Holiday Influencer Marketing in 2025: What Brands Need to Know

The holiday season continues to be one of the most commercially important periods of the year. For many brands, it accounts for up to 30% of annual retail revenue, and preparations now begin months in advance. From Black Friday to the January sales, both brands and shoppers are planning earlier and buying more intentionally.

Recent retail forecasts for 2025 indicate strong performance despite economic pressures. Shoppers are still spending, but with greater selectiveness. They are prioritising authenticity, value and trust, which makes influencer marketing a key strategy for staying visible and competitive during the festive season.

Timing Matters More Than Ever

Holiday campaigns no longer centre solely on Christmas. To make an impact, brands need to align their activity with the full seasonal calendar in 2025:

Key seasonal moments (2025):
Halloween: 31 October
Singles’ Day: 11 November
Black Friday: 28 November
Cyber Monday: 1 December
Pakjesavond (NL market): 5 December
Christmas: 25 December
New Year’s Eve: 31 December
New Year’s resolutions and January sales: early January

Planning campaigns well in advance gives room for:

• Aligning messaging with specific goals such as sales, launches or brand awareness
• Strong creative development rather than rushed content
• Securing posting slots and budgets early
• Choosing the most effective formats and calls to action

The earlier the plan is finalised, the more intentional and impactful the execution will be.

Secure Talent Early

Creator schedules fill quickly in the run-up to the festive period. Brands that wait until autumn to start outreach often miss out on the best partners and content slots.

Planning ahead helps you to:

• Lock in creators who align with your brand and audience
• Avoid delays to posting dates and approvals
• Gain faster responses from existing partners
• Allow time for concepting, production and revisions
• Ensure content quality does not suffer due to time pressure

Long-term collaborators are especially valuable at this time of year, as they already know your tone, expectations and workflows.

Effective Influencer Strategies for 2025

1. Affiliate discounts and vouchers

With consumers looking for value, providing unique discount codes through creators is a powerful way to drive conversions. It enables:

• Followers to save on gifts
• Brands to boost sales without heavy ad spend
• Influencers to earn commission on performance

2. Seasonal giveaways

Festive giveaways drive visibility and engagement quickly. You can:

• Partner with multiple creators to promote a prize
• Use entry requirements such as follows, comments or shares
• Encourage in-store visits with surprise bundles or samples
• Use store locator links to drive footfall

3. Allowlisting and paid amplification

Repurposing influencer-generated content as advertising is one of the strongest ways to scale campaign impact over the holiday period. Include allowlisting access in agreements so your brand can:

• Run paid ads through the creator’s account
• Reuse content across email, social channels and websites
• Increase performance without producing content internally

Authentic creator-led ads typically outperform traditional branded ads during Q4.

Holiday Timeline for 2025

October
Halloween: 31 October

November
Singles’ Day: 11 November
Black Friday: 28 November
Cyber Monday: 1 December

December
Pakjesavond: 5 December
Christmas: 25 December
New Year’s Eve: 31 December

January
Resolutions and seasonal sales

Need Help Planning Your Campaign?

If you’d like ideas, strategy support or help sourcing creators, get in touch with your Customer Success Manager. Planning early ensures access to the strongest talent, the best timing and maximum festive reach.