesn’t have to mean discounts. It’s about connection, clarity, and keeping your brand top-of-mind.
Here’s your Festive Marketing Checklist to help you plan ahead – so you can rest easy while your marketing keeps working.
1. Refresh Your Messaging and Visuals
‘Tis the season to connect – not just sell.
- Update your messaging to reflect the mood of the moment: gratitude, joy, connection, and giving.
- Add festive flair to your visuals (subtle design tweaks, not Santa overload). If you’re a South African brand – think sunny tones, shared moments, beach days, braais, and year-end celebrations – a more authentic take on local festivity.
- Keep your tone human – this is the one time of year when emotional storytelling beats hard selling.
Services business tip: Send “thank you” messages to clients and showcase the impact your work made this year.
Ecommerce business tip: Position your products as gifts, not commodities – made for moments that matter.
2. Lean Into the Gifting Mindset
Even service brands can play in the gifting space.
- Offer gift cards, referral rewards, or “book now, enjoy later” vouchers.
- For product brands, curate bundles or “gift guides” based on audience segments.
- Focus on experience-based marketing: the joy of giving, not the price tag.
Pro tip: A well-timed “Festive Favourites” campaign can drive engagement across your website and socials.
3. Be Strategic With Your Ad Spend
The holidays can make or break your ad budget.
- If this is your peak season: Lean in. Increase spend early (before CPCs spike).
- If it’s your quiet season: Bank your budget – or pivot to awareness and lead nurturing campaigns that set you up for January. Example: Run “Plan Ahead for 2026” lead-gen campaigns.
4. Automate, Don’t Hibernate
Out of office? Your marketing shouldn’t be.
- Set up autoresponders for enquiries – keep leads warm even while you’re offline.
- Use email automations to share festive greetings, product reminders, or thank-yous.
- Schedule social content so your brand stays visible during your downtime.
Services business tip: Use automation to book January consultations or calls.
Ecommerce business tip: Automate abandoned cart emails or post-purchase follow-ups.
5. Be Clear About Your Availability
Nothing kills customer experience faster than confusion.
- Update your festive trading hours everywhere: Google My Business, website, email signatures, and social bios.
- Add temporary banners or posts to communicate delivery cut-offs, closing dates, or reopen schedules.
Pro tip: Keep it on-brand – “We’re off spreading cheer from 24 Dec – 3 Jan” sounds a lot better than “Closed for holidays.”
Don’t Forget to Measure and Reflect
Before the year ends, look back at what worked and what didn’t.
- Review your top-performing posts, ads, and emailers.
- Identify which campaigns brought in the best leads or the most sales.
- Capture insights while they’re fresh – they’ll guide your 2026 strategy.
Pro tip: Turn insights into a New Year strategy session – we can help you map it out.
You don’t need deep discounts to stand out, just clear planning, consistent storytelling, and authentic connection.
Whether you want to update festive visuals, automate campaigns, or build something bold for 2026 – the time to brief is now. Let’s plan your festive strategy together.
